Differences in Sensorimotor Feedback Performance by Body Weight in 12- to 15-Year-Old Adolescents

Abstract

Background: The field of sensorimotor feedback is still a young area in science. In several studies, it has been observed that with increasing exercise intensity, motor performance decreases in overweight and obese individuals compared to normal weight individuals, but in the area of sensorimotor feedback performance, the data is still very limited. Aim: The present study investigates the association between body mass index (BMI) and sensorimotor feedback performance in Austrian adolescents. Methods: In a crosssectional study, 12-to 15-year-old adolescents (N = 294) were recruited from 5 schools in Tyrol (Austria). Using the reference system according to Kromeyer-Hauschild et al. (2001), BMI percentiles were determined, and participants were categorized into four weight categories: underweight, normal weight, overweight, and obese. Sensorimotor feedback performance was assessed using the MFT ® Challenge Disc. Differences in sensorimotor feedback between weight categories were determined via Kruskall-Wallis test for independent samples with SPSS 28.0. Results: Of the 294 adolescents (48.6% female), 16.3% were overweight and 7.2% were obese. The results show that underweight and normal weight adolescents do not differ in sensorimotor performance, while performance was significantly worse in overweight and obese adolescents (p < 0.05). Conclusions: These results emphasize the importance of diverse movement experiences that not only address physical fitness but also coordinative abilities in adolescents, particularly those with excess body weight.