Prevalence of exercise and non-exercise physical activity in Chinese adolescents

Abstract

Non-exercise physical activity (NEPA) is an important part of energy expenditure. This study aimed to investigate the prevalence of exercise and NEPA among adolescents. In the HKSOS project 2006-2007, the proportions of Hong Kong Chinese adolescents (N = 32,005) achieving 60-minute exercise and 60-minute NEPA per day were analyzed. Exercise was defined as structured and planned physical activities, and NEPA was defined as unstructured and unplanned physical activities including walking for transportation and climbing stairs. The prevalence of exercise was higher in boys than girls (after school: 63.8% vs 39.6%; holidays: 78.7% vs 60.0%), but the prevalence of NEPA in boys was similar to that in girls (after school: 72.2% vs 68.0%; holidays: 80.3% vs 79.4%). In general, the prevalence of both exercise and NEPA decreased with age in boys and girls, but was more marked for exercise than NEPA. In conclusion, the prevalence of exercise was lower in adolescent girls than boys, and decreased more rapidly with age than NEPA. NEPA seems to be easier to accumulate than exercise among adolescents regardless of sex and age.

Development and feasibility of a brief Zero‐time Exercise intervention to reduce sedentary behaviour and enhance physical activity: A pilot trial

“…Table outlines the steps and goals of the ZTEx intervention. At the beginning of the core session, the interventionists (we) first aimed to enhance participants’ perception of the risk of physical inactivity (risk perception) by inviting the participants to perform physical fitness assessments such as body composition, muscle strength and balance (Jones, Rikli, & Beam, ; Newton, ; Roberts et al, ; Trampisch, Franke, Jedamzik, Hinrichs, & Platen, ; World Health Organization, ) and introducing the related age‐ and gender‐specific physical fitness reference values and the clinical relevance (den Ouden, Schuurmans, Arts, & van der Schouw, ; Leong et al, ; Mak et al, ; Newton, ). Table lists the fitness assessments and their clinical relevance.…”

“…Across age groups, most population have inadequate levels of physical activity (Mak, Ho, Lo, McManus, & Lam, ; Qin et al, ). Prolonged sedentary time and physical inactivity are major causes of chronic diseases (Biswas et al, ; Lee et al, ).…”

Physical Activity and Constipation in Hong Kong Adolescents

“…Ten response options from 30 minutes or less to 5 hours or longer were provided. Exercise referred to moderate or vigorous activities, such as running, swimming/water sports, hiking, gym/aerobic dance, whereas NEPA referred to low intensity activities embedded in daily living, such as walking to work and climbing stairs [23]. Duration spent on exercise per day was the weighted average of school days and weekend days (5:2).…”

Results From Hong Kong’s 2016 Report Card on Physical Activity for Children and Youth

“…Nonexercise PA has been reported for adolescents in Hong Kong; however, it was defined as movement behaviors such as walking for transportation and climbing stairs. 13 As a result, Active Play was graded as INC.…”

“…13,14 The baseline data collection was conducted in 2006-2007 among 32,005 students from 42 randomly selected secondary schools from each of the 18 administrative districts in Hong Kong. 13 In 2007-2008, follow-up measurements were conducted among 61% of the sample with 9993 students providing complete information on both time points. 14 Exercise (defined as structured physical activities) and nonexercise PA (defined as movement necessary for normal living such as walking for transportation) were assessed by self-reported questions.…”