Acute physiological and perceptual responses in the FIT FIRST FOR ALL school-based physical activity program

Area of Science:

• Pediatric Exercise Science
• School-Based Physical Activity Interventions
• Public Health

Background:

• Structured physical activity programs are crucial for combating sedentary lifestyles in youth.
• School-based interventions offer a scalable approach to improve children's health and fitness.
• The FIT FIRST FOR ALL program aimed to enhance engagement in physical activity among students.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the acute physiological and perceptual responses to the FIT FIRST FOR ALL program.
• To assess the program's intensity and impact on enjoyment across different cardiorespiratory fitness levels.
• To determine the program's effectiveness in improving cardiorespiratory fitness in schoolchildren.

Main Methods:

• A non-randomized cluster study involving 179 pupils (aged 7-16) in the Faroe Islands.
• Three weekly 40-minute sessions delivered over 10 weeks as part of a school-wide initiative.
• Physiological (heart rate, accelerations) and perceptual (exertion, enjoyment) measures in a subsample (n=53), stratified by baseline fitness.

Main Results:

• Sessions consistently achieved moderate-to-vigorous physical activity intensity (67-70% max heart rate).
• Pupils spent over 57% of session time in moderate-to-vigorous intensity zones.
• Enjoyment was comparable across fitness groups, despite higher exertion in lower-fit pupils. Cardiorespiratory fitness showed improvement, with a trend for greater gains in the lowest fitness tertile.

Conclusions:

• The FIT FIRST FOR ALL program successfully elicits health-promoting physical activity intensity in school settings.
• The intervention demonstrates high enjoyment levels across diverse age and fitness groups.
• School-wide, teacher-led delivery of FIT FIRST FOR ALL is a viable strategy for promoting youth physical activity and fitness.