João Martins

• PhD
• Professor at University of Lisbon

This article examined qualitative studies of adolescents’ perspectives about the facilitators and barriers of physical activity, published from 2007 to 2014. A systematic review of ‘Web of Science’, ‘EBSCO’, ‘Psychinfo’ and ‘ERIC’ databases was performed according to Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-analyses guidelines. The...

The present study, using a sample of Physical Education Teacher Education (PETE) representatives from five Higher Education European institutions (England, Finland, Greece, Ireland, and Portugal) sought to investigate the proposed measures of change required for programme delivery during the academic year of 2020-21. Each team completed a SWOT (str...

This paper addresses the inadequate understanding of the concept of physical literacy (PL), often originating from complex terminology and philosophical language used in the current literature, that discourages non-native English-speaking professionals from engaging deeper into the subject. Specifically, this scoping review seeks to identify intern...

A literacia física detém potencial para informar a mudança de práticas que valorizem e suportem o acesso equitativo à saúde e à educação. Esta revisão crítica tem como objetivo a reflexão sobre os aspetos centrais do processo de definição deste construto, desde a compreensão da sua origem e natureza filosófica até à sua definição no contexto europe...

Introduction Various studies have applied the 20-meter shuttle run test (20mSRT) to estimate cardiorespiratory fitness in different population groups, with the aim of associating test performance with the physiological, psychosocial, and cognitive health of children and young people. However, to date, no bibliometric review that analyzes the resear...

The decline in quality of life in recent decades in Spain and how it is related to health factors highlight the importance of considering health-related quality of life (HRQOL) as a key indicator in the assessment of well-being. Marked by physical, hormonal and social changes, adolescence is a critical period when lifestyle habits are consolidated,...

Objective: To characterize the levels of physical literacy (PL) and physical activity (PA) among adolescents, by sex; and to identify the association between levels of PL and PA and investigate their variation across PL domains. Methods: A total of 102 students participated in the study (70 females and 32 males) with a mean age of 16.92±0.84 years....

Introduction: the COVID-19 pandemic significantly affected all spheres of social life, particularly in education (schools and higher education). It is particularly important to study the specific context of physical education preservice teachers’ professional training, as they serve as a critical vehicle for the renewal of teaching practices in sch...

Introduction : The Global Observatory for Physical Education (GoPE!) builds on the Global Observatory for Physical Activity (GoPA!) to address gaps in surveillance, policy, and research on physical education (PE) and activity (PA). GoPE! is a worldwide surveillance system of quality PE and school-based PA that informs policy and interventions and a...

Introduction: Various studies have used the 20-meter shuttle run test to estimate cardiorespiratory fitness in different population groups, aiming to associate test performance with the physiological, psychosocial, and cognitive health of children and young people. However, to date, no bibliometric review study has been found that analyzes the rese...

Background and purpose: In recent years, sedentary behaviour (SB) has become a significant risk factor for health, alongside the decline of physical activity (PA) in the population. This study explored adolescents’ PA and SB using a longitudinal design, from the age of 13 to 15, to elucidate any changes and when they potentially occur. Method: The...

Background: Physical literacy (PL) as a holistic approach to physical activity has gained growing attention in research, policy, and practice. Many important policy documents in the field (e.g., GAPPA 2018-2030 by the WHO, UNESCO’s quality physical education guidelines for policymakers) have specified PL. However, a clear framework is needed, as mo...

Background The holistic concept of physical literacy (PL) has gained growing attention in recent research, policy, and practice. Many important policy documents of the physical activity and educational fields (e.g., Global Action Plan on Physical Activity 2018–2030 by the World Health Organization, UNESCO’s Quality Physical Education guidelines for...

The aim of this study was to describe the goals, activities, and methods of EUMOVE project in developing a set of resources targeting both primary and secondary schools that allow the entire educational community to promote healthy lifestyles (HL). The EUMOVE project is an Erasmus+ program based in the Creating Active Schools (CAS) framework. The p...

399-Retos, número 57, 2024 (agosto) Adolescents' self-perceived health, life satisfaction and subjective vitality during the COVID-19 pandemic: an analysis based on education level, gender and physical activity status Autopercepciones de salud, satisfacción con la vida y vitalidad subjetiva de los adolescentes durante la pandemia de COVID-19: un an...

