title: Environmental modifications to increase physical activity during recess: preliminary findings from ready for recess.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The purpose of this study was to determine the effectiveness of Ready for Recess: an elementary school recess intervention targeting staff training (ST) and providing recreational equipment (EQ).
  
  
  METHODS
  Ready for Recess had 4 intervention schools: 1) EQ+ST, 2) EQ, 3) ST, and 4) control. Moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) was assessed with accelerometers at the four schools in 257 3rd- to 6th-grade children. Random intercept models for overweight/obese (OWOB) and healthy weight (HW) for boys and girls separately, examined change in percentage of time spent in MVPA during recess across EQ+ST, EQ, and ST compared with the control from baseline to postintervention.
  
  
  RESULTS
  HW boys receiving EQ+ST increased MVPA by 19.4%, OWOB boys receiving ST increased MVPA by 4.5%, OWOB girls receiving EQ-ST increased MVPA by 6.0%, while HW girls receiving EQ decreased MVPA by 13.6% in comparison with the control.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Ready for Recess represents a possible means to increase MVPA in OWOB girls/boys, populations least likely to meet MVPA recommendations. However, the effect of the intervention was not uniform across all subgroups.
authors.affiliation: Dept of Health, Physical Education, and Recreation, University of Nebraska at Omaha, USA.
authors.forename: Jennifer L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Huberty
authors.forename: Michael W
authors.initials: MW
authors.lastname: Beets
authors.forename: Aaron
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Beighle
authors.forename: Greg
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Welk
mesh_terms: D000054:Acceleration; D002648:Child; D016001:Confidence Intervals; D004779:Environment Design; D006293:Health Promotion / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D009043:Motor Activity / Q000502:physiology*; D009765:Obesity / Q000517:prevention & control*; D016730:Program Development; D015397:Program Evaluation; D011998:Recreation / Q000502:physiology*; D012574:Schools; D040241:Social Marketing; D013997:Time Factors