Objectively Measured Physical Activity and Health-Related Physical Fitness in Secondary School-Aged Male Students With Autism Spectrum Disorders

Chien-Yu Pan; Chia-Liang Tsai; Chia-Hua Chu; Ming-Chih Sung; Wei-Ya Ma; Chu-Yang Huang

doi:10.2522/ptj.20140353

Figures

Figure.

(A) Daily average overall physical activity (in daily average counts per minute) according to the participant group (ASD=autism spectrum disorders, TD=typically developing) and the day of the week (weekday, weekend). (B) Daily average percentage of time spent in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA%) according to the participant group and the day of the week. * Significant differences at P<.05, ** significant differences at P<.01.

Tables

Table 2.

Two-Way Analysis of Variance With Repeated Measures on Day of Week^{^a}

↵^a Data are presented as mean±standard error unless otherwise specified. ASD=autism spectrum disorders, TD=typically developing, MVPA%=daily average percentage of time spent in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity.

Table 3.

Physical Fitness Measures of Participants^{^a}

↵^a Data are presented as mean±SD unless otherwise specified. BMI=body mass index, PACER= Progressive Aerobic Cardiovascular Endurance Run, ASD=autism spectrum disorders, TD=typically developing.

Table 5.

Physical Fitness Measures of Participants Who Did and Did Not Meet the Daily MVPA Recommendation^{^a}

↵^a Data are presented as mean±SD unless otherwise specified. ASD=autism spectrum disorders, TD=typically developing, BMI=body mass index, PACER= Progressive Aerobic Cardiovascular Endurance Run, MVPA=moderate-to-vigorous physical activity. * P<.01.

Table 4.

Correlations Between Physical Activity Across Weekend Days and Weekdays and Fitness Measures for Adolescents With and Without ASD^{^a}

↵^a The correlation is graded as 0–.25=little, .26–.49=low, .50–.69=moderate, .70–.89=high, and .90–1=very high (Domholdt E. Statistical analysis of relationships: the basics. In: Physical Therapy Research: Principles and Applications. Philadelphia, PA: Saunders; 2000). BMI=body mass index, PACER=Progressive Aerobic Cardiovascular Endurance Run, MVPA%=daily average percentage of time spent in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity, ASD=autism spectrum disorders, TD=typically developing. Level of significance: * P<.05, ** P <.01.
^b r could not be calculated because push-up is a constant variable in TD group participants (all scored 40 s).

Table 1.

Physical Activity Measures of Participants^{^a}

↵^a Data are presented as mean±SD. ASD=autism spectrum disorders, TD=typically developing, MVPA=moderate-to-vigorous physical activity, MVPA%=daily average percentage of time spent in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity.