Regular physical activity (PA) during childhood is associated with a range of positive health outcomes and higher educational attainment. However, only 2.0% to 14.7% of girls and 9.5% to 34.1% of ...boys are meeting the current PA guidelines of 60 minutes of moderate to vigorous PA daily. Schools are targeted as a key setting to improve children's PA levels. The Daily Mile (TDM), a teacher-led 15 minute PA intervention was established in 2012 and has been widely adopted globally. However, the dynamic school environment generates challenges for school-based interventions to follow a uniform implementation method resulting in sustainability issues and limited evaluation. The aims of this mixed-methods study were to (1) explore whether whole-school experiences of TDM were related to implementation and (2) examine the association between TDM and CRF in children from high and low socio-economic groups. Focus groups with pupils (n = 6) and interviews with teachers (n = 9) and headteachers (n = 2) were conducted to explore factors associated with successful implementation. Pupils (n = 258 imputed) aged 9-11 from six primary schools in south Wales, United Kingdom participated in CRF assessments (20m shuttle run test) at two time-points (baseline, 6 month follow-up). Thematic analyses of qualitative measures and linear regression analyses of quantitative measures were used to assess the research questions. Qualitative findings identified implementation factors associated with a positive experience of TDM; flexible and adaptable, not replacing current play provision but delivered as an additional playtime, incorporate personal goal setting, teacher participation, whole-school delivery with community support. Both groups demonstrated equal increases in shuttles between baseline and follow-up (deprived: 4.7 ± 13.4, non-deprived: 4.8 ± 16.0). There was no significant difference in this increase for deprived compared to non-deprived children adjusted for age and gender. Findings from this study provide a set of recommendations for the future implementation and sustainability of TDM.
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DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
There are few studies that focus explicitly on the impact of the home environment on older adults' sedentary behaviour (SB) and physical activity (PA) using the socio-ecological model (SEM). This ...study aims to investigate older adults' PA and SB within the home environment integrating the SEM as a theoretical framework. A qualitative exploratory research design was employed to conduct 33 in-depth interviews (IDIs) and five focus group (FGs; n = 16) with multi-diverse ethnic older adults (mean age 72±5 years). Using reflexive thematic analysis themes were generated from the data set and were interpreted using the SEM. The findings indicate that different levels of the SEM had an impact on older adults' PA and SB. These include the 1) Individual level: Attitude, perception and motivation 2) Interpersonal level: Family and Friends: a motive to remain active 3) Organisational level: healthcare institutes, 4) Community level factors: Significance of social groups, 5) Physical Environment: Microenvironment and 6) Policy level factors (lockdown restrictions and healthcare system). This model can be utilised to foster activity within the home by focusing on the facilitators and barriers identified at each of these levels of influence. The study findings suggest that modifying PA and SB in the home environment is complex and is influenced across different levels of the SEM. Therefore, a holistic approach is required that integrates these multiple influences. This understanding can inform the design of interventions that seek to optimize PA and minimize SB within the home environment.
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DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
Background
Whilst there is increasing interest in the efficacy of high-intensity interval training in children and adolescents as a time-effective method of eliciting health benefits, there remains ...little consensus within the literature regarding the most effective means for delivering a high-intensity interval training intervention. Given the global health issues surrounding childhood obesity and associated health implications, the identification of effective intervention strategies is imperative.
Objectives
The aim of this review was to examine high-intensity interval training as a means of influencing key health parameters and to elucidate the most effective high-intensity interval training protocol.
Methods
Studies were included if they: (1) studied healthy children and/or adolescents (aged 5–18 years); (2) prescribed an intervention that was deemed high intensity; and (3) reported health-related outcome measures.
Results
A total of 2092 studies were initially retrieved from four databases. Studies that were deemed to meet the criteria were downloaded in their entirety and independently assessed for relevance by two authors using the pre-determined criteria. From this, 13 studies were deemed suitable. This review found that high-intensity interval training in children and adolescents is a time-effective method of improving cardiovascular disease biomarkers, but evidence regarding other health-related measures is more equivocal. Running-based sessions, at an intensity of >90% heart rate maximum/100–130% maximal aerobic velocity, two to three times a week and with a minimum intervention duration of 7 weeks, elicit the greatest improvements in participant health.
Conclusion
While high-intensity interval training improves cardiovascular disease biomarkers, and the evidence supports the effectiveness of running-based sessions, as outlined above, further recommendations as to optimal exercise duration and rest intervals remain ambiguous owing to the paucity of literature and the methodological limitations of studies presently available.
