Participation in a school-based walking intervention changes the motivation to undertake physical activity in middle-school students

Mental and physical conditions associated with physical inactivity among Farhangian University students during virtual classes: A cross-sectional study

Background

The level of mobility and general health has decreased among students in virtual classes during COVID-19 pandemic. The present cross-sectional study aims to investigate the mental and physical conditions related to inactivity among the students of Farhangian University during the virtual classes.

Methods

This is a cross-sectional study. 475 students (214 females and 261 males) were selected as the statistical sample of the study based on Morgan's Table from Farhangian University, Iran. The statistical population includes students studying at Farhangian University of Mazandaran province that using Convenience Sampling the sample size based on Morgan's Table, 475 students consisting of 214 females and 261 males were randomly selected as the statistical sample of the study. The research instruments of this study include International Physical Activity Questionnaire, Saehan Caliper (SH5020), Coopersmith Self-Esteem Scale, Beck Depression Questionnaire, and Nordic Skeletal and Muscular Disorders Questionnaire. For data analysis, independent sample t-test was employed to compare two groups. All analyses were conducted using spss24 software.

Results

With respect to students' skeletal-muscular disorders, findings proved that both genders suffered physical conditions during virtual classes. The research findings showed that the average weekly activity level among women is 634 Met/min with a standard deviation of ±281, and the average weekly activity level among men is 472 Met/min with a standard deviation of ±231. Fat percentage by gender, men's average fat percentage is 47.21% (S. D ± 4.74) and women's average fat percentage is 31.55% (S. D ± 4.37). Also, the self-esteem scores of male and female students were obtained 29.72 and 29.43, respectively, and the difference between the two was considered significant (p < 0.05). On the other hand, 67% (No. 25) of female students and 32% (No. 12) of male students suffered from high depression. Also, based on students' skeletal-muscular disorders, findings of our study showed that both genders suffered physical conditions during virtual classes.

Conclusion

This study suggests increasing the level of physical activity to reduce body fat mass, increase mental health and reduce skeletal disorders, which can be properly accomplished through university planning and prioritizing the health of male and female students.

The effectiveness of school-based run/walk programmes to develop physical literacy and physical activity components in primary school children: A systematic review

The objectives of this review were to systematically review the research on school-based run/walk programmes and their measurements of physical literacy (PL) and physical activity (PA)-related components and to assess the different intervention methods and their impact on encouraging PL and PA. To be included in the review, studies had to satisfy all inclusion criteria. An electronic search was conducted on six databases, the last date search was 25 April 2022. All outcome measures were grouped using the Shearer et al. (2021) PL checklist and additional PA related outcomes. Ten studies were included in the final review. Five different run/walk interventions were identified and six studies followed or referred to The Daily Mile (TDM) protocol. Outcomes relating to the physical domain were most commonly explored, and no studies explored the cognitive domain. Four studies reported significant differences in cardiovascular endurance measures. Positive findings were also reported for outcomes relating to motivation and self-perception/self-esteem in the affective domain. Overall, run/walk programmes appear to provide promising results in favour of physical and affective development in PL. However, further high-quality studies are needed to draw firm conclusions. This review highlights the popularity of TDM and its potential to contribute to PL development.

Commentary: Comment and reflection about Mental health outcomes of the Daily Mile in elementary school children: a single-arm pilot study. The implementation of the Daily Mile in the school context

In 'Mental health outcomes of the Daily Mile in elementary school children: a single-arm pilot study', Arkesteyn et al. (Child and Adolescent Mental Health, 2022) discussed and investigated the effect of a classroom activity break, named The Daily Mile, on pupils' self-esteem, self-perception competence, and mental health. Starting from the interesting and novel results of Arkesteyn et al. (Child and Adolescent Mental Health, 2022), this comment focuses on the concurrent evidence about the effect of The Daily Mile on pupils' physical and mental health. Overall, this comment would reflect and critically review considerations for future research on the topic and to adopt it in the school context.

