An example apparatus for encoding video frames includes a receiver to receive a current frame to be encoded, and a quantization parameter and statistics for the current frame. The apparatus also includes a frame motion analyzer to detect a motion activity status for the current frame based on the statistics via a motion activity analysis. The apparatus further includes a motion adaptive frame inserter to adaptively switch between a regular reference list management and a long-term reference frame insertion based on the detected motion activity status and the quantization parameter. The apparatus also further includes an encoder to encode the current frame using the regular reference list management or the long-term reference frame insertion.