Impact on well-being and motivation to physical activity practice by ‘Moving Park’ project in Italy

It is widely known that regular physical activity (PA) can provide substantial benefits to health and well-being. Green spaces and supervised PA interventions by trainers are also effective factors in increasing participation in PA. Hence, the “Moving Parks” project conducted by the Municipality of Bologna, Italy, emerged out of necessity. This study aimed to measure the effectiveness and the reasonableness of the project by investigating the effects of Moving Park intervention on participants’ well-being and motivations for future PA engagement. Two questionnaire surveys before and after the participation in the project were administered and 138 valid results were analyzed. The results suggest a significant improvement in well-being after participating in the outdoor sessions provided by the present study; the most possible motivation which drives to practice PA is the feeling of guilt, especially for females. Overall, the continuation of the “Moving Parks” project is rewarding to the residents, reducing stress, and improving wellbeing.