scholarly journals Objectively Measured Weekly Physical Activity among Adolescent Boys and its Relation to Health-Related Physical Fitness

2018 ◽  
Vol 4 (91) ◽  
Author(s):  
Edita Maciulevičienė ◽  
Rita Sadzevičienė ◽  
Renata Rutkauskaitė
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Body Composition ◽  
Physical Fitness ◽  
Muscular Strength ◽  
Lower Body ◽  
Adolescent Boys ◽  
Endurance Test ◽  
Weekly Physical Activity ◽  
Health Related ◽  
Objectively Measured

Research background and hypothesis. The objective methods of measuring physical activity (PA) are used more and more widely in various types of research. However, in Lithuania there is a lack of such studies with adolescents. Thus, we conducted a pilot study to objectively measure boys’ PA and to develop a more accurate PA assessment methodology in Lithuania. The purpose of this study was to analyse the objectively measured adolescent boys’ weekly physical activity and its relation to their body composition and physical fitness.Research  methods.  The  participants  of  this  study  were  104  healthy  adolescent  boys.  Physical  activity  of schoolboys was measured using actigraphs (Tri-axis ActiTrainer Activity Monitors). The level of the intensity of physical activity was determined by calculating energy consumption in MET’s. Low PA (LPA) equals up to 3 MET’s, moderate PA (MPA) – 3–6 MET’s, and vigorous PA (VPA) – 8 or more METs. Based on the frequency of VPA and MPA per week, the participants of this study were divided into physical activity groups. For health-related physical fitness  assessment  the  following  tests  were  used:  body  composition  (using TANITA  Body Analyser, TBF-300); flexibility (sit and reach test, Eurofitas, 2002), power (vertical jump was measured using a jump parameter gauge (SBM-1), muscular strength and endurance (modified push-up test (Suni et al., 1994)). Research results. All of the schoolboys demonstrated LPA on each day of the assessment. MPA on each day was experienced by 59.6% of the boys. No participants achieved VPA . The most frequent MPA and VPA were observed 5–7 and 1–3 days per week, respectively. Results of body composition indicated that boys experiencing VPA had lower body fat mass compared to those who experienced only MPA and LPA (p < 0.05). Analysis of physical fitness results indicated that boys who experienced VPA were better muscular in strength and endurance test (p < 0.05), but results of high jump and sit and reach test were not significantly different. Discussion and conclusion. Boys who experienced VPA at least for 3 days/week demonstrated better muscular strength and endurance results and had lower body fat content (%) (p < 0.05). For boys who did not experience MPA at least for 6 days/week, the total amount of weekly physical activity decreased and they could not produce better results in strength and endurance test (p < 0.05). Better results of boys’ muscular strength and endurance were  significantly related to their body lower BMI (r = 0.279; p < 0.05) and fat mass (r = 0.387; p < 0.01). Objectively Measured Weekly Physical  Activity among Adolescent Boys and its  Relation to Health-Related Physical FitnessKeywords: physical activity, MET’s, actigraphs.

scholarly journals Physical fitness and nutritional anthropometric status of children from disadvantaged communities in the Nelson Mandela Bay region

2020 ◽  
Vol 32 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-8
Author(s):  
Danielle Smith ◽  
Larissa Adams ◽  
Rosa Du Randt ◽  
Jan Degen ◽  
Stefanie Gall ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Body Mass Index ◽  
Body Composition ◽  
Physical Fitness ◽  
Body Mass ◽  
Muscular Strength ◽  
Background Information ◽  
Lower Body ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Disadvantaged Communities ◽  
Nelson Mandela

Background: Information about the relationships between physical fitness, body composition and nutrition has increased in recent years; however, little is known about physical fitness and the coexistence of under-/overnutrition among children living in disadvantaged areas. Objectives: To determine the physical fitness status and its association with body composition, growth and selected socio- demographics in primary schoolchildren from disadvantaged communities in the Nelson Mandela Bay region. Methods: Nine hundred and sixty-five children (49% girls, M=9.5 years) participated in this cross-sectional study. Height and weight were measured to establish body mass index, and height-for-age z-scores. Physical fitness was assessed using tests from the Eurofit Physical Fitness test battery (flexibility, upper/lower body muscular strength and cardiorespiratory fitness). Between- group differences and cross-sectional associations were examined with univariate (Chi2-tests, analyses of variance) and multivariate methods (mixed linear/logistic regression). Results: Most children had normal weight (76.7%), while 4.5% were underweight and 18.7% were overweight/obese. Underweight children and children with stunted growth (11.5%) had lower average upper body strength (p<0.001). Overweight/obese children had lower scores in weight-bearing activities (p<0.001). Children with higher socio-economic status were more likely to be overweight and obese (p<0.001). In the multivariate analyses, sex, age, body mass index, and stunting were associated with children’s physical fitness. Conclusion: Fitness assessments seem to be a relevant measure of the current health status of children in disadvantaged settings. Compared to international norms, the children in this study had relatively low scores for both upper- and lower body muscular strength. Therefore, effective school-based intervention programmes should be developed to improve children’s physical fitness in disadvantaged schools.

