The Impact of Distance Education during the COVID-19 Pandemic on Physical Activity and Well-Being of Czech and Polish Adolescents.

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to identify the changes in the structure of weekly physical activity (PA) and well-being among adolescent boys and girls between habitual education (HE) and distance education (DE) during the pandemic in secondary schools. METHODS: The research was carried out in 12 Czech and 18 Polish schools during 2019 to 2020 academic session for HE and 2020 to 2021 academic session for DE. The research involved 723 girls and 626 boys aged 15 to 18 years. The structure of the weekly PA was assessed using the International Physical Activity Questionnaire-Long Form, while well-being was assessed using the World Health Organization-5 Well-Being Index. RESULTS: There was a statistically significant decrease of PA among boys in school PA, transportation PA, recreation PA, vigorous PA, moderate PA, walking, and overall weekly PA during the DE resulting from the pandemic. In girls, during DE, a decrease was observed in school PA, vigorous PA, and overall PA. During DE, a high level of well-being was reported by only 34.9% of girls (43.8% during HE) and 50% of boys (65.6% during HE). CONCLUSIONS: The observed low PA and high incidence of depressive symptoms in adolescents in distance education during pandemic constraints are a challenge for schools to change in supporting physical activity, eliminating similar negative impacts on school life in the future.

A Comparative Study of Two-Minute versus Three-Minute Passive Recovery on Sprint Skating Performance of Ice Hockey Forwards and Defensemen.

The impact of two different passive recovery durations, two and three minutes, between sets of repeated sprint skating ability (RSSA) test on skating speed, speed decrement (Sdec), and heart rate (HR) response of ice hockey forwards (n = 12) and defensemen (n = 7) were determined. Six sets of 3 × 80 m sprint, with two-minute passive recovery between two consecutive sets, were performed in RSSA-2. A three-minute passive recovery period between two consecutive sets was allowed in RSSA-3. Skating speed, Sdec, and HR were measured in all tests. Subjects skated faster (p < 0.05) in most of the RSSA-3 sets than the corresponding set of RSSA-2. Defensemen were slower (p < 0.05) than forwards in most of the cases. The Sdec was higher in defensemen than in forwards, although the difference was significant occasionally. No difference in peak HR and minimum HR between forwards and defensemen was found. RSSA-3 is beneficial over RSSA-2 in both forwards and defensemen by increasing speed. Defensemen are slower and show early fatigability than forwards, and no difference in HR response was noted between forwards and defensemen. This study concludes that three-minute recovery is beneficial over two-minute recovery by increasing skating speed, although Sdec and HR response neither vary significantly between RSSA-2 and RSSA-3, nor between forwards and defensemen.

Active Travel of Czech and Polish Adolescents in Relation to Their Well-Being: Support for Physical Activity and Health.

The adoption of active travel (AT) habits in adolescence, supported by positive emotions, increases the chances of a lifelong positive attitude towards AT. The aim of this study was to assess the associations between active travel and well-being (WB), and to estimate the share of AT in weekly physical activity (PA) and its contribution to meeting the weekly PA recommendations in adolescents. The International Physical Activity Questionnaire-long form and the WHO-5 questionnaire were used to assess the level of AT, weekly PA and well-being of 2805 adolescents from 36 Czech and 39 Polish schools. A higher rate of AT is only significantly associated with higher well-being in girls. However, meeting AT recommendations in combination with higher WB increased the likelihood of meeting the weekly PA recommendations in both girls and boys. AT accounts for 22.5% of weekly PA of Czech (Polish 24.2%) boys. Concerning girls, it accounts for 24.9% of weekly PA in the Czech Republic and 24.5% in Poland. Meeting AT recommendations should be part of comprehensive school-based PA programs. State, school and municipal policies in the Central European region should pay more attention to the improvement of WB and the built environment for AT in secondary school adolescents.

Is Pedometer-Determined Physical Activity Decreasing in Czech Adults? Findings from 2008 to 2013.

Objective measured trend data are important for public health practice. However, these data are rare for an adult population. Therefore, the aim of this study was to describe time trends in pedometer-determined physical activity of Czech adults (25-65 years) from 2008 to 2013. Participants were Czech national citizens whose physical activity was assessed objectively using a Yamax Digiwalker SW-700 pedometer (Yamax Corporation, Tokyo, Japan) for seven consecutive days in the period 2008 to 2013. The final sample was 4647 Czech adults [M age 41.4 ± 10 years; M body mass index (BMI) 25.1 ± 3.7 kg/m²]. The results showed that men took more steps/day (M (Mean) = 10,014; 95% CI (Confidence Interval) = 9864-10,164) than women (M = 9448; 95% CI = 9322-9673) in all age and BMI groups. Mean steps/day declined from 2008 to 2013 by 852 steps/day in men and 1491 steps/day in women. In the whole sample, the proportion of participants who had a sedentary lifestyle (<5000 steps/day) increased by 5.8%; the proportion taking ≥10,000 steps/day decreased by 15.8%. In 2013, men and women were 2.67 and 2.05 times, respectively, more likely to have a physically inactive lifestyle (<7500 steps/day) than in 2008. Conversely, in 2008, men and women were 1.68 and 2.46 times, respectively, less likely to have very active lifestyle (>12,500 steps/day). In conclusion, this study suggests that there has been a substantial reduction in physical activity in Czech adults over time.