Academic Achievement and Physical Activity: The Ideal Relationship to Promote a Healthier Lifestyle in Adolescents.

BACKGROUND

School environment provides several intervention opportunities for physical activity. The aim of this study was to examine the relationship between objectively assessed moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) and academic achievement in adolescents.

METHODS

Cross-sectional data were collected from 301 students aged between 13 and 15 years (46.51% boys), enrolled at 7 secondary schools in the city of Huesca (Spain). Participants wore accelerometers during a 7-day period, and their academic achievement was calculated from the average marks of all subjects. Structural equation modeling and quadratic regression analysis were performed to test both linear and nonlinear explanatory models. One-way analysis of variance was also performed to explore the effect of gender and the percentage of compliance with MVPA recommendations.

RESULTS

MVPA on weekdays and higher levels of body mass index were negatively associated with academic achievement. According to the curvilinear relationship, those students whose MVPA levels were closer to the daily recommendation were more likely to obtain higher academic achievement. However, a significant association was only shown in the case of boys.

CONCLUSIONS

Adolescents who satisfy the international recommendations tend to obtain better academic achievement. Therefore, MVPA for adolescents should be prescribed within some beneficial time margins (50-70 min/d).