Evaluating the Push-Up Challenge: Impacts on Mental Health, Help-Seeking and Exercise Behaviours in Australia

TL;DR

The Push-Up Challenge in Australia slightly improved mental health and increased help-seeking behaviors, but effects were small and not long-lasting.

Contribution

This study evaluates the real-world impact of a combined mental health and exercise promotion event on a large population.

Findings

Small reductions in depression and anxiety symptoms were observed three months post-event.

Participants were more likely to seek help for mental health issues and adopt self-care strategies.

Physical activity levels increased after the event but were not sustained long-term.

Abstract

The Push-Up Challenge is an Australian health promotion event combining mental health awareness with an exercise goal. This study aimed to evaluate its impact on participants’ resilience, wellbeing and mental health, physical activity, social connectedness, and mental health literacy. Using a pre-post design, we analysed survey data across three timepoints: pre-event (N = 29,069), two weeks post-event (N = 9,970), and three months post-event (N = 4,346). Outcomes included resilience, depression and anxiety symptoms, wellbeing, help-seeking behaviours, self-care activities, and physical activity levels. Survey respondents were mostly male (64.8%) with a mean age of 35.68 years (SD = 12.8). Mixed-effects models were used to assess change over time, adjusting for factors associated with missingness. At three-month follow-up, results showed very small significant reductions in depression (d = -0.09, p < 0.001) and anxiety symptoms (d = -0.09, p < 0.001), and small improvements in positive wellbeing (d = 0.15, p < 0.001). There were no significant changes in resilience, physical activity, social connection, or odds of experiencing a mental health problem. Participants were more likely to seek help for mental health problems (OR = 2.05 [1.31, 3.19]) and adopt self-care strategies (OR = 3.79 [2.64, 5.45]). Physical activity levels increased significantly post-event (d = 0.10, p < 0.001) but were not maintained at follow-up. While improvements in mental health symptoms were small, this is consistent with similar population-level mental health promotion interventions. Findings suggest that The Push-Up Challenge shows promise as a multifaceted intervention combining exercise-based mental health promotion with mental health awareness and literacy components.

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