Research
Adherence
Objective measurement of physical activity using accelerometers reveals a greater decline (7.4 min/day) compared to self-reported methods, suggesting self-report may underestimate the magnitude of the decline.
If you rely on how you *feel* or *report* your activity, you might be underestimating how much your activity has dropped. Objective tracking shows the drop is closer to 7.4 minutes per day. Use objective tracking to get a true picture.
LimitedSupportsLOW confidence
For studies with accelerometer data (n=9), the decline was −7.4 (−11.6 to –3.1)
Why this rating
Based on only 9 studies, though these are considered higher quality for objective measurement.
Source
Change in physical activity from adolescence to early adulthood: a systematic review and meta-analysis of longitudinal cohort studies
Kirsten Corder et al. · British Journal of Sports Medicine · 2017
DOI 10.1136/bjsports-2016-097330
Meta-analysis · 49 studiesCited 444×
Read the paper DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10
More from this paper
- Physical activity (specifically moderate-to-vigorous physical activity) significantly declines by an average of 5.2 minutes per day during the transition from adolescence (13-19 years) to early adulthood (16-30 years).Moderate
- The decline in physical activity is slightly more pronounced in males than in females during the transition to adulthood.Moderate
Related findings · Adherence
- Regular physical activity (at least 150 minutes/week of moderate-intensity) reduces all-cause and cardiovascular mortality by 20-30% and lowers the risk of type 2 diabetes by 25-35%.Strong
- Increasing physical activity from a sedentary lifestyle to an active one in middle adulthood significantly reduces the risk of coronary events compared to remaining sedentary.Strong
- Resistance exercise is the only intervention capable of consistently restoring muscle function and strength in sarcopenia, partially overcoming age-related anabolic resistance.Strong
This is one finding among thousands. Every one is graded and traced to its source, so you can see what the evidence actually supports. Browse the research →