Physical activity has been defined as " any bodily movement produced by skeletal muscles that results in energy expenditure " . it is strongly endorsed as a means of staying healthy and an important avenue for social contact . although in australia , some studies have been conducted into the levels of physical activity in some ethnic communities , there has been a tendency to adopt a homogeneous view of culturally and linguistically diverse ( cald ) people rather than an ethno - specific perspective that recognises differing cultural beliefs and practices between and across language groups . this paper reports on a study that aimed to explore the concepts of , and attitudes towards , physical activity among older hong kong chinese australians resident in nsw . this study involved individual in - depth interviews and the use of open - ended questions . a total of 22 informants was recruited for the study . the findings revealed that most informants did not have a clear idea about what was meant by the term physical activity . " physical activity " tended to be a confusing and complicated term to this group . in addition , attitudes towards physical activity among this group reflect their cultural and health beliefs in preventive health care . to increase the physical activity level among older hong kong chinese australians , culturally - specific health promotion strategies might be needed to tackle the misconception about and specific attitudes towards physical activity , as well as to match the holistic chinese oncept of health maintenance