The Most Active Child Is Not Always the Fittest: Physical Activity and Fitness Are Weakly Correlated

The present cross-sectional study aimed to evaluate the impact of physical activity level (PA) on physical fitness by controlling for individual characteristics in Italian children. A total of 329 children (girls n = 155, 42.6%; from five primary schools, 17 classes) aged 8-10 filled out the Physical Activity Questionnaire for Older Children (PAQ-C) to assess their PA level and performed anthropometric measurements (body mass, height, and BMI) and physical tests for measuring sprint (20 m sprint), cardiorespiratory fitness (shuttle-run test), balance (single-leg stance), handgrip strength (handgrip), lower-limb power (standing long-jump), peak force (countermovement jump), and low-back flexibility (sit-and-reach) skills. Linear mixed-effects models were applied to determine the relationship between physical fitness and PAQ-C score controlling for individual characteristics (i.e., gender, age, BMI). Results reported significant relationships between PAQ-C scores and sit-and-reach, shuttle-run, long-jump, and sprint tests. All considered physical tests were correlated with gender, age, and BMI, except for sit-and-reach from BMI. The variance in age, gender, BMI, and PAQ-C score accounted altogether for 30.0% of the variance in handgrip, 23.0% in single-leg stance, 26% in sit-and-reach, 36% in shuttle-run, 31% in long-jump, 34% in sprint, and 31% in countermovement jump. Therefore, the relationship between PA and fitness is not absolute and depends on the test and children's characteristics.

Differences and Associations between Physical Activity Motives and Types of Physical Activity among Adolescent Boys and Girls

Interventions aimed at motivation for physical activity (PA) are mostly beneficial, but the effects on preventing the decrease in PA are not entirely clear, especially in girls. The main aim of this study was to identify the differences and associations between PA motives and types of PA in boys and girls and between low and high motivated boys and girls. Another aim is to identify the types of motivation and PA that increase the likelihood of achieving PA recommendations and to propose ways of increasing PA among low motivated adolescents. The research carried out before the COVID-19 pandemic (2010–2019) and involved 2,149 Czech and 1,927 Polish adolescents aged 15–19 years. The International Physical Activity Questionnaire-Long Form was used to identify the level of PA types, while PA motivation was examined through the Motives for Physical Activities Measure-Revised. During the ten years, a decline was observed in enjoyment, fitness, and social motives. An increase in appearance motives was observed in girls, while no significant changes were seen in boys. Boys showed a higher motivation for PA than girls in enjoyment, competence, fitness, and social motives, while girls were high motivated in appearance motives. The greatest statistically significant differences between low and high motivated individuals were found in the associations between recreation/vigorous PA and between all types of motivation in boys and girls in both countries. The strongest associations in both genders were observed between enjoyment/competence motives and recreation/vigorous PA. Respecting and using the associations between the types of PA motives and types of PA in low and high motivated boys and girls can support feelings of PA enjoyment, increase PA, support the achievement of PA recommendations, and positively affect adolescents' healthy lifestyles.

The Cut-Off Value for Classifying Active Italian Children Using the Corresponding National Version of the Physical Activity Questionnaire

The present study aimed to determine a cut-off value following the filling in of a questionnaire (PAQ-C-It) to identify active Italian children. One-hundred-twenty-nine primary school children (5 Piedmont schools; 47.3% female; mean age = 10 ± 1 years) wore an accelerometer (Actigraph wGT3X-BT) to objectively quantify individual moderate-to-vigorous physical activity during one week. Afterwards, the PAQ-C-It was filled in by participants. A ROC curve procedure was applied to obtain an active/non-active cut-off point. Spearman’s correlation coefficient was also applied to establish the relationship between the two parameters. According to the ROC analysis, the PAQ-C-It cut-off point value is identifiable at >2.75 to indicate active children (area under the curve = 0.62; standard error = 0.05; p = 0.025; coefficient intervals = 0.518−0.716; sensitivity = 0.592, specificity = 0.382), determining that 65 participants (55%) were non-active (mean PAQ-C-It value = 2.3 ± 0.4; active mean PAQ-C-It value = 3.3 ± 0.4). Spearman’s correlation coefficient results were significant but with a small effect size (rho = 0.214; p = 0.008). In conclusion, the present results suggest that the PAQ-C-It can be cautiously used as tool to practically classify active Italian children because of a non-solid relationship between respective accelerometer data and MVPA daily data.

