Influences from “other influencers” for physical activity practice in teenagers

OBJETIVO Examinar la influencia social (apoyo social, influencia social e influencia como modelo) de los “otros significativos” (padre, madre, amigos, profesor de educación física) en la práctica de actividad física según género y ciclo, en sujetos adolescentes. MATERIAL Y MÉTODOS 831 sujetos de la provincia de Huesca (45,7% hombres y 54,3% mujeres) de entre 12 y 16 años. Contestaron a una adaptación del cuestionario “Four by one-day Physical Activity Questionaire” y al “Cuestionario de influencias sobre la Actividad Física y la Salud”. RESULTADOS La influencia del profesor de educación física como modelo y la influencia social de los amigos explicaron el 11,2% de la actividad física realizada. Se obtuvieron diferencias significativas para los referentes de género en todos los tipos de influencias sociales DISCUSIÓN El apoyo e influencia social diferenciado por parte de los progenitores, en función del género o edad de sus hijos, parece demostrar la importancia que tienen los referentes de género y los estereotipos sexuales, en la influencia sobre la práctica de actividad física en población adolescente.OBJECTIVE To estimate the social influence (social support, social influence and model) that exert "significant others" (father, mother, friends, physical education teacher) on physical activity by gender and cycle, among a representative sample of students in the province of Huesca enrolled in secondary education. MATERIALS AND METHOD The sample analysis was composed by 831 individuals from Huesca High School (45,7% men, 54,3% women), between 12 and 16 years old. Physical activity was assessed using an adapted version of “Four by one-day Physical Activity Questionaire” and “Cuestionario de influencias sobre la Actividad Física y la Salud”. RESULTS The physical activity teacher as a model and the social influence of friend explained 11,2% of the done physical activity. Significant differences in the social influences were obtained depending on the sex. DISCUSSION The influence of the physical activity teacher and the support from the friends appear as positive factors for the physical activity practic

Sensor-based assessment of soil salinity during the first years of transition from flood to sprinkler irrigation

A key issue for agriculture in irrigated arid lands is the control of soil salinity, and this is one of the goals for irrigated districts when changing from flood to sprinkling irrigation. We combined soil sampling, proximal electromagnetic induction, and satellite data to appraise how soil salinity and its distribution along a previously flood-irrigated field evolved after its transformation to sprinkling. We also show that the relationship between NDVI (normalized difference vegetation index) and ECe (electrical conductivity of the soil saturation extracts) mimics the production function between yield and soil salinity. Under sprinkling, the field had a double crop of barley and then sunflower in 2009 and 2011. In both years, about 50% of the soil of the entire studied field— 45 ha—had ECe < 8 dS m-1i.e., allowing barley cultivation, while the percent of surface having ECe = 16 dS m-1 increased from 8.4% in 2009 to 13.7% in 2011. Our methodology may help monitor the soil salinity oscillations associated with irrigation management. After quantifying and mapping the soil salinity in 2009 and 2011, we show that barley was stunted in places of the field where salinity was higher. Additionally, the areas of salinity persisted after the subsequent alfalfa cropping in 2013. Application of differential doses of water to the saline patches is a viable method to optimize irrigation water distribution and lessen soil salinity in sprinkler-irrigated agriculture

