Physical Activity During Soccer and Its Contribution to Physical Activity Recommendations in Normal Weight and Overweight Children

Amid the childhood obesity epidemic, understanding how organized sports participation contributes to meeting physical activity recommendations in children is important. Anthropometrics were measured in children (n = 111; 68% female, 9.1 ± 0.8yr) before one 50-min soccer match. Time spent at different physical activity intensity levels was examined using Actigraph accelerometers. 49% of the match time was spent in sedentary activity (25.4 ± 5.7 min), while 33% of the match (16.9 ± 4.7 min) was spent in moderate-to-vigorous activity (MVPA; p < .001). 22.5% of the children were overweight/obese and spent more time in sedentary activity (+3.2 ± 1.2 min; p < .05) and less time in MVPA (-3.0 ± 1.0 min; p < .01) compared with the normal weight children. These data demonstrate that playing an organized sport such as soccer only meets a portion (~25%) of the 60 min of MVPA recommended and even less of this recommendation is met by overweight/obese children.

Download Full-text

Socioeconomic Inequities in Youth Participation in Physical Activity and Sports

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph18136946 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 18 (13) ◽

pp. 6946

Author(s):

Pooja S. Tandon ◽

Emily Kroshus ◽

Katharine Olsen ◽

Kimberly Garrett ◽

Pingping Qu ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Physical Activity ◽

Sports Participation ◽

Youth Participation ◽

Cross Sectional Survey ◽

Middle School Children ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Potential Benefits ◽

Physical Activity Recommendations ◽

High Schoolers ◽

Activity Recommendations

Access to opportunities for physical activity and sports, and therefore potential benefits of participation, are distributed inequitably. The aims of this study were to describe and compare youth experiences related to sport and physical activity by socioeconomic factors. A cross-sectional survey was conducted of students in 5–12th grades in King County, Washington, USA. Students were asked about physical activity and sports experiences and about demographic factors including family affluence, which was categorized as low, medium, and high. Participants were 1038 youth (50% girls, 58% non-White, and 32% from homes where languages other than English are spoken). Children from low-affluence families reported fewer days/week of physical activity, fewer sports sampled, and lower rates of ever playing sports. Greater proportions of children from low-affluence families reported these barriers to sports: (1) don’t want to get hurt, (2) don’t feel welcome on teams, (3) too expensive, and (4) transportation. Middle school children from high-affluence families had three times higher odds of meeting physical activity recommendations, and high-affluence high schoolers had three times higher odds of ever participating in sports compared to peers from low-affluence families. Socioeconomic status was inversely associated with outcomes related to youth physical activity and sports participation. The disproportionately reported barriers to sports participation are modifiable, and cross-sector solutions can help promote play equity.

Download Full-text

Accelerometer Response to Physical Activity Intensity in Normal-Weight Versus Overweight African American Children

Journal of Physical Activity and Health ◽

10.1123/jpah.8.5.682 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 8 (5) ◽

pp. 682-692 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

Daniel Arvidsson ◽

Mark Fitch ◽

Mark L. Hudes ◽

Catrine Tudor-Locke ◽

Sharon E. Fleming

Keyword(s):

