Conclusion Physical activity and sedentary time were highly varied and inconsistent between studies ; therefore , it is difficult to determine preschoolers ’ true amount of physical activity and sedentary time during childcare hours .
Despite this variability , preschoolers were noted to participate in high rates of sedentary time in this setting .
The lack of homogeneity is an important finding in and of itself as it highlights the lack of consistency in measuring , processing , and reporting paediatric physical activity data
Background Many preschoolers spend a substantial portion of their day enrolled in centre-based childcare ; the amounts of physical activity and sedentary time accumulated in this environment are critical to preschoolers ’ ability to meet movement guidelines .
The purpose of this systematic review was to provide a comprehensive overview of the objective ly assessed physical activity  and  sedentary time  of preschoolers in centre-based childcare ( registration no. CRD42016033502 ) .
Design and baseline characteristics of the Short bouTs of Exercise for Preschoolers (STEP) study
Background Most preschool centers provide two 30-min sessions of gross-motor/outdoor playtime per preschool day . Within this time frame , children accumulate most of their activity within the first 10 min . This paper describes the design and baseline participant characteristics of the Short bouTs of Exercise for Preschoolers ( STEP ) study . The STEP study is a cluster r and omized controlled study design ed to examine the effects of short bouts of structured physical activity ( SBS-PA ) implemented within the classroom setting as part of design ated gross-motor playtime on during-school physical activity ( PA ) in preschoolers . Methods / Design Ten preschool centers serving low-income families were r and omized into  SBS-PA versus unstructured PA ( UPA ) . SBS-PA schools were asked to implement age-appropriate 10 min structured PA routines within the classroom setting , twice daily , followed by 20 min of usual unstructured playtime . UPA intervention consisted of 30 min of supervised unstructured free playtime twice daily . Interventions were implemented during the morning and afternoon design ated gross-motor playtime for 30 min/session , five days/week for six months . Outcome measures were between group difference in during-preschool PA ( accelerometers and direct observation ) over six-months . Ten preschool centers , representing 34 classrooms and 315 children , enrolled in the study . The average age and BMI percentile for the participants was 4.1 ± 0.8 years and 69th percentile , respectively . Participants spent 74 % and 6 % of their preschool day engaged in sedentary and MVPA , respectively . Discussion Results from the STEP intervention could provide evidence that a PA policy that exposes preschoolers to shorter bouts of structured PA throughout the preschool day could potentially increase preschoolers ’ PA levels . Trial registration Clinical trials.gov ,
Conclusion Physical activity and sedentary time were highly varied and inconsistent between studies ; therefore , it is difficult to determine preschoolers ’ true amount of physical activity and sedentary time during childcare hours .
Despite this variability , preschoolers were noted to participate in high rates of sedentary time in this setting .
The lack of homogeneity is an important finding in and of itself as it highlights the lack of consistency in measuring , processing , and reporting paediatric physical activity data
Background Many preschoolers spend a substantial portion of their day enrolled in centre-based childcare ; the amounts of physical activity and sedentary time accumulated in this environment are critical to preschoolers ’ ability to meet movement guidelines .
The purpose of this systematic review was to provide a comprehensive overview of the objective ly assessed physical activity  and  sedentary time  of preschoolers in centre-based childcare ( registration no. CRD42016033502 ) .