Heart rate and physical activity levels during school recess. A descriptive study

Abstract

The goals of this study were to describe the levels of physical activity (PA) in children during recess without intervention, analyze them according to gender and examine the contribution of this type of recess to the recommendations on PA intensity during recess. Materials and methods. The sample consisted of 32 students (14 boys, 10,78 ± 0,69; 18 girls, 10,4 ± 0,80) from a Primary Education school. Data collection took place during 8 recess and Polar Team 2 heart rate monitors were used. Results and discussion. Results show significant differences in the level of PA in intensity values from moderate to vigorous (MVPA%) depending on the gender of the children, with boys (63,25 ± 23,15%) reaching higher values than girls (43,74 ± 26,00%). Regarding PA recommendations during recesses, a higher percentage of boys (81,33 ± 6,20%) reach them compared to girls (51,95 ± 6,79%). Recess contribute 24,79 ± 7,01% to the PA recommendations in daily MVPA values. Conclusions. MVPA levels in children during recess are medium-low. Boys participate during recess time with a significantly higher intensity than girls. It is necessary to study what variables influence the increase in PA levels in MVPA values in girls, who are more sedentary.