Secular Trends in the Achievement of Physical Activity Guidelines: Indicator of Sustainability of Healthy Lifestyle in Czech Adolescents

• Published in: Sustainability 2020-06, Vol.12 (12), p.5183
• Main Authors: Mitáš, Josef, Frömel, Karel, Valach, Petr, Suchomel, Aleš, Vorlíček, Michal, Groffik, Dorota
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• ISSN: 2071-1050; 2071-1050
• DOI: 10.3390/su12125183

(1) Background: The increasing socio-economic and educational demands on adolescents should be reflected in their lifestyles accordingly. The aim of the study was therefore to identify the trends in the achievement of physical activity (PA) guidelines by Czech adolescents through objective and subjective PA monitoring. (2) Methods: The research was carried out between 2010 and 2017 and involved 49 secondary schools, 2 higher vocational schools, and 8 universities in the Czech Republic. In total, the projects involved 1129 girls and 779 boys. PA monitoring was performed by Yamax SW-700 pedometers and IPAQ-long questionnaires. (3) Results: The results according to the average number of steps/day confirm a decrease in the amount of PA in boys and girls and in the achievement of the recommended 11,000 steps/day. However, the estimates of meeting the recommended weekly PA expressed as MET-min/week based on the IPAQ-long questionnaire are not so convincing about the decrease. (4) Conclusions: The combination of objective monitoring of weekly PA using wearables and subjective estimates of weekly PA using a questionnaire regarding the ease of application, appears to be a sufficient indicator of the status of and trend in PA and thus the sustainability of a healthy lifestyle in youths.