Physical Activity - Children in United States

United States

Regular physical activity in children and adolescents is associated with improved bone health, weight status, cardiovascular and muscular fitness and reduced risk of depression. Physical activity can ease stress and anxiety symptoms in teenagers and support their overall social development. 

Lack of physical activity is one of the driving factors of the childhood obesity epidemic in the United States. As of 2024, only 19.2% of school-aged children engage in the recommended 60 minutes of physical activity per day. Physical activity is associated with improved academic performance and other cognitive and memory functions. Exercise also increases the chances of living a longer and healthier life, and children who engage in regular physical activity are more likely to become physically active adults.

According to America’s Health Rankings analysis, the prevalence of physical activity is higher among:

• Boys compared with girls.
• Black and white children compared with Asian and Hispanic children.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) lists several strategies for increasing physical activity, including connecting more activity-friendly routes to everyday destinations and implementing comprehensive school physical activity programs. 

Some other ways to increase physical activity among children include: 

• Encouraging children to spend time outdoors, which can increase their willingness to be physically active. 
• Setting a good example and planning family activities that involve physical movement (e.g., hiking, biking or playing sports together).
• Promoting access to fun, energetic after-school activities that are outdoors or include physical exercise. 
• Limiting screen time on television, electronic devices and video games. 

County Health Rankings & Roadmaps has several evidence-based approaches for increasing physical activity among children in school, including:

• Incorporating physical activities into routines, schedules and infrastructure through initiatives like active recess.
• Safe Routes to Schools, a federal program that supports improvements to walking and biking design and infrastructure.
• Walking school buses, an organized program that encourages children to walk to school safely under the supervision of adult chaperones, whom they meet at designated stops on routes similar to school bus routes.

The Community Preventive Services Task Force recommends improving physical education (PE) programs in schools to increase physical activity levels. This involves modifying coursework, incorporating frequent fitness and circuit training activities, and implementing new teaching strategies. The CDC has developed a PE Curriculum Analysis Tool to help schools align with national standards. A 2023 study examining effective ways to incorporate physical activity into the school day found that school-level policies and programs are the most effective way to increase physical activity among students.

Healthy People 2030 has several goals related to physical activity, including: 

• Increasing the proportion of children who do enough aerobic physical activity. 
• Increasing the proportion of adolescents who do enough muscle-strengthening activity.
• Increasing the proportion of children and adolescents who play sports.

Cornett, Kelly, Ken Murfay, and Janet E. Fulton. “Physical Activity Interventions During the School Day: Reviewing Policies, Practices, and Benefits.” Journal of School Health 93, no. 9 (September 2023): 778–87. https://doi.org/10.1111/josh.13371.

Guo, Zhifeng, and Yiying Zhang. “Study on the Interactive Factors between Physical Exercise and Mental Health Promotion of Teenagers.” Edited by Kalidoss Rajakani. Journal of Healthcare Engineering 2022 (January 25, 2022): 1–4. https://doi.org/10.1155/2022/4750133.

Ha, Amy S., Johan Y. Y. Ng, Chris Lonsdale, David R. Lubans, and Florrie F. Ng. “Promoting Physical Activity in Children through Family-Based Intervention: Protocol of the ‘Active 1 + FUN’ Randomized Controlled Trial.” BMC Public Health 19, no. 1 (December 2019): 218. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-019-6537-3.

Hillman, Charles H., Katherine M. McDonald, and Nicole E. Logan. “A Review of the Effects of Physical Activity on Cognition and Brain Health across Children and Adolescence,” November 6, 2020. https://doi.org/10.1159/000511508.

Sappenfield, Olivia, and Ashley Hirai. National Survey of Children’s Health: Healthy Behaviors Among School-Aged Children, 2024. Data Brief. Health Resources and Services Administration Maternal and Child Health Bureau, December 2025. https://mchb.hrsa.gov/sites/default/files/mchb/data-research/nsch-data-brief-healthy-behaviors-school-aged-children-2024.pdf.

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans, 2nd Edition. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2018. https://health.gov/sites/default/files/2019-09/Physical_Activity_Guidelines_2nd_edition.pdf.