Association Between Physical Fitness and Engagement with Home-Based Physical Activity Equipment and Activity Locations Among Adolescents: The DESpertar Project

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Abstract
Background and Objectives: Adolescents’ engagement with physical activity (PA) supportive environments has mostly been examined through variable-centered approaches, with PA rather than physical fitness (PF) as the outcome. We aimed to (1) identify latent profiles of combined engagement with home-based PA equipment and activity locations among adolescents, (2) examine whether profile membership differed by age, sex, and family sociodemographic characteristics, and (3) investigate the associations between the identified profiles and PF components. Methods: This cross-sectional study included 764 adolescents (357 girls) aged 10–17 years from the population-based DESpertar project, conducted across the nine islands of the Azores archipelago, Portugal. Caregivers reported adolescents’ engagement across six indicators (small, medium, and large equipment; domestic, public, and institutional places). PF was evaluated with six field tests assessing muscular, motor, and cardiorespiratory components. Latent profile analysis, multinomial logistic regression, and multivariate regression were used. Results: Five profiles were identified: Low overall engagement (26.2%), Average overall engagement (42.8%), Equipment-oriented engagement (13.5%), Location-oriented engagement (11.4%), and High overall engagement (6.2%). Older age was associated with a lower relative likelihood of membership in all profiles compared with Low overall engagement (RRR per year 0.58–0.83). Higher parental education was associated with Average, equipment-oriented, and High overall engagement membership, and larger household size with High overall engagement membership. Compared with the Low overall profile, adolescents in the High overall profile had higher scores in all PF components, and those in the equipment-oriented profile had higher muscular and motor fitness, whereas the location-oriented engagement profile did not differ from the Low profile. Conclusions: High overall engagement and Equipment-oriented engagement profiles were generally associated with better physical fitness.
Funding Information
  • Regional Government of the Azores (62/2022)

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