Tracking physical activity in different settings from late childhood to early adulthood in Germany: The MoMo longitudinal study Health behavior, health promotion and society

Abstract

Background: Regular physical activity is important for remaining healthy. Most studies on the association between active child- and adulthood were based on small non-representative populations. The purpose of the study was to quantify tracking of leisure-time PA (in and outside sports clubs) for 6 years from adolescence into young adulthood in a representative sample in Germany. Methods: This study was a subsample of the "Motorik-Modul (MoMo) Longitudinal Study" (baseline: 2003-2006, wave 1: 2009-2012). Representative longitudinal physical activity data of N∈=∈947 adolescents were included and collected using the MoMo-physical activity questionnaire (MoMo-PAQ). Stability of different physical activity indices was measured using Spearman's rank-order correlations and ANOVA with repeated measurement with age, sex and socio-economic status (SES) as determinants. Results: While mean leisure-time physical activity outside sports clubs (LTPA) (F1,397∈=∈7.9, df∈=∈1; p∈ ∈.05) were observed. Low tracking correlations were found for different physical activity indices (LTPA: r∈=∈.094, p∈