Physical Activity among Military Veterans
This chapter provides the significant and complex health disparities seen in the veteran population compared to their civilian counterparts and examines the influences on physical activity from a multilevel, sociological perspective. It reviews current evidence-based strategies for promoting physical activity for veterans, focusing on the cultural implications for practice. The chapter explores some of these health disparities and focuses on their associations with physical activity. It discusses the exercise professional’s need to conduct formative work to understand a specific population of veterans’ cultural and behavioral expectations before implementing exercise programming. Subgroups within the veteran population are at risk for health disparities that can often be traced directly to disabilities or environmental exposures incurred as part of military service and to difficulties adjusting to a civilian culture that lacks the structure, camaraderie, and sense of mission that the military provides.