Physical Activity ◽

African American ◽

Weight Status ◽

Normal Weight ◽

Fat Free Mass ◽

African American Children ◽

Overweight Children ◽

Physical Activity Intensity ◽

Activity Intensity ◽

American Children

Background:Different movement efficiency in overweight children may affect accelerometer output data. The purpose was to investigate the ability of accelerometers to assess physical activity intensity and number of steps in normal-weight compared with overweight children.Methods:Eleven normal-weight and 14 overweight African American children walked at 2, 4, 5, and 6 km/h on a treadmill wearing Lifecorder, ActiGraph, RT3, and Biotrainer. Oxygen uptake was measured and steps manually counted. Fat free mass (FFM) was assessed from bioelectrical impedance analysis. Accelerometer counts and the individual linear regression lines of accelerometer counts versus VO2/FFM were evaluated, together with steps recorded by Lifecorder and Actigraph.Results:Correlations between accelerometer counts and VO2/FFM for all monitors were r ≥ .95 (P < .01). The accelerometer counts and their relationship to VO2/FFM did not generally differ significantly by body weight status. Lifecorder and Actigraph underestimated steps at 4, 5, and 6 km/h by less than 9%, but the error was up to −95% at 2 km/h.Conclusions:All 4 accelerometers show high ability to assess physical activity intensity, and can be used to compare physical activity between normal-weight and overweight children. The Lifecorder and the ActiGraph showed high accuracy in assessing steps, providing speed of movement exceeded 2 km/h.

Download Full-text

Physical activity during school recess: A missed opportunity to be active?

Health Education Journal ◽

10.1177/0017896919859044 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 78 (8) ◽

pp. 988-999

Author(s):

Pablo Tercedor ◽

Víctor Segura-Jiménez ◽

Manuel Ávila García ◽

Francisco Javier Huertas-Delgado

Keyword(s):

Physical Activity ◽

Weight Status ◽

Sedentary Time ◽

Vigorous Physical Activity ◽

Activity Levels ◽

Activity Intensity ◽

Physical Activity Levels ◽

Physical Activity Recommendations ◽

School Recess ◽

Activity Recommendations

Objective:The goals of this study were to (1) describe physical activity levels during school recess in 8-year-old children, (2) analyse the percentage of children who achieved physical activity recommendation at recess, and (3) examine if recess physical activity levels varied by gender, weight status, and parental educational level.Methods:In all, 291 children (mean age ± SD = 8.3 ± 0.3 years, 156 boys) from 7 schools of Granada (Spain) were recruited by convenience. To analyse sedentary time and physical activity levels during recess, children wore a tri-axial accelerometer attached to the wrist over five consecutive school days.Results:Sedentary time (29.6% vs 40%) and light physical activity (33.2% vs 35.5%) were lower in boys than in girls (all p < .001). Conversely, moderate physical activity (26.7% vs 20%), vigorous physical activity (10.5% vs 4.4%) and moderate-vigorous physical activity (37.2% vs 24.4%) were higher in boys than in girls (all p < .001). Only 12% of the children accomplished the moderate-vigorous physical activity recommendations during recess (21.2% boys vs 1.5% girls). Lower body mass index values were associated with higher vigorous physical activity intensity.Conclusions:Levels of moderate-vigorous physical activity during school recess are very low in children, being lower in girls than in boys, a very low percentage of children achieve moderate-vigorous physical activity recommendations during school recess, and girls and overweight/obese children show lower values in moderate-vigorous and vigorous physical activity.

Download Full-text

Weight Status Associations With Physical Activity Intensity and Physical Self-Perceptions in 10- to 11-Year-Old Children

Pediatric Exercise Science ◽

10.1123/pes.24.1.100 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 24 (1) ◽

pp. 100-112 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

Stuart J. Fairclough ◽

Lynne M. Boddy ◽

Nicola D. Ridgers ◽

Gareth Stratton

Keyword(s):

Physical Activity ◽

Socioeconomic Status ◽

Physical Condition ◽

Weight Status ◽

Vigorous Physical Activity ◽

Normal Weight ◽

Physical Activity Intensity ◽

Self Perceptions ◽

Body Attractiveness ◽

Activity Intensity

The study examined associations between children’s weight status, physical activity intensity, and physical self-perceptions. Data were obtained from 409 children (224 girls) aged 10–11 years categorized as normal-weight or overweight/obese. Physical activity was assessed using accelerometry, and children completed the Physical Self-Perception Profile. After controlling for the effects of age, maturation, and socioeconomic status vigorous physical activity was significantly associated with normal-weight status among boys (OR = 1.13, p = .01) and girls (OR = 1.13, p = .03). Normal-weight status was significantly associated with perceived Physical Condition (Boys: OR = 5.05, p = .008; Girls: OR = 2.50, p = .08), and Body Attractiveness (Boys: OR = 4.44, p = .007; Girls: OR = 2.56, p = .02). Weight status of 10–11 year old children was significantly associated with time spent in vigorous physical activity and self-perceptions of Body Attractiveness and Physical Condition.