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EMUNI, FIS, FZAB, GEOZS, GIS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, MFDPS, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, SBMB, SBNM, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK, VKSCE, ZAGLJ
The relationship between child health, wellbeing and education demonstrates that healthier and happier children achieve higher educational attainment. An engaging curriculum that facilitates children ...in achieving their academic potential has strong implications for educational outcomes, future employment prospects, and health and wellbeing during adulthood. Outdoor learning is a pedagogical approach used to enrich learning, enhance school engagement and improve pupil health and wellbeing. However, its non-traditional means of achieving curricular aims are not yet recognised beyond the early years by education inspectorates. This requires evidence into its acceptability from those at the forefront of delivery. This study aimed to explore headteachers', teachers' and pupils' views and experiences of an outdoor learning programme within the key stage two curriculum (ages 9-11) in South Wales, United Kingdom. We examine the process of implementation to offer case study evidence through 1:1 interviews with headteachers (n = 3) and teachers (n = 10) and focus groups with pupils aged 9-11 (n = 10) from three primary schools. Interviews and focus groups were conducted at baseline and six months into implementation. Schools introduced regular outdoor learning within the curriculum. This study found a variety of perceived benefits for pupils and schools. Pupils and teachers noticed improvements in pupils' engagement with learning, concentration and behaviour, as well as positive impacts on health and wellbeing and teachers' job satisfaction. Curriculum demands including testing and evidencing work were barriers to implementation, in addition to safety concerns, resources and teacher confidence. Participants supported outdoor learning as a curriculum-based programme for older primary school pupils. However, embedding outdoor learning within the curriculum requires education inspectorates to place higher value on this approach in achieving curricular aims, alongside greater acknowledgment of the wider benefits to children which current measurements do not capture.
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DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
Physical activity (PA) is being increasingly promoted in children in an attempt to curb the rising epidemic of childhood obesity and its future consequences of obesity and cardiovascular diseases in ...adulthood. Although many reviews and guidelines have been published regarding PA in children and adolescents, none have specifically focused on the influence of intensity of activity on the crucial health aspects of fatness and cardiorespiratory fitness. Therefore, we conducted an online search for pertinent literature and reviewed 25 studies for this purpose. We found that there were limited studies that assessed the influence of 'intensity' of PA on health parameters, and there was considerable inconsistency in defining the thresholds for moderate (MPA) and vigorous (VPA) levels of PA. Collectively, we concluded that VPA is a significant predictor of fatness and significantly correlated to fitness. The association between the intensity of PA and cardiorespiratory fitness is more obscure compared with fatness because of limited studies and the varying conclusions made by them. However, decreased adiposity and increased aerobic capacity have been observed with participants who spent more time performing VPA. Further research needs to be undertaken to arrive at uniform thresholds for defining MPA and VPA and to obtain the exact dose of VPA and MPA, individually, to increase aerobic fitness and decrease adiposity.
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EMUNI, FIS, FZAB, GEOZS, GIS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, MFDPS, NLZOH, NUK, OBVAL, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, SBMB, SBNM, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK, VKSCE, ZAGLJ
Movement behaviours performed over a finite period such as a 24 h day are compositional data. Compositional data exist in a constrained simplex geometry that is incongruent with traditional ...multivariate analytical techniques. However, the expression of compositional data as log-ratio co-ordinate systems transfers them to the unconstrained real space, where standard multivariate statistics can be used. This study aimed to use a compositional data analysis approach to examine the adiposity and cardiorespiratory fitness predictions of time reallocations between children's daily movement behaviours.
This study used cross-sectional data from the Active Schools: Skelmersdale study, which involved Year 5 children from a low-income community in northwest England (n = 169). Measures included accelerometer-derived 24 h activity (sedentary time ST, light physical activity LPA, moderate-to-vigorous physical activity MVPA, and sleep), cardiorespiratory fitness determined by the 20 m shuttle run test, objectively measured height, weight and waist circumference (from which zBMI and percent waist circumference-to-height ratio (%WHtR) were derived) and sociodemographic covariates. Log-ratio multiple linear regression models were used to predict adiposity and fitness for the mean movement behaviour composition, and for new compositions where fixed durations of time had been reallocated from one behaviour to another, while the remaining behaviours were unchanged. Predictions were also made for reallocations of fixed durations of time using the mean composition of three different weight status categories (underweight, normal-weight, and overweight/obese) as the starting point.
Replacing MVPA with any other movement behaviour around the mean movement composition predicted higher adiposity and lower CRF. The log-ratio model predictions were asymmetrical: when time was reallocated to MVPA from sleep, ST, or LPA, the estimated detriments to fitness and adiposity were larger in magnitude than the estimated benefits of time reallocation from MVPA to sleep, ST or LPA. The greatest differences in fitness and fatness for reallocation of fixed duration of MVPA were predicted at the mean composition of overweight/obese children.
Findings reinforce the key role of MVPA for children's health. Reallocating time from ST and LPA to MVPA in children is advocated in school, home, and community settings.
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IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, UL, UM, UPUK
•On average during lockdown, moderate-to-vigorous physical activity was 38 min/day, while sedentary time was 849 min/day.•There were no significant differences in cut-point data between boys and ...girls during lockdown; however, boys still displayed more favorable intensity profiles (higher intensity gradients and higher M5 to M45 values).•Typical sex differences were re-established upon return to school.•Adolescents in upper secondary school, especially girls, were identified as a group that needs specific COVID-recovery intervention.
The coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic and national lockdowns took away opportunities for children to be physically active. This study aimed to determine the effect of the COVID-19 lockdown on accelerometer-assessed physical activity (PA) in children in Wales.
