Friendship can provide greater opportunities for children and youth to be physically active. 116 Youth report that their peers and friends expose them to new activities and help them stay motivated to be physically active. 117 Children and youth with a larger peer network also report increased physical activity and participation in a larger variety of activities than children and youth with a smaller peer network. 118 When they are with normal- weight peers, overweight and obese children are just as physically active as their peers. However, due to possible weight-based criticism and marginalization, overweight and obese children are alone more often than normal-weight children. 119 This negatively affects their overall physical activity since they may perceive fewer opportunities to be physically active with their peers. Modeling Behaviours Behaviour change may coincide with the role modeling of others. For example, when children are given the opportunity to either change their physical activity levels to match that of their friends or to keep their activity levels the same, they are much more likely to adjust their physical activity so it coincides with their friends. 120 This modeling influence or “power of peers” can be positive (leading to greater physical activity) or negative (pro- moting sedentary behaviours). Benefits of positive peer modeling include increased time spent on physical education activities, greater social interactions, increased physical activity self-efficacy and motivation, and improvement of motor skills and cardiovas- cular fitness. 117, 120 This relationship is also seen in children and youth with intellectual disabilities. 121 Based on this evidence, peer leadership initiatives may be a promising approach for promoting physical activity in children and youth. 122 Peer-Related Barriers to Physical Activity in Nova Scotia In the 2011-12 Keeping Pace study in Nova Scotia, 17% of students reported having “no one to go with” as a barrier to physical activity. A small percentage of students (1%) also reported that their friend(s), boyfriend or girlfriend prevent them from being physically active. 52 Report Card on Physical Activity for Children and Youth | 2013 Active Healthy Kids Canada