The 24-h Movement Guidelines for children recommend at least 60 min per day of moderate-to-vigorous intensity physical activity (PA), ≤ 2 h/day of screen time, and 9–11 h/day of sleep for children. Since little information is available on the 24-h Movement Guidelines in Portuguese children, this research attempts to know the proportion of Portugues...

La escuela es un contexto social especialmente relevante en el desarrollo de los individuos, ya que permite el acceso a oportunidades de mejora de la salud y el acceso a una educación de calidad de forma equitativa. Al ser la única asignatura del currículo escolar cuyo enfoque combina el cuerpo y la competencia física con el aprendizaje basado en v...

Children’s motor competence (MC) levels tend to be low, and the investigation of variables that facilitate skillfulness is an important concern. The socioecological model is a useful framework to explore factors that influence MC and to inform the development of targeted interventions. This cross-sectional study aimed to perform an exploratory anal...

The PRIME PETE programme is innovative as it is the first online European programme for primary teachers available with a focus on PE. Thus, this programme should allow interested HEI and teacher education institutions who are currently offering primary PETE programmes or those who are developing programmes to choose appropriate modules for flexibl...

Background Physical fitness is a health marker in youth and is associated with current and future health. Objective Present the healthy fitness zone (HFZ) prevalence and age‐specific fitness profile of young people from seven European countries. Methods This study used data from the European Fitness Monitoring System project. The sample comprised...

This study aimed to analyse the knowledge of Portuguese physical education (PE) teachers according to the health recommendations for physical activity (PA) for children and adolescents. A total of 764 teachers participated (55.2% men) with a mean age of 48.2 years. Data was collected using answering to an online survey. Teachers were asked about PA...

This document reports the work done during the Primary Education Physical Education Teacher Education (PRIME PETE) project development in order to formulate the Recommendations on Primary Physical Education Teacher Education intending to provide a basis and rationale for the development and implementation of future primary Physical Education Teache...

During the COVID-19 pandemic, adolescents' routines were affected, leading to increased sedentary behaviors, decreased physical activity (PA) and social contacts, and negative impacts on mental health. The aim of this study was to analyze and compare adolescents' self-perceptions related to health, vitality, and life satisfaction, by sex, PA and ed...

During the COVID-19 pandemic, disruptions to adolescents' routines manifested in increased sedentary behaviors, reduced physical activity (PA), diminished social contacts, and adverse effects on mental health. The study's objective was to analyze and compare adolescents' self-perceptions concerning health, vitality, and life satisfaction based on s...

A escola é um contexto social particularmente relevante no desenvolvimento dos indivíduos, possibilitando o acesso a oportunidades de melhoria da saúde e o acesso a uma educação de qualidade de forma equitativa. Por ser a única disciplina do currículo escolar cujo foco combina o corpo e a competência física com aprendizagens baseadas em valores e n...

The COVID-19 pandemic has had an impact on the routines of children and adolescents and on their level of involvement in physical activity (PA). The restrictive rules applied in this period affected the functioning of physical education (PE) classes in Portugal, and strongly limited student participation. The aim of this study was to analyze and co...

Purpose It is estimated that 80% of children and adolescents do not meet the 60 min of moderate-to-vigorous intensity physical activity (PA) per day to benefit their health.1,2 Strengthening the provision of quality physical education (PE) and PA experiences within schools is a highly recommended policy action.3 Furthermore, there is a gap in monit...

Purpose Physical literacy (PL) is being recognized as a key concept to set the foundation for health enhancing physically active lifestyles for all. Portugal is one of the European countries where PL is gaining momentum. This communication aims to present the Portuguese initiatives on PL assessment and intervention developments. Methods In a first...

Objective: The present study aimed to explore the relationship between objective physical activity and sedentary behaviour with seasonality among a sample of older adults living in four European countries. Methods: A sample of 169 older adults living in Croatia, Greece, Portugal, and Poland (mean age = 72.2 ± 6.0, 68% female) had valid objective...

This article presents a discussion of research in Physical Education and Sport Didactics in Portugal. It starts by situating it from an historical perspective, placing the 1980s as the beginning era, mainly based on the studies provided by the two first Physical Education higher education institutes of the country. The initial research, first based...

Teacher training programmes and physical education activities were strikingly affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Consequently, this study attempted to uncover (i) the systems factors that influenced the teaching practice of 28 preservice teachers during school placement, and how different multi-system interacting influences impacted on (ii) predomi...

