Total and domains physical activity before and during the Covid-19 pandemic in adolescents in a Brazilian city

Abstract

The restrictions imposed by the Covid-19 pandemic directly influenced people's lives, especially physical activity practices. The objective of the study was to compare the level of total physical activity and in different domains before and during the Covid-19 pandemic in schoolchildren. The level of physical activity in commuting, home, school, and leisure domains was assessed. Data collection occurred by means of a structured questionnaire. Medians (Md) and interquartile ranges (IIQ) were used, as well as the Mann-Whitney test and the Wilcoxon test. Among the 98 adolescents (50 girls), m_age = 16,78 ± 1,15 years, we identified that boys were more active than girls in leisure time (pre-pandemic and during the pandemic) and total time of physical activity (pre-pandemic). The total time of physical activity decreased in both genders when comparing the pre-pandemic and the pandemic. There was a significant reduction in physical activity level in the school domain for boys and girls, and in commuting for boys. The restrictions imposed by the Covid-19 pandemic led to significant reductions in total physical activity level in school-aged adolescents and specifically in physical activity level in the commuting domain among boys.