The Bidirectional Correlation between Fundamental Motor Skill and Moderate-to-Vigorous Physical Activities: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Abstract

Background: Physical activity in early life has positive health effects, but few children meet the physical activity recommendations. Fundamental motor skills (FMS) are related to physical activity and according to the theory, physical activity drives them in the early years and vice versa. However, no study has conducted a meta-analysis of the association between moderate-to-vigorous intensity physical activity (MVPA) and early FMS. This meta-analysis examined the bidirectional correlation between MVPA and domain-specific FMS in preschool children. Methods: We searched PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane Library databases for articles published up to August 2023. Cross-sectional and longitudinal studies were included if they targeted children (3–6 years old) as the study population. The association between objectively measured MVPA and FMS was evaluated. Results: We found 445 titles and abstracts. A total of ten studies (eleven datasets) and 2514 children met the inclusion criteria, including eight cross-sectional studies and three longitudinal studies. When using MVPA as the exposure, no associations were found with locomotor skills (β = 0.83, 95% CI: −0.08, 1.74, p = 0.07) and gross motor skills (β = 2.72, 95% CI: −0.28, 5.72, p = 0.08), but an association with object management skills was found (β = 0.18, 95% CI: 0.06, 0.30, p = 0.001). When MVPA was used as the outcome, no associations were observed between locomotor skills (β = 0.06, 95% CI: −0.35, 0.47, p = 0.79), but associations with object management skills (β = 0.15, 95% CI: 0.02, 0.27, p = 0.02) and gross motor skill were found (β = 0.56, 95% CI: 0.38, 0.75, p = 0.001). The sensitivity analysis showed that the results must be treated with caution. Conclusion: We found that gross motor skill (exposure) was positively associated with MVPA (outcome) in preschoolers. Object management skills were positively associated with MVPA (exposure) and MVPA (outcome) in preschoolers. In contrast, MVPA as an exposure was not associated with locomotor skills and gross motor skills. The results may suggest that promoting FMS is important for preschool children’s MVPA.

Associations of obesity, movement behaviors, and socioeconomic status with fundamental movement skills in children: Results from the REACT project

“…Children who do not meet MVPA guidelines may limit their context‐specific motor experiences, potentially hampering their motor development (Robinson et al, 2015). Children who are physically active and proficient in motor skills are less likely to develop obesity (Liu et al, 2023; Stodden et al, 2008). Despite the acknowledged bidirectional relationship between FMS and physical activity, more emphasis is placed on how FMS influences physical activity a children age, rather than the reverse (Cohen et al, 2014; Lubans et al, 2010; Robinson et al, 2015), based on the context‐specific nature of physical activities that promotes skill development.…”

Discriminant analysis: motor skills in the structure of motor readiness of 8-year-old boys practicing karate

“…Fundamental motor skills and their impact on increasing the level of motor readiness are considered as a way to solve the problem of motor activity deficit in children [1][2][3]. A correlation relationship has been established between fundamental motor skills and the level of motor activity [4][5][6], fundamental motor skills and the level of motor readiness [7][8][9].…”