Abstract
BackgroundAn important but often ignored aspect of physical activity (PA) and sedentary behavior (SB) is the chronological succession of activities, or temporal pattern. The main purposes of this study were (1) to investigate when certain types of PA and SB compete against each other during the course of the day and (2) compare intensity- and domain-specific activity levels during different day-segments.MethodsThe study sample consists of 211 children aged 10–14, recruited from 15 primary and 15 secondary schools. PA was assessed combining the SenseWear Mini Armband (SWM) with an electronic activity diary. The intensity- and domain-specific temporal patterns were plotted and PA differences between different day-segments (i.e., morning, school, early evening and late evening) were examined using repeated-measures ANCOVA models.ResultsPhysical activity level (PAL) was highest during the early evening (2.51 METSWM) and school hours (2.49 METSWM); the late evening segment was significantly less active (2.21 METSWM) and showed the highest proportion of sedentary time (54 % of total time-use). Throughout the different day-segments, several domains of PA and SB competed with each other. During the critical early-evening segment, screentime (12 % of time-use) and homework (10 %) were dominant compared to activity domains of sports (4 %) and active leisure (3 %). The domain of active travel competed directly with motor travel during the morning (5 % and 6 % respectively) and early-evening segment (both 8 %).ConclusionsThroughout the day, different aspects of PA and SB go in competition with each other, especially during the time period immediately after school. Detailed information on the temporal patterns of PA and SB of children could help health professionals to develop more effective PA interventions and promotion strategies. By making adaptations to the typical day schedule of children (e.g., through the introduction of extra-curricular PA after school hours), their daily activity levels might improve.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12889-015-2093-7) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
Highlights
An important but often ignored aspect of physical activity (PA) and sedentary behavior (SB) is the chronological succession of activities, or temporal pattern
The levels of PA and SB are presented as pooled means and standard deviations, because only time spent at moderate intensity showed a significant sex by school-stage interaction effect (P = 0.01, effect size correlation coefficients (ES-r) = 0.17)
This study provides a better insight in the temporal pattern of PA and SB in 10–14 year-old children on weekdays
Summary
An important but often ignored aspect of physical activity (PA) and sedentary behavior (SB) is the chronological succession of activities, or temporal pattern. De Baere et al BMC Public Health (2015) 15:791 might be even more worrying, as epidemiological evidence has consistently pointed out that girls are less active compared with boys across all ages [14, 15]. A study on a sample of children from various European countries indicated that the overall PA level of boys in terms of activity counts per day was 21 % higher at the age of 9 and 26 % higher at the age of 15 compared with girls [16]. Despite the potential impact of the temporal pattern on the activity levels of children, studies that have investigated this aspect of PA and SB are limited
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