scholarly journals The association between mental health and physical fitness in Norwegian adolescents

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andreas Åvitsland ◽  
Eva Leibinger ◽  
Tommy Haugen ◽  
Øystein Lerum ◽  
Runar Barstad Solberg ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Body Composition ◽  
Physical Fitness ◽  
Cardiorespiratory Fitness ◽  
Muscular Strength ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Health Related ◽  
Strengths And Difficulties ◽  
Adjusted Model ◽  
The Relationship

Abstract Background: Studies indicate that cardiorespiratory fitness, muscular strength and body composition are associated with mental health. However, research is scarce concerning this relationship in young adolescents in general and non-existent in Norwegian populations specifically. The aim of the study was to examine the relationship between different health-related aspects of physical fitness and self-reported mental health in Norwegian adolescents. Methods: Participants from four regions of Norway (n = 1486; mean age = 13.9; girls = 50.6%) completed the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire, and were measured for cardiorespiratory fitness, muscular strength and body composition. Linear mixed effects models were conducted to assess the associations between the health-related aspects of physical fitness and the total difficulties score of the questionnaire. Results: Body composition was not associated with total difficulties score. Muscular strength independently was associated with total difficulties score, but when all independent variables were entered in the fully adjusted model, only cardiorespiratory fitness was associated with total difficulties score. School clusters were included as random effects and all models were controlled for sex, socioeconomic status and birthplace (domestic or foreign). Conclusions: A small but significant negative association between cardiorespiratory fitness and total difficulties score indicated that higher cardiorespiratory fitness predicted better mental health in Norwegian adolescents. The results suggest that muscular strength is not associated with mental health in adolescents, when controlling for cardiorespiratory fitness. Future research on how exercise affects mental health should investigate whether there is a greater effect for participants who improve their cardiorespiratory fitness.

scholarly journals Two-year longitudinal health-related fitness, anthropometry and body composition status amongst adolescents in Tlokwe Municipality: The PAHL Study

2015 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Oluwatoyi O. Toriola ◽  
Makama A. Monyeki ◽  
Abel L. Toriola
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Body Composition ◽  
Physical Fitness ◽  
Physical Activity Intervention ◽  
Positive Association ◽  
Endurance Running ◽  
Significant Positive Association ◽  
Negatively Associated ◽  
Health Related ◽  
Health Related Fitness

Aim: To evaluate a two-year longitudinal development of health-related fitness, anthropometry and body composition status amongst adolescents in Tlokwe Municipality, Potchefstroom, South Africa.Setting: A total of 283 high-school learners (111 boys and 172 girls) of ages 14 and 15 years who were part of the ongoing Physical Activity and Health Longitudinal Study (PAHLS) participated in the study. For the purpose of the present study, data collected for 2011 and 2012 for anthropometric, body composition and health-related physical fitness were used.Results: Body mass index (BMI) classification of boys and girls for 2011 and 2012 showed that 24.3% of them were underweight compared with 21% in 2012. In 2011, 50% of boys and girls had normal bodyweight compared with 52% in 2012, whilst 25.5% of the total group of participants were overweight compared with 27% in 2012. Both boys and girls showed significant increases of 5.9% in body fat (BF) and 3.2 kg in body weight over two years’ measurements, respectively. Regarding health-related fitness (i.e BAH), boys showed an increase of 14.8 seconds whilst girls gained 9.6 seconds. Significant decreases were found for sit-ups in both boys and girls. A significant VO2max increase of 2.9 mL/kg/min. was found in boys over the time period. A non-significant decrease of -0.5 mL/kg/min. was observed in girls. Regression coefficients showed that changes in BMI were inversely associated with those in health-related physical fitness. The changes in percentage BF were negatively associated with standing broad jump (SBJ), bent arm hang (BAH) and VO2 max in both boys and girls. A low significant positive association was found between changes in waist-to-height ratio (WHtR) and SBJ in both genders, whilst inverse low associations were found between WHtR and BAH in girls and for VO2max in both genders.Conclusion: Changes in BMI, %BF and WHtR were negatively associated with strength and running performances in the participating children. The relative increase in overweight, especially in girls, negatively affected their endurance running and static strength performances. The health implications of the observed findings are discussed and recommendations offered for physical activity intervention in school physical education (PE) programmes.

