An Assessment of the Physical Activity Levels of Adolescent Girls ‐Implications for Physical Education

Abstract

The aim of this study was to provide an estimate of the physical activity levels of a group of 103 adolescent girls aged 11–14. Physical activity was assessed by means of an interview questionnaire. The questionnaire, the Four by One‐Day Recall gathered 4 days of activity information including two school days and a Saturday and a Sunday over a period of 6 months. The information derived enabled estimates of average daily energy expenditure in kcal kg‐1.day‐1, time spent in “moderate” activity and time spent in “vigorous” activity. The physical activity levels of the girls in this study were generally low. Approximately 45% were found to have engaged in no vigorous activity at all over the 4 days. Many participated in some moderate physical activity during the period of the study but a sizeable proportion had done very little. Approximately 30% engaged in a daily average of less than 20 minutes. It was concluded that whilst some girls may have engaged in sufficient physical activity to meet guideline one of the recent Physical Activity Guidelines for Adolescents, the majority engaged in insufficient activity to satisfy also guideline 2.