Download Full-text

Meeting the Physical Activity Recommendations and Its Relationship with Obesity-Related Parameters, Physical Fitness, Screen Time, and Mediterranean Diet in Schoolchildren

Children ◽

10.3390/children7120263 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 7 (12) ◽

pp. 263

Author(s):

José Francisco López-Gil ◽

Javier Brazo-Sayavera ◽

Wagner de Campos ◽

Juan Luis Yuste Lucas

Keyword(s):

Physical Activity ◽

Physical Fitness ◽

Children And Adolescents ◽

Mediterranean Diet ◽

Abdominal Obesity ◽

Screen Time ◽

Normal Weight ◽

Fitness Score ◽

Physical Activity Recommendations ◽

Activity Recommendations

The up-to-date scientific evidence suggests that adequate levels of physical activity provide essential health benefits for children and adolescents and help to maintain a healthy body weight. In this sense, children and adolescents should at least accumulate 60 min of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity in a daily basis to achieve these benefits and be considered active. Likewise, some lifestyle-related elements may interact with each other in an antagonistic or synergistic way to modify physical activity status. Thus, a better understanding of how meeting physical activity recommendations influences these potentially modifiable lifestyle factors (obesity-related parameters, physical fitness, dietary habits, or sedentary behaviour) would significantly reinforce the importance of complying with those recommendations from a health perspective and support the establishment of strategies for the promotion of diminishing the lower trends of physical activity among the young population. This study seeks to verify the association of meeting physical activity international recommendations with obesity-related parameters, global physical fitness, screen time, and Mediterranean diet in Spanish schoolchildren aged 8 to 13. A cross-sectional study was performed including 250 schoolchildren (41.2% girls) aged 8–13 (9.7 ± 1.2) from six primary schools in the Region of Murcia (Spain). Results: A higher proportion of children who complying with physical activity recommendations shows normal weight, no abdominal obesity, and low adiposity in comparison to other with different obesity-related parameters categories. Higher values in global physical fitness score were found in those who meet the physical activity international recommendations in both sexes. These higher values were also shown for adherence to the Mediterranean diet in both sexes; not being so in the case of screen time. Notwithstanding, none of these mean differences were statistically significant. To conclude, the proportion of schoolchildren meeting the physical activity recommendations in our study is low. A higher proportion of children who meet with physical activity recommendations present normal weight, no abdominal obesity and low adiposity in comparison to other obesity-related parameters categories in both sexes. Likewise, those considered as active children seem to have higher global physical fitness score and adherence to the Mediterranean diet than children who do not meet the recommendations.

Download Full-text

When Do Individuals Get More Injured? Relationship between Physical Activity Intensity, Duration, Participation Mode, and Injury

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph182010855 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 18 (20) ◽

pp. 10855

Author(s):

Ju-Pil Choe ◽

Ji-Su Kim ◽

Jeong-Hui Park ◽

Eunhye Yoo ◽

Jung-Min Lee

Keyword(s):

