Commentary: The impact of COVID-19 Delta variant home confinement on student physical health literacy—a call for awareness in physical education

Abstract

During the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) Delta variant wave of the pandemic, governments implemented health orders and policies that included citizens in lockdowns and confined to the home. These health orders and home confinement reduced children’s time for engagement in physical activity and access to supervised, structured physical education (PE) lessons. To understand the potential impact on the physiological aspects of children’s physical health literacy, one must understand the adverse consequences of detraining in relation to the reduction in physical activity and supervised structured PE lessons. The aim of this paper is to give a brief overview of how PE students were affected during the current COVID-19 pandemic. It will also discuss the impact of confinement on physiological adaptions. The article ends with a short discussion on the resumption of face-to-face PE lessons after enforced confinement and PE programming considerations. In such an uncertain environment, PE teachers need to show caution and consider the effects of detraining when programming PE lessons to ensure their safety and strategies for reconditioning.