The Role of the Teacher in the Implementation of a School-Based Intervention on the Physical Activity Practice of Children

Medium- or long-term intervention strategies for physical activity practice (PAP) need to be more effective in terms of their implementation by practitioners. The aim of this study was to evaluate the role of a teacher to implement the Team Pentathlon (TP) in order to improve the PAP in primary children. TP is a health education program made to improve PAP of children through individual and collective achievements. In this study, 203 children (age: 10–13 years) in grades 5 and 6 (intervention group (IG) N = 104, control group (CG) N = 99) were guided to increase their PAP during an eight-week period by five elementary school teachers (physical education or classroom) who had received four training sessions. Levels of PAP (self-reported) were compared between groups (IG/CG), sex, socioeconomic status of the schools and between teachers: baseline and during TP. Several teachers noted significant increases in PAP in the IG for both boys and girls (p ≤ 0.05 or p < 0.01), whereas others found only small improvements in PAP. One teacher even observed higher PAP in the CG. Training session records revealed that the teacher himself, how the TP is implemented, and proper resources were the three elements that explained the successful implementation of the TP program. The implementation of the TP significantly increased the PAP in primary children. Training sessions helped teachers to implement the TP program but personal engagement, motivation, respecting protocol, and an adequate environment are also necessary in improving the PAP of children.

Motivation, Self-Concept and Discipline in Young Adolescents Who Practice Rhythmic Gymnastics. An Intervention

This study aims to develop an intervention based on TARGET strategies in young people practicing rhythmic gymnastics, with the aim of observing whether motivation, discipline, self-concept and flexibility are improved. This research is a longitudinal study of a quasi-experimental nature. A total of 104 young adolescents between the ages of 11 and 12 years (11.66 ± 0.47) participated in the study, of which 60 belong to the control group and 44 to the experimental group. The intervention programme lasted two months (17 sessions). TARGET strategies were applied to the experimental group during training. While the experimental group continued with its routine training. To measure the psychological variables, the instrument used were the Youth Physical Self-Concept Scale (C-PSQ), Reason Scale for Discipline (RSD) and Success Perception Questionnaire (SPQ), and for flexibility, the tests were applied to the Sit and Reach and Deep trunk flexion test. The results showed that those teenagers who participated in the intervention, obtained an increased climate task, which entails an enjoyment by the practice of physical activity itself, more optimal levels of physical self-concept and discipline, subsequently, obtaining better results of flexibility. While in the control group gymnasts the ego climate and demotivation increased. TARGET strategies applied to young adolescents have positive effects, improve motivation towards physical activity, self-concept and discipline. This results in greater performance in flexibility. This will encourage young adolescents to continue to engage in physical activity in the future.

The Daily Mile Is Able to Improve Cardiorespiratory Fitness When Practiced Three Times a Week

The Daily Mile is a promising initiative aimed at removing some of the barriers to physical activity in the school setting. This quasi-experimental study investigated the dose–effect of The Daily Mile on cardiorespiratory fitness, waist-to-height ratio, and body mass index (BMI) after a period of 3- and 6-months. A total of 279 students (mean age = 9 ± 1 years) participated in The Daily Mile while 269 students (mean age = 9 ± 1 years) did not (control group). A posteriori, the classes performing The Daily Mile on average two times per week were included in the 2_times subgroup, while those performing the activity on average three times per week in the 3_times subgroup. A significant difference was observed in favor of the experimental compared to the control group in the 6 Minute Run Test (F = 13.932, p = 0.008). Moreover, the improvement of the 6-minute run test was more pronounced for 3_times (effect size = 0.51) rather than for the 2_times subgroup (effect size = 0.29). No differences were observed in waist-to-height ratio and BMI scores. In conclusion, teachers are strongly recommended to implement The Daily Mile at least three times a week to see appreciable effects on cardiorespiratory fitness.

Motivational Variables to Predict Autotelic Experience and Enjoyment of Students. Analysis in Function of Environment and Sports Practice

The aim of this study was to find out how self-determined motivation, Basic Psychological Needs (BPN) and the perception of support influence autonomy-predicted autotelic experience and enjoyment, and to analyse the differences depending on the geographical location of the centre and whether they lead to the practice of physical activity, extracurricular or not, of 271 learners in physical education from 10 to 12 years (M = 10.94, SD = 0.73). The theoretical framework used was the Self-Determination Theory. The results showed that more self-determined motivation, the perception of support for autonomy and BPN positively predict both autotelic experience and enjoyment. Moreover, learners from urban areas have higher values in less self-determined forms of motivation and lower levels of perceived support for autonomy and BPN than learners from rural areas. Furthermore, students who carry out extracurricular physical activity had higher values in all variables compared to those who did not. It is essential to promote sport to students with more self-determined forms of motivation through the satisfaction of BPN, especially in students who do not do extracurricular physical activity and students in urban areas.