Environmental perceptions and its associations with physical fitness and body composition in adolescents: longitudinal results from the LabMed Physical Activity Study

2018 ◽  
Vol 0 (0) ◽  
Author(s):  
André Oliveira ◽  
Luis Lopes ◽  
Sandra Abreu ◽  
Carla Moreira ◽  
Pedro Silva ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Body Composition ◽  
Physical Fitness ◽  
Environmental Perceptions ◽  
Linear Regression Models ◽  
Anthropometric Measures ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Environmental Correlates ◽  
Health Related

Abstract Background The environmental correlates have been extensively studied in the last years, but most associations with physical fitness (PF) and body composition have been cross-sectional in nature. Objective This study aimed to determine if adolescents’ environmental perceptions associated with PF and body composition in a 2-year follow-up. Subjects Participants were 583 adolescents aged 12–18 years (299 girls) from the LabMed Physical Activity Study. Methods PF and body composition were assessed with the protocols of the ALPHA health-related fitness battery and environmental perceptions with the ALPHA environmental questionnaire. Linear regression models were used to determine the associations between environmental perceptions at baseline and PF and anthropometric measures at follow-up. Results Results showed that perceptions of distant facilities at baseline were associated with lower fitness at follow-up in boys. Also, boys’ lower study environment perceptions at baseline were associated with higher body composition at follow-up. Positive perceptions of a pleasant environment at baseline were associated with better fitness at follow-up in boys. Additionally, girls’ positive bike lanes availability and esthetics perceptions at baseline were associated with better body composition at follow-up. Conclusion Positive environmental perceptions at baseline are associated with better PF and body composition at follow-up.

scholarly journals Daily Physical Activity Patterns and Their Association With Health-Related Physical Fitness Among Aging Workers

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 791-791
Author(s):  
Sari Stenholm ◽  
Anna Pulakka ◽  
Tuija Leskinen ◽  
Jaana Pentti ◽  
Olli Heinonen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Body Composition ◽  
Physical Fitness ◽  
Activity Patterns ◽  
Daily Physical Activity ◽  
Activity Level ◽  
Moderate Activity ◽  
Physical Activity Patterns ◽  
Health Related ◽  
Aging Workers

Abstract This study aimed to identify accelerometer measured daily physical activity patterns and to examine how they associate with health-related physical fitness among 258 participants (mean age 62.4 years, SD 1.0) from the Finnish Retirement and Aging Study. Wrist-worn ActiGraph accelerometer was used and health-related physical fitness measures included body composition, cardiorespiratory fitness and muscular fitness. Based on latent class trajectory analysis, six different patterns of daily physical activity was identified on workdays and two on days off. Having low activity throughout the workday was associated with poorest health-related physical fitness, whereas a combination of low or moderate activity during working hours and increase of activity level in the evening was associated with most favorable body composition and better physical fitness compared to the other trajectories. In conclusion, a large variation in the workday physical activity patterns and health-related physical fitness was observed among aging workers.

Exercise Effects on Health-Related Physical Fitness of Individuals with an Intellectual Disability: A Meta-Analysis

1998 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. 119-140 ◽  
Author(s):  
Angelos K. Chanias ◽  
Greg Reid ◽  
Michael L. Hoover
Keyword(s):  
Body Composition ◽  
Intellectual Disability ◽  
Physical Fitness ◽  
Muscular Strength ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Future Studies ◽  
Cardiovascular Endurance ◽  
Program Type ◽  
Improve Body Composition ◽  
Health Related

A meta-analysis was conducted to determine the effects of exercise on health-related physical fitness of individuals with an intellectual disability. The data came from 21 individual studies yielding 100 effect sizes (ESs). Large effects were demonstrated for muscular and cardiovascular endurance, moderate for muscular strength, and small for flexibility. No significant effects were found for body composition. Document source and program length influenced muscular and cardiovascular endurance outcomes, as published studies and longer programs produced larger ESs. In addition, program type influenced muscular strength (resistance programs produced larger ESs than combined programs), and program frequency influenced flexibility (higher frequency programs had larger ESs than lower frequency programs). It was concluded that additional research is needed to investigate means to improve body composition, flexibility, and muscular strength. Future studies should upgrade their standards for reporting appropriate statistical information and information related to sample and exercise prescription components.

scholarly journals The association between physical fitness and mental health in Norwegian adolescents

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andreas Åvitsland ◽  
Eva Leibinger ◽  
Tommy Haugen ◽  
Øystein Lerum ◽  
Runar Barstad Solberg ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Body Composition ◽  
Physical Fitness ◽  
Health Outcomes ◽  
Cardiorespiratory Fitness ◽  
Muscular Strength ◽  
Mental Health Outcomes ◽  
Inverse Association ◽  
Health Related ◽  
Psychological Difficulties

Abstract Background: Studies indicate that health-related components of physical fitness are associated with mental health outcomes. However, research is scarce concerning this relationship in young adolescents in general and non-existent in Norwegian populations specifically. The aim of the study was to examine whether body composition, muscular strength and cardiorespiratory fitness were associated with self-reported mental health in Norwegian adolescents. Methods: Adolescents from four regions of Norway (n = 1486; mean age = 13.9; girls = 50.6%) participated. Self-reported mental health (psychological difficulties) was measured by completing the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire. Objective measures were taken of their cardiorespiratory fitness, muscular strength and body composition. Linear mixed effects models were conducted to assess the associations between the health-related components of physical fitness and psychological difficulties. Results: Body