Effects of Intervention “Hopsport Brain Breaks” Program on Physical Fitness and Sedentary Behaviour in Primary School

Abstract

Background. Sedentary behaviour in children raise concern as the majority of children do not meet the health- related level of physical activity (PA) which is closely related with their physical fitness (PF). Digital facilities may help to solve the problem. Hypothesis. After the intervention “HOPSport Brain Breaks” physical fitness improves and sedentary behaviour decreases. The aim of the study was to assess the effects of “HOPSport Brain Breaks” video exercise intervention program on physical fitness and sedentary behaviour in a primary school. Methods. The study included 113 primary schoolchildren from grades 1–4, among them there were 62 children in the experimental group and 51 in the control group (Mean age = 8.24, SD = 1.10). PF was assessed using the test battery (Fjortoft, Pedersen, Sigmundsson, & Vereijken, 2011) pre- and post-intervention. Also passivity was measured twice using four questions from “Health Behaviour of School Children” questionnaire. The experimental group received Brain Breaks intervention every school day for three months in 5–9 min sessions during the breaks. Results. After three months physical fitness (PF) did not improve, but sedentary behaviour reduced in the experimental group compared to the controls (p < .05). Conclusions. The results have shown that fun and enjoyment, which are the background of Brain Breaks intervention, were important factors in reducing sedentary behaviour. Studies also show that the level of PA is proportionally higher when children are given the opportunity to play active games and experience fun (Wickel et al., 2007). It may be concluded that Brain Breaks intervention program contributes to physical health of primary schoolchildren. Keywords: primary schoolchildren, physical fitness, sedentary behaviour.