The Daily Mile: 15 Minutes Running Improves the Physical Fitness of Italian Primary School Children

The Daily Mile™ is an innovative school-based intervention that requires children to run or jog outside for 15 min at a self-selected pace during class time. Today, only one study has investigated the efficacy of The Daily Mile on physical fitness, which was conducted with Scottish children. Thus, we aimed to evaluate the feasibility and effectiveness of The Daily Mile in Italian primary schools. A total of 486 children participated in The Daily Mile for 3 months (experimental group), whereas 309 children continued their daily school routine (control group). The 6-min run test, standing long jump, body mass index, and waist-to-height ratio were assessed. Their teachers completed surveys for assessing the intervention acceptability. After correction for age and gender, significant group × time interactions were observed in the 6-min run test and standing long jump results. In the post-test period, the experimental group showed improvement in the 6-min run test and standing long jump results. Overall, the teachers were satisfied with the program and found it suitable for their school context and easy to implement. The Daily Mile was successfully implemented and smoothly accepted in the day routine of Italian primary schools.

Age and gender influence healthy eating and physical activity behaviours in South African adolescents and their caregivers: Transforming Adolescent Lives through Nutrition Initiative (TALENT)

Objective:

To: (i) understand facilitators and barriers to healthy eating practices and physical activity in younger and older urban adolescent South African boys and girls; and (ii) understand how the views of caregivers interact with, and influence, adolescent behaviours.

Design:

Semi-structured focus group discussions (FGD) were conducted in July 2018. Data were analysed using thematic analysis.

Setting:

Soweto, Johannesburg, South Africa.

Participants:

Seventy-five participants were stratified into eight FGD as follows: two for young boys and girls (10–12 years); two for older boys and girls (15–17 years); two for caregivers of young adolescents (boys and girls); and two for caregivers of older adolescents (boys and girls).

Results:

Unlike their caregivers, adolescents were not motivated to eat healthily and failed to appreciate the need to develop consistent patterns of both healthy eating and physical activity for their long-term health. Although adolescents gained independence with age, they commonly attributed unhealthy food choices to a lack of autonomy and, thereby, to the influence of their caregivers. Adolescents and caregivers perceived their engagement in physical activity according to distinct siloes of recreational and routine activity, respectively. Both similarities and differences in the drivers of healthy eating and physical activity exist in adolescents and caregivers, and should be targeted in future interventions.

Conclusions:

Our study identified a complex paradigm of eating practices and physical activity in South African adolescents and their caregivers. We also highlighted the need for a new narrative in addressing the multifaceted and interrelated determinants of adolescent health within urban poor settings.

Seasonal variation in physical activity in patients with heart failure

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES

Physical activity is important for all heart failure (HF) patients to improve quality of life and physical function. Since adherence to physical activity is low and could differ between seasons, it is essential to explore factors related to change that may depend on seasonal changes. The purpose of this study was to describe the seasonal differences in physical activity and assess factors that influence these differences in a country with markedly different winter-to-summer weather conditions (in temperature, hours of daylight and snow fall).

METHODS

The study had a cross-sectional survey design. Outpatients with HF completed a questionnaire on physical activity, motivation and self-efficacy to exercise and HF symptom severity in the summer and the winter in a northern hemisphere country. We used analysis of variance to evaluate seasonal differences in physical activity, motivation, self-efficacy and HF symptom severity.

RESULTS

Eighty-seven patients with HF (29% women, mean age 70 ± 9 years) were included and 35% performed less physical activity (METs) in the winter, compared to the summer. Increased symptom severity during the winter was associated with lower activity levels.

CONCLUSION

One-third of the patients performed less physical activity during the winter compared to the summer, and this was associated with symptom severity. Decreased physical activity was not related with motivation and self-efficacy. This study emphasises the need for personalised physical activity programmes that also assess symptom severity and change in symptom severity depending between seasons.