Adolescents’ Behaviors, Fitness, and Knowledge Related to Active Living before and during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Repeated Cross-Sectional Analysis

Senlin Chen, Baofu Wang, Stacy Imagbe, Xiangli Gu, Jared Androzzi, Yang Liu, Sami R. Yli-Piipari, Gang Hu and Amanda E. Staiano
Additional contact information
Senlin Chen: School of Kinesiology, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA 70803, USA
Baofu Wang: School of Kinesiology, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA 70803, USA
Stacy Imagbe: School of Kinesiology, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA 70803, USA
Xiangli Gu: Department of Kinesiology, University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, TX 76019, USA
Jared Androzzi: Department of Physical Education, Sport and Human Performance, Winthrop University, Rock Hill, SC 29733, USA
Yang Liu: Department of Physical Education, Wuhan University of Technology, Wuhan 430070, China
Sami R. Yli-Piipari: Department of Kinesiology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, USA
Gang Hu: Pennington Biomedical Research Center, Baton Rouge, LA 70808, USA
Amanda E. Staiano: Pennington Biomedical Research Center, Baton Rouge, LA 70808, USA

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 5, 1-13

Abstract: Background: Nearly all schools in the United States experienced shutdown followed by phased reopening during the COVID-19 pandemic, thereby limiting students’ opportunities for physical activity (PA). This study aimed to examine adolescents’ PA at school (PAS) and PA out-of-school (PAO), screen-based sedentary behaviors (SbSB), health-related fitness, and knowledge understanding about PA and fitness before and during the pandemic. Methods: Three rounds of data were collected: Time 1 pre-pandemic (January 2020; n = 405), Time 2 schools partially reopened (February 2021; n = 412), and Time 3 schools fully reopened (March 2021; n = 450). Adolescents completed the Youth Activity Profile, the 20 m Progressive Aerobic Cardiovascular Endurance Run (PACER) test and Plank test, and a written test, to measure the behaviors (T1, T2, T3), fitness (T2–T3), and knowledge (T1, T2, T3), respectively. Results: Inferential statistical analyses revealed a significant time effect for the behaviors and fitness. From T1 to T2 PAO decreased but PAS increased; whereas SbSB decreased at T3 compared to T1 and T2. Health-related fitness improved from T2 to T3. Further, the change patterns for SbSB varied by grade, and those for knowledge understanding varied by gender. Conclusion: The findings confirm the disruptive impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on adolescents’ active living but varied by school grade and gender. The favorable changes from T2 to T3 observed for fitness and other constructs may be partially attributable to an interrupted fitness education intervention. The findings may guide the design and evaluation of future interventions addressing the physical inactivity pandemic during public health crises (e.g., COVID-19).

Keywords: COVID-19; fitness education; middle school; physical activity; sedentary behavior (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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