Abstract
Increasing physical activity participation has become one of the primary strategies for prevention of early-onset health conditions including obesity and Type II diabetes. Youth programs including summer camps and after-school programs are premium providers of physical activity opportunities, but researchers and administrators of these programs must be able to effectively collect and interpret physical activity data to make program adjustments and communicate results. This article reviews existing methods for physical activity measurement including self-reports and objective instruments and makes suggestions for their applicability. Pedometers are covered in-depth as they may be the method of choice in many youth settings. These devices are unobtrusive, have a relatively low cost, and provide excellent data quality. Proper physical activity measurement in youth settings can provide information about effective intervention strategies and may also encourage on-site participants to increase their physical activity frequency.
Highlights
In the past two decades more attention has been directed toward child and adolescent health
Research evidence indicated that a number of poor health conditions including obesity and Type II diabetes were beginning to manifest at young ages
Participants are typically provided with a survey or worksheet instructing them to rate their physical activity on a Likert-type scale or estimate their number of minutes of physical activity participation
Summary
In the past two decades more attention has been directed toward child and adolescent health. A sizable percentage of youth in the United States do not partake in adequate amounts of physical activity (Troiano et al, 2008; Tudor-Locke, Johnson, & Katmarzyk, 2010) Meeting these recommended physical activity guidelines can result in a host of health benefits including muscular strength, reduced blood pressure, and a healthy heart (Strong et al, 2005). Participants are typically provided with a survey or worksheet instructing them to rate their physical activity on a Likert-type scale or estimate their number of minutes of physical activity participation This data is collected over short time intervals (e.g., one day) so participants have less difficulty recalling their behaviors.
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