Compliance with physical activity guidelines and barriers to physical activity in high school students

Abstract

The aim of this study was to analyze physical activity (PA) levels and perceived barriers to PA in High School students. Similarly, differences in gender, academic year, out-of-school sport and type of day were analyzed among these variables. In this cross-sectional study, 248 adolescents, 120 boys and 128 girls (M = 15.32; SD = 1.81), were involved. The sample was made up of 144 12th grade students (58.1%) and 104 13th grade students. The International PA Questionnaire-Short Form (IPAQ-SF) and the Scale of Barriers to PA were used. The results showed that less than 30% of High School students comply with the PA guidelines, being higher in boys (38.3%), in the 12th High School students (30.6%), in the students who practiced extracurricular sports (36.7%) and weekdays (31%). On the other hand, barriers relating to time adolescents were higher in students of 13th High School, while barriers relate to enjoyment were higher in girls and students who did not practice extracurricular sports. The results highlight the importance of promoting PA in High School students, especially in girls and 12th High School, through intervention programs that help improve the management of their leisure time and development of motivational processes.