Physical activity among postpartum adolescents: a preliminary report.

The purpose of this study was to examine the levels and correlates of physical activity among a sample of overweight postpartum adolescents. Postpartum adolescents were recruited from a university-based teen mother program and local school districts. Adolescents (N = 21) aged 16 to 19 years, with a child between 6 and 12 months of age, volunteered. Participants wore a pedometer and reported their physical activity for seven consecutive days. Descriptive statistics and relationships between steps/day and self-reported physical activity, demographic, and psychosocial characteristics were calculated. Results indicated that participants were insufficiently active. Self-reported walking and pre-pregnancy BMI were moderately associated with steps/day. The findings of this preliminary study suggest that these postpartum adolescents were insufficiently active to attain substantial health benefits from physical activity. Postpartum adolescents represent an understudied population that may need to be a priority population for physical activity interventions.