Dimensiones de la condición física saludable: evolución según edad y género

Mientras que la orientación del concepto condición física (CF), tradicionalmente ha sido deportiva, dirigida hacia la consecución de objetivos externos al individuo, a partir de los años 60, aparece un nuevo concepto de ésta, la condición física orientada hacia la salud, que centra su objetivo en el bienestar del propio sujeto, y en la consecución de un beneficio propio. Mientras que los factores de la CF relacionada con el rendimiento, dependen fundamentalmente de factores genéticos, los componentes de la CF relacionada con la salud, se ven más influenciados por las prácticas físicas, asociándose estos, con un bajo riesgo de desarrollar prematuramente, enfermedades derivadas del sedentarismo La valoración de la CF, en la medida que se relaciona con los hábitos de vida, los niveles de AF, de una población en concreto, nos permitirá obtener información sobre el estado de salud, la calidad de vida de esa población. Son datos, que si los estimamos importantes para atender programas de actividad física y salud, a nivel individual, resultan imprescindibles para orientar programas generales de promoción de la salud. El objetivo de este trabajo es conocer el nivel de Condición Física saludable de la población adulta (20-64 años), de la ciudad de Huesca, utilizando la batería Eurofit para adultos, (Comité para el desarrollo del Deporte del Consejo de Europa 1995). Atendiendo a los resultados obtenidos, los hombres presentan mayor puntuación que las mujeres en todas las pruebas, excepto en la prueba de flexibilidad, y en la prueba de abdominales, donde las mujeres presentan mejores resultados en la primera prueba. No se encuentran diferencias significativas entre sexos, respecto a la prueba de abdominales. Las diferencias entre sexos se hacen más evidentes en las pruebas que implican la dimensión músculo esquelética

Carga de trabajo en diferentes asignaturas que experimentan el sistema ECTS

In the last few years, some university professors have been undertaking activities in anticipation to the European Credit Transfer System (ECTS). One of the great worries these professors have is the workload stemming from this type of methodology compared to more traditional teaching methods. In this paper we present the results of a study which has systematically counted the work hours one must dedicate to subject matters under the ECTS system. The number of hours concern both educators and students in three separate cases. Empirical data show the viability of implementing this type of proposals in the actual conditions in Spanish universities.En los últimos años parte del profesorado universitario está realizando experiencias de anticipación del sistema European Credit Transfer System (ECTS) dentro del proceso de Convergencia hacía el Espacio Europeo de Educación Superior (EEES). Una de las mayores preocupaciones es la excesiva carga de trabajo que puede suponer la utilización de este tipo de metodologías respecto a los modelos de enseñanza tradicional. En este trabajo presentamos los resultados encontrados al realizar un recuento sistemático de la cantidad de horas de trabajo que supone llevar a cabo asignaturas basadas en la metodología de aprendizaje que están en la línea propugnada por el sistema ECTS. Hemos realizado el recuento en tres casos, tanto en lo relativo al trabajo del alumnado como al trabajo del profesorado. Los datos empíricos recogidos demuestran que generar este tipo de propuestas es viable en las condiciones actuales de trabajo en muchas de las universidades españolas

Identifying promising school-based intervention programs to promote 24-hour movement guidelines among children: Protocol for a systematic review

Three key health behaviors, physical activity (PA), sedentary behavior (SB) and sleep (SLP), have been identified by the 24-h framework as movement behaviors. School-based interventions targeting these multiple health behaviors among children have the potential to increase health outcomes. Despite this, the efficacy and sustainability of school-based movement behavior interventions among children has not been evaluated yet. To fill this gap in literature, this systematic review will aim to: (1) Summarize and classify movement behavior strategies used in literature to improve PA, SB and SLP in/from school in children; and (2) measure the effect of movement behavior strategies used in literature to improve PA, SB and SLP in children. The review protocol was registered in PROSPERO (CRD42020199154). A systematic search will be conducted between 2010 to 2020 in five databases: Pubmed, Scopus, SPORTDiscuss, The Cochrane Library and Web of Science. Risk of bias and quality assessment will be evaluated and measured according to the recommended tools. This systematic review will provide information about which kind of school-based movement behavior interventions are effective, sustainable and the best to implement in children

Barriers to and ways of facilitating the implementation of Aragon’s Health-Promoting School network

