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The aim of this study was to investigate the associations among measured physical fitness, perceived fitness, intention towards future physical activity and self-reported physical activity through junior high school years.

Study participants included 122 Finnish students who were 13 years old during Grade 7. The sample was comprised of 80 girls and 42 boys from 3 junior high schools (Grades 7-9). During the autumn semester of Grade 7, students completed fitness tests and a questionnaire analyzing self-perception of their physical fitness. The questionnaire delivered at Grade 8 included intention towards future physical activity. At Grade 9 students’ self-reported physical activity levels.

Structural Equation Modelling revealed an indirect path from physical fitness to self-reported physical activity via perceived physical fitness and intention towards future physical activity. The model also demonstrated a correlation between perceived physical fitness and physical activity. Squared multiple correlations revealed that perceived physical fitness explained 33 % of the actual physical fitness.

The results of this study highlight the role of physical and cognitive variables in the process of adoption of physical activity in adolescence.