Physical Activity ◽

Multinomial Logistic Regression ◽

Strong Association ◽

Sports Participation ◽

Club Member ◽

Physical Activity Intensity ◽

Multinomial Logistic Regression Analysis ◽

Activity Intensity ◽

Risk Of Injury ◽

And Gender

The present study examines the association between physical activity (PA) participation modes (i.e., family, friends, club members, and alone), PA volumes (i.e., intensity and duration), gender, and injury. A total of 9000 Koreans aged 10–89 years participated in the Korean Survey of Citizens’ Sports Participation project. However, participants who did not respond to a question regarding PA participation modes (n = 2429) and those under 18 years old (n = 489) were excluded from this study. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to compare the groups’ characteristics and the association between PA participation modes and injury was demonstrated by conducting multinomial logistic regression analysis. The risk of injury was significantly higher in the friend and club member groups than in the alone group. In addition, PA intensity and gender were critical risk factors of injury, while PA duration showed no significant results. The results indicated a strong association between PA participation modes, PA intensity, gender, and injury, and an interesting finding is that more injuries derived from a higher intensity of PA, not from a longer duration of PA. Therefore, this present study directly documented that considerable attention should be placed on the factors that affect injuries, such as gender and PA intensity, to prevent unpredictable injury and encourage potential participants to exercise with diverse participation modes and appropriate intensity.

Download Full-text

The Concurrent Validity of the 3-Day Physical Activity Recall in Australian Youth

Pediatric Exercise Science ◽

10.1123/pes.2014-0117 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 27 (2) ◽

pp. 262-267 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

James Dollman ◽

Rebecca Stanley ◽

Andrew Wilson

Keyword(s):

Physical Activity ◽

Weight Status ◽

Vigorous Physical Activity ◽

Population Level ◽

Normal Weight ◽

Self Report ◽

Physical Activity Intensity ◽

Weight Category ◽

Activity Intensity ◽

Physical Activity Recall

Valid measurement of youth physical activity is important and self-report methods provide convenient assessments at the population level. There is evidence that the validity of physical activity self-report varies by weight category. The aim of this study was to assess the validity of the 3-Day Physical Activity Recall (3DPAR), separately between normal weight and overweight/obese Australian youth. Accelerometer-derived physical activity variables were compared with 3DPAR variables in 155 (77 females) 11- to 14-year-olds from Adelaide, South Australia. In the whole sample, validity coefficients for self-reported moderate and moderate to vigorous physical activity were modest (rs = 0.12-0.31) and similar across gender and weight status categories. Validity coefficients for self-reported vigorous physical activity were much stronger (rs = 0.59-0.73) among overweight/obese than among normal weight participants. The validity of the 3DPAR in this study was low in the whole sample but varied according to physical activity intensity and the weight status of the child. Specifically, the 3DPAR may be appropriate for describing vigorous intensity physical activity among overweight and obese youth.

Download Full-text

How active are children in Toronto? A comparison with accelerometry data from the Canadian Health Measures Survey

Chronic Diseases and Injuries in Canada ◽

10.24095/hpcdp.33.2.02 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 33 (2) ◽

pp. 61-68 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

MR Stone ◽

GE Faulkner ◽

RN Buliung

Keyword(s):

Physical Activity ◽

Time Activity ◽

Health Measures ◽

Activity Intensity ◽

Greater Toronto Area ◽

Canadian Youth ◽

Canadian Health ◽

Physical Activity Recommendations ◽

Canadian Health Measures Survey ◽

Activity Recommendations

Introduction The Canadian Health Measures Survey (CHMS) is the most comprehensive direct health measures survey ever conducted in Canada. Results show that the majority of children and youth (93%) do not meet current physical activity recommendations for health. CHMS data have not yet been considered alongside an independent sample of Canadian youth; such a Canadian-context examination could support CHMS results and contribute to discussions regarding accelerometry data reduction protocols. Methods From 2010 to 2011, valid accelerometry data were collected on 856 children living in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA). Where possible, data presentation and analyses were aligned with the CHMS protocol such that physical activity outcomes could be compared. Results Overall, trends were similar, with some deviations likely due to contextual and sampling differences and differences in data collection/reduction protocols regarding accelerometer model selection, wear time, activity intensity thresholds and epoch. Conclusion The similar trends support the notion that physical inactivity is an ongoing problem in communities across Canada.

Download Full-text