Background: The Health-Promoting School (HPS) framework offers a comprehensive approach to promoting health in schools. Aragon’s HPS network is a local organisation which has identified the need for closer cooperation between the education and health sectors as the main challenge facing its programme. Objectives: Previous studies from countries implementing HPS approaches have identified various outcomes and challenges. However, there is insufficient evidence to identify potential barriers to HPS implementation in Spain. This study therefore set out to explore these issues within the context of the HPS network in Aragon. Method: Three focus groups were held in different cities (Zaragoza, Huesca and Teruel) between April and May 2020. The total sample comprised 18 adults ( M = 45.21; SD = 12.61), 60% of whom were men. Eleven participants were HPS stakeholders (i.e. teachers, HPS coordinators) and seven were external collaborators (e.g. university professors, researchers). Results: The main barriers identified were the excessive workload for professionals involved in the network, limitations imposed by contextual factors such as lack of teacher and family involvement, and lack of supervision and communication within the HPS network. Strengthening collaboration with work in other settings, the provision of continuing education for teaching staff and more systematic evaluation were identified as potential ways forward. Conclusion: Using the principles identified in this paper, Aragon’s HPS network should be further developed to enhance effective implementation and improve sustainability

Uso de dispositivos fitness por parte de usuarios de gimnasios

El objetivo del presente estudio fue analizar los hábitos y nivel de uso de tecnologías aplicadas al deporte por parte de usuarios de centros de fitness. La muestra fue de 126 usuarios de centros fitness (61, 9% hombres y 38, 1% mujeres) de la ciudad de Zaragoza. El 66% de los sujetos realizaban un mínimo de 4 días semanales de actividad física y más del 30% realizaba 3 días de ejercicio físico semanal en el centro de fitness. Se observó que casi un 70% de los usuarios utilizan tecnología para realizar sus entrenamientos. Cabe destacar que las disciplinas deportivas en las que más uso se hizo de dispositivos tecnológicos fueron el running y el ciclo indoor (como actividad dirigida). Con respecto a los principales motivos que tienen los usuarios para utilizar tecnología durante su entrenamiento, destacan el de controlar la intensidad del mismo y el de mejorar su salud. Por el contrario, se observó que las personas que no usan dispositivos para realizar ejercicio físico afirman que éstos no responden a sus necesidades o no tienen suficientes conocimientos para saber utilizarlos. Dicho esto, resaltar que la mayoría de los sujetos del estudio afirmaron que la tecnología que se usaba, por muy avanzada o práctica que fuese, no podía sustituir a los profesionales de la ciencia de la actividad física y el deporte. The aim of the present study was to analyze sports habits and use of technology applied to sport by fitness center users. The sample was composed by 126 fitness center users (61, 9% men and 38, 1% women) belonging to private mid-market fitness centers of Zaragoza. A total of 66% of the subjects trained at least four days per week, while more than 30% carried out three days of physical exercise per week in a fitness center. We observed that around 70% of the sample used technology to carry out their training. It should be pointed out that the sports disciplines with the highest use of devices were running and spinning (directed activity). Regarding the main reasons for using technology during training, control of training intensity and improving health were the most common. On the contrary, we noticed that those persons who did not use gadgets during the practice of physical exercise stated that such devices were not useful or that they did not have enough knowledge to use them correctly. With this in mind, it is necessary to emphasize that the majority of the subjects from the present study affirmed that technology cannot replace sports and physical activity sciences professionals

Assessment of Volleyball Technical Learning Using Peer Observational Methodology in University Students

The European Higher Education Area defends training methodologies so that students learn to learn. The objective of the study is to know the assessment of the students about the teaching-learning process of the volleyball sports technique through the observational methodology by pairs. 215 students of the Degree in Physical Activity and Sports Sciences participated in the second-year subject “Collaborative-opposition collective sports” during the four years between 2015 and 2019. The students of each course are divided into di fferent practice groups presenting a diversi fied initial training in the field of volleyball, although the same intervention was carried out with all of them in the thematic block of volleyball during the first trimester. A descriptive study has been carried out in which the central tendency and dispersion have been calculated. The groups were compared using MANOVA tests. The validated scale (Álvarez et al., 2020) has been used to evaluate the process of Teaching Sports Technique by Peers in Higher Education. The students value the teaching-learning process very positively, obtaining averages between 4.00 and 4.50 out of 5.00. The intervention had effects on the evaluation of the students, obtaining significant differences in total scale and factors: design, phases, methodology and observation, allowing teachers to improve the teaching-learning process of volleyball sports technique. © 2022, Universidad Catolica San Antonio Murcia. All rights reserved