AUTHOR=Cueto-Martín Belén , De la Cruz-Márquez Juan Carlos , Burgueño-Menjíbar Rafael , García-Mármol Eduardo 

TITLE=Efficacy of physical activity shared between parents and children to improve sports initiation in the M.A.M.I.deporte® program

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Sports and Active Living

VOLUME=Volume 6 - 2024

YEAR=2024

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/sports-and-active-living/articles/10.3389/fspor.2024.1372664

DOI=10.3389/fspor.2024.1372664

ISSN=2624-9367

ABSTRACT=Objective: To determine if the active methodology for improving sports initiation (M.A.M.I. Deporte®) shared between children and parents successfully promotes children in sports activities, maintains their activity and improves long-term adherence.The study involved 118 participants aged between 2 and 11 years (6.3±2.3). In the first season, 34 participated (16 girls; 18 boys); in the second season, 46 participated (22 girls; 24 boys) and in the third season, 38 participated (19 girls; 19 boys). Methodology: It was carried out from October to June over three academic years for two hours a week. Every 4 sessions a different sporting activity was carried out, planned so that parents and children could practise them, simultaneously. Analysis: At the beginning and end of each period, a survey was carried out on the sports activities in which the participants had started. If participants remained in the activity, the survey was face-to-face and if participants no longer attended the activity, they were contacted by telephone. Descriptive values were obtained for the variables in absolute and percentage form and a repeated measures anova was performed. . Results: Vigorous physical activity performed was 3.82±1.16 hours/week in the first year, 3.38±1.59 in the second year and 2.99±1.46 in the third year with no significant differences between any of the years. 32.20% joined other sporting activities and only 6.78% gave up vigorous physical activity. Conclusion: Joint activity of parents and children contributed to maintaining vigorous physical activity at the recommended levels in the child population with only 6.78 % (n=8) of the participants dropping out.