Eight hundred participants (8–18 years old), stratified by sex, age, and socio-economic status, wore Axivity AX3 accelerometers for 7 days in February 2021, during the lockdown, and in May 2021, while in school. Raw accelerometer data were processed in R-package GGIR, and cut-point data, average acceleration (AvAcc), intensity gradient, and the acceleration above which the most active X minutes are accumulated (MX) metrics were extracted. Linear mixed models were used to assess the influence of time-point, sex, age, and socioeconomic status (SES) on PA.
During lockdown, moderate-to-vigorous PA was 38.4 ± 24.3 min/day; sedentary time was 849.4 ± 196.6 min/day; mean ± SD. PA levels increased significantly upon return to school (all variables p < 0.001). While there were no sex differences during lockdown (p = 0.233), girls engaged in significantly less moderate-to-vigorous PA than boys once back in school (p < 0.001). Furthermore, boys had more favorable intensity profiles than girls (intensity gradient: p < 0.001), regardless of time-point. PA levels decreased with age at both time-points; upper secondary school girls were the least active group, with an average M30 of 195.2 mg (while in school).
The lockdown affected boys more than girls, as reflected by the disappearance of the typical sex difference in PA levels during lockdown, although these were re-established on return to school. Upper secondary school (especially girls) might need specific COVID-recovery intervention.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UILJ, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK, ZAGLJ, ZRSKP
British children do not meet daily physical activity recommendations, and as yet no sustainable intervention has been reported to address their sedentary lifestyle. The purpose of this investigation ...was twofold: First, to examine whether painting playgrounds with multicolored markings would increase the percent of recess time spent in moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) and vigorous physical activity (VPA) in girls and boys and second to quantify the contribution recess makes to national recommendations for young people's physical activity.
MVPA and vigorous physical activity (VPA) were measured using short wave heart rate telemetry. Physical activity levels were compared before and after playgrounds were painted in 4 intervention schools and compared to 4 matched schools with unmarked playgrounds. Schools were situated in areas of deprivation. Ninety-nine children completed the study.
A significant interaction (group × time) was evident for MVPA and VPA. Time spent in MVPA and VPA increased significantly in intervention schools as a result of playground painting. Boys were more active than girls, and activity decreased with age, but neither difference reached significance.
Multicolor playground markings can be a low-cost method of increasing children's daily physical activity levels in the short term. If these increases were sustained, then school playgrounds with multicolor markings would make a valuable contribution to physical activity recommendations for young people.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK, ZRSKP
As the adult game has increased in popularity, youth soccer has also seen significant expansion in recent years. The popularity of the youth game is set to continue. Young boy and girl players wish ...to emulate professional soccer stars and the professional game, often with long-term financial rewards in mind, is increasingly keen to develop young talent.
Applied sports science is now a well-established feature of the adult game but the sports science that supports modern football does not translate directly into the youth game. The coaches of young players need specific information about children. Themes explored in this text include:
growth of physiological systems
development of motor and perceptive skills
paediatric environmental physiology
prevention of injury
diet and nutrition
youth fitness and skills training
effective teaching and coaching of juniors
the role of football academies.
Youth Soccer: From Science to Performance blends current child-focused sports science theory with youth-specific coaching practice to help create soccer development strategies for children. It promotes knowledge and understanding in all these areas and will further professional expertise amongst coaches who wish to develop the all year round potential of youth soccer players and train the stars of the future.
1. An Introduction to the science of youth soccer 2. The growth of the physiological systems 3. Environmental factors in youth soccer 4. Injury in youth soccer players 5. The young female soccer player 6. Developing fitness in the young soccer player 7. Nutrition for young soccer players 8. Acquiring soccer skills: Effective practice and instruction 9. Perceptual and cognitive expertise: Developing game intelligence 10. The science of pedagogy and youth soccer coaching 11. Psychosocial considerations of elite youth player development 12. The role of the football academy.
IntroductionHousing is a major contributing factor to health, and better housing condition has been linked to improved general and psychological health. There has also been strong evidence that the ...physical environment within the home setting substantially impacts sedentary behaviour and physical activity in children. However, there is a lack of research that has investigated the physical environment within the home setting in the context of older adults’ physical activity levels and sedentary behaviour. Given that with increasing age, older adults spend large proportions of their time in their homes it is important to optimise older adults’ home settings to support healthy ageing. Therefore, this study aims to explore older adults’ perceptions around optimising their physical environment within their home space to support physical activity and subsequently facilitate healthy ageing.Methods and analysisIn this formative research, a qualitative exploratory research design using in-depth interviews (IDIs) and a purposive sampling approach will be employed. IDIs will be conducted to collect data from study participants. Older adults from diverse community organisations in Swansea, Bridgend and Neath Port Talbot will formally request approval to recruit via its contacts for this formative research. The study data will be analysed thematically using NVivo V.12 Plus software.Ethics and disseminationEthical approval for this study has been obtained from the College of Engineering Research Ethics Committee (NM_31-03-22), Swansea University. The findings of the study will be disseminated to the scientific community and to the study participants. The results will enable us to explore the perceptions and attitudes of older adults towards physical activity within their home environment.
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