Sleep Duration and Physical Activity as Predictors of Executive Function in Adolescents: A Longitudinal Study

Background/Objectives: Adolescence is a critical period for executive function (EF) maturation. While sleep and physical activity (PA) are key lifestyle factors, their longitudinal impact on EF in ecologically valid settings is insufficiently characterised. This study examined the associations between objectively measured sleep duration, daily steps, and EF performance across one academic year (~9 months). Methods: A longitudinal study was conducted with 168 Spanish adolescents (13-16 years). Sleep duration and daily steps were monitored using Fitbit Charge 6 wearables for 7-day periods at baseline (M1; September 2024) and follow-up (M2; June 2025). EFs were assessed using three validated tasks: Stroop (inhibitory control), Psychomotor Vigilance Task-Brief (PVT-B; sustained attention), and Paced Auditory Serial Addition Test (PASAT; working memory). Linear Mixed Models (LMM) were employed to analyse the effects of the fixed factors (i.e., Group and Time), and their interactions. Results: PA, but not sleep duration, significantly predicted executive performance. The High_PA group demonstrated faster reaction times in inhibitory control (p = 0.007) and significantly fewer attentional lapses in sustained attention (p = 0.014). In contrast, sleep duration showed no significant main effects on EF domains (p > 0.05). Regression analyses confirmed that higher daily steps predicted faster reaction times in inhibitory control in the total sample (r = -0.173, p = 0.002), although an unexpected positive association was observed in the Low_PA group for inhibitory control, warranting cautious interpretation. Conclusions: These findings suggest that habitual PA is associated with better EF performance in adolescents, whereas sleep duration alone (without considering timing or variability) showed no significant associations with cognitive outcomes. Sensitivity analyses using clinically informed thresholds and continuous standardised predictors confirmed the robustness of these findings.