Introduction: Physical Literacy is a holistic construct that provides information for policies and practices in the areas of physical education, sport and public health to promote more active, healthy and sustainable lifestyles. In this paper we present the initiatives for the development of PL in Portugal, promoted by the team of the Faculty...

Lower economic status (ES) is associated with a less adaptive experience of school and physical activity. However, empirical evidence supporting the detrimental association of lower ES on the affective and motivational experience in Physical Education (PE) remains scarce. Using a large sample (n = 10392) of adolescents from six countries (i.e., Gre...

Objective The aim of this study was to assess the construct validity and reliability of the Portuguese Physical Literacy Assessment (PPLA) instruments (a questionnaire and a tool using teacher-reported data). We also investigated the conceptual and practical implications of reflective vs. formative measurement of Physical Literacy using the PPLA....

This study examined whether the perceived motivational climate was associated with students’ achievement goals and intrinsic motivation, from a multilevel (i.e., individual- and school-level) perspective within the Physical Education context. The sample was composed of 9855 students aged 10–18 (Mage = 13.96 years; SDage =1.97 years) who belong to 2...

Introduction: School is a unique context where equal opportunities for educational and health enhancement can be achieved. Teaching the Portuguese population to interact safely with the diverse aquatic environments is essential due to its geographic, cultural, economic, and social value. Physical Activity (PA) in, on, underwater, known as Blue Phys...

The COVID-19 pandemic has had an impact on the routines of children and adolescents and on their level of involvement in physical activity (PA). The restrictive rules applied in this period affected the functioning of physical education (PE) classes in Portugal, and strongly limited student participation. The aim of this study was to analyze and co...

We examined the construct validity and reliability of the previously developed Psychological and Social modules of the Portuguese Physical Literacy Assessment Questionnaire (PPLA-Q) using Mokken Scale Analysis in a sample of 508 Portuguese adolescents in public schools in Lisbon. We used a retest subsample (n = 73) to calculate the Intraclass Corre...

About 80% of adolescents report insufficient physical activity (PA) worldwide. Beyond the association of attitudes, family and friends’ support, and perceived behavioural control (PBC) with intention, self-regulation strategies are expected to underlie the association between intention and action. Particularly, action planning and self-monitoring,...

Objective This study aimed to systematically review and analyse intervention programs in a school context centred on the family, focused on increasing youths' physical activity. Data source The research was carried out in the PubMed, Scopus and Web of Science databases. Study inclusion criteria Studies were included if participants were children...

(1) Background: In accordance with the socio-ecological model of physical education (PE), school-based interventions to promote physical activity (PA) will only be successful if a change occurs in the perceptions and attitudes of all. This study sought to analyze non-PE teachers experiences in PE and how these experiences relate to the value they a...

Video (15 Minutes) explaining the most important findings of the Study "Physical literacy in Europe: The current state of implementation in research, practice, and policy" in the Journal of Exercise and Fitness, as part of the Special Issue "Cultural Perspectives on Physical Literacy"

Video (5 Minutes) explaining the most important findings of the Study "Physical literacy in Europe: The current state of implementation in research, practice, and policy" in the Journal of Exercise and Fitness, as part of the Special Issue "Cultural Perspectives on Physical Literacy"

Background/objective The holistic concept of physical literacy (PL) embraces different person-centered qualities (physical, cognitive, affective/psychological) necessary to lead physically active lifestyles. PL has recently gained increasing attention globally and Europe is no exception. However, scientific endeavors summarizing the current state o...

Introduction Aims of these studies were to develop the Portuguese Physical Literacy Assessment Observation instrument (PPLA-O) to assess the physical and part of the cognitive domain of Physical Literacy (PL) through data collected routinely by Physical Education (PE) teachers; and to assess the construct validity (dimensionality, measurement invar...

Background: We aim to systematically review the literature on measurement properties of self- and proxy-reported questionnaires measuring 24-hour movement behaviors in children and adolescents. Methods: PubMed, PsycINFO, SPORTDiscus, and EMBASE were searched until June 2021. Studies were included if the sample size for validity studies had 50 pa...

Physical Literacy (pl) has gaining momentum as a structural construct for the physical education (pe), sport, and public health agendas. It informs political and professional paradigmatic changes by allowing a more holistic approach to the learning process through movement and physical activities toward the promotion of healthy lifestyles and activ...

During the COVID-19 pandemic, adolescents’ routines were deeply affected, which negatively impacted their level of PA. Knowing the barriers to PA in adolescence is relevant, because the perception of more barriers is one of the most consistent negative correlates of PA participation. The purpose of this study was to analyze and compare the barriers...

Introduction: school is a privileged context for the citizens’ equal educational opportunities. Due to the geography, culture, economic and social value of the natural aquatic resources to Portugal, teaching the Portuguese population to interact safely and competently with the aquatic environments is essential [1,2]. This interaction through the pr...

Introduction: physical literacy (PL) can be described as the motivation, confidence, physical competence, knowledge and understanding to value and take responsibility for engaging in physical activities (PA) for life [1,2]. PL is the holistic learning that occurs through movement and physical activity and integrates physical, psychological, social...

Physical inactivity is a worldwide public challenge and a leading risk factor for overweight and obesity. Despite the well-recognized benefits of physical activity (PA), only 29% of European youth meet recommended guidelines of at least 60 minutes of daily moderate-to-vigorous PA. The school setting provides an ideal environment to promote healthy...

Purpose This study aimed to investigate the associations between muscular strength tests and vertical jumping performance (countermovement jump [CMJ] and squat jump [SJ]) in adolescent male football players, while controlling for important predictors such as chronological age and body composition. Methods The sample involved 161 male footballers (...

Physical activity (PA) is beneficial for health. FITOLD* it is an European project, funded by Erasmus+ Sport, which focuses on the characterization and promotion of PA, modes of mobility and health in people aged 65 years and older. In Portugal, the project is being implemented in Grândola. At an early stage it is important to evaluate, during a pa...

The promotion of active and autonomous aging implies the adoption of innovative strategies to encourage active mobility in the elderly. One of the strategies is the use of active and sustainable means of transport and mobility. This mobility is directly associated with improvements in the health of the elderly. The adoption of active transport allo...

This study aimed to assess the trends of health-related cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) during two school years with a 3-month summer break in children and adolescents. A 2-year longitudinal study, including 440 6th to 8th graders (218 boys), mean age 12.3 years, was conducted. The Progressive Aerobic Cardiovascular Endurance Run (PACER) was used t...

Background: Aims of these studies were to develop the PPLA-Observation instrument (PPLA-O) to assess the physical and part of cognitive domain of Physical Literacy through data collected routinely by Physical Education (PE) teachers; and assess the construct validity (dimensionality, measurement invariance, and convergent and discriminant validity)...

Background: Aims of this study were to assess construct validity (dimensionality and measurement invariance) and reliability of the previously developed Cognitive module of the Portuguese Physical Literacy Assessment – Questionnaire (PPLA-Q). Secondary aims were to assess whether using distractor information was useful for higher precision, and whe...

Background: Aims of this study were to assess construct validity (dimensionality, measurement invariance, convergent and discriminant validity) and reliability of the previously developed Psychological and Social modules of the Portuguese Physical Literacy Assessment – Questionnaire (PPLA-Q). Methods: Mokken Scale Analysis was used in a final samp...

Background Aims of this study were to assess construct validity (dimensionality, measurement invariance, convergent and discriminant validity) and reliability of the previously developed Psychological and Social modules of the Portuguese Physical Literacy Assessment – Questionnaire (PPLA-Q). Methods Mokken Scale Analysis was used in a final sample...

This study aimed to investigate parents’ estimation of their preschool children’s leisure-time physical activity (PA) and the correlation between parents’ reported participation in PA with their children in leisure time and their children’s PA levels. A total of 244 Norwegian preschool children aged 4–6 and their parents were enrolled in the study....

his study aimed to examine the associations between lower-body explosive strength (squat jump—SJ, and countermovement jump—CMJ), speed (10- and 35-m linear sprints), and agility (t-test) capacities, after controlling for crucial predictors such as chronological age (CA) and body composition. The sample was composed of 164 adolescent male football p...

Active commuting to and from school can be an important contribution to improving health in adolescents. This study aimed to analyze the influence of multilevel variables of the ecological model in the active commuting of a representative sample of Portuguese adolescents. The 2018 Health Behaviour in School-Aged Children questionnaire was applied t...

This study aimed to translate and adapt the psychometric properties of the Behavioural Regulation in Active Commuting to School (BR-ACS) questionnaire to young Portuguese students. This study had two stages: (1) translation and adaptation of the questionnaire; (2) evaluation of the psychometric properties. A sample of 338 participants (212 female,...

The present study sought to examine the associations between participation in physical education (PE) classes and a range of health-related behaviours among adolescents. Secondary analysis of self-reported data from the Global Student Health Survey, collected between 2010 and 2017 from 222,121 adolescents (N = 117,914 girls; 49.0%; aged 13–17 years...

Problem statement: The assessment of players' physical attributes such as explosive power has been relevant for players' selection and talent identification in youth football. Among individual features, the literature describes a high positive correlation between explosive leg power (countermovement-CMJ, and squat jump-SJ) and superior levels of sp...

Background The Portuguese Physical Literacy Assessment (PPLA) is a novel tool to assess high-school students’ (grade 10–12; 15–18 years) Physical Literacy (PL) in Physical Education (PE); inspired by the four domains of the Australian Physical Literacy Framework (APLF), and the Portuguese PE syllabus. This paper describes the development, content v...

The COVID-19 pandemic impacted adolescents’ lives, leading to unprecedented changes in their routines, especially in education. Face-to-face physical education (PE) classes during COVID-19 were affected in organization, possibly conditioning students’ participation, motivation and learning. Based on the achievement goal and self-determination theor...

Purpose. The aim of this presentation is to present consequences of Self-Transcendence (ST) goal adoption in Physical Activity (PA) across Greece, Malaysia and Portugal. It was hypothesized that across these cultures, when all three main achievement goals [Self-Enhancement (SE); Self-Improvement (SI); ST] are assessed, ST goals account for unique v...

This symposium focuses on cross-cultural research on the recently introduced Self-Transcendence (ST) goals construct alongside the widely investigated constructs of Self-Improvement (SI) and Self- Enhancement (SE) goals. In the introduction of this symposium, the importance of adopting selfless achievement goals, i.e., ST goals, as well as the conc...

Grip strength (GS) is an indicator of health and vulnerability and inversely associated with depressive symptoms. The aim of this study was to explore GS discrimination capacity for depression; and possible GS cut-off values for depression by sex and age group. Data from 2011 and 2015 on 20,598 (10,416 women) middle-aged and older adults from 14 Eu...

Purpose: Understanding friends influences on adolescents’ PA, and how these change over time, is fundamental to developing interventions for promoting active lifestyles yet the latter in particular remains unexplored. This study explored the experiences and perspectives of physically active and inactive adolescents regarding the influence of their...

This study aimed to systematically review the association between telomere length (TL) and muscular fitness. In October 2020, an articles search was applied to PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science. Eligibility criteria included: cross-sectional, prospective, and experimental study design; outcomes included TL; results expressed the relationship betwe...

Resumo. Este estudo analisou a oferta de uma escola internacional com o currículo International Baccalaureate (IB) para que os alunos, de ambos os sexos, possam cumprir as recomendações de atividade física (AF) da Organização Mundial de Saúde (OMS). Participaram 236 alunos (118 rapazes e 118 raparigas) com idades compreendidas dos 10 aos 17 anos, a...

Listening to adolescents' voices has been important to promote meaningful physical activity (PA) opportunities. Therefore, an updated systematic review of the available qualitative literature on adolescents' perspectives on the barriers and facilitators of PA was conducted, according to Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Anal...

Physical activity (PA) and sedentary behaviours (SB) influence health. Since most people engage in different combinations of both behaviours every day, understanding the socio-demographic characteristics of adults with distinct PA and sitting time (ST) patterns is important to contribute to evidence-based planning of public health strategies. Data...

Physical fitness (PF) is a multi-component construct and a biomarker of health. Worse PF is related to vulnerability and predicts worse academic achievements. Thus, assessing PF is important to monitor health in youth. This systematic review aimed to identify and inform physical education, health professionals and entities about existing PF batteri...

This study’s objective was to analyse the associations between physical activity (PA) and well-being in a representative sample of European university students. This cross-sectional study was based on data from the European Social Survey round 6, 2012, comprising 3,143 European university students (1456 men and 1687 women) from 27 countries, with a...