Youth athletes sleep more, practice less, and may lose interest in playing sports due to social distancing mandates

Lifestyle Changes and Baseball Activity among Youth Baseball Players before and during the First COVID-19 Pandemic in Japan

This cross-sectional study aimed to clarify the changes in lifestyle and baseball activity before and during the COVID-19 pandemic among youth baseball players. Participants were 99 youth baseball players (ages 9.6 ± 1.5 years, height 137.8 ± 9.4 cm, weight 35.3 ± 12.4 kg) in Japan. They completed an online survey between April 6 and 20, 2021, on their demographic characteristics, lifestyle (recreational screen, sleep, and study times), and baseball activity (frequency of team practice time and voluntary exercise-related baseball) at two-time points: before the pandemic (before March 2020) and during the state of emergency declared in Japan (from April to May 2020). The changes in outcomes between the two-time points were evaluated for significance. Recreational screen time and sleeping time during the state of emergency were significantly increased compared to those before the pandemic (p < 0.001). The frequency of team practice time on weekends during the state of emergency was significantly reduced, and voluntary exercise-related baseball was significantly increased compared to that before the pandemic (p < 0.01). We found that the COVID-19 pandemic changed behaviors concerning activities and exercise among youth baseball players and recommended that such behavioral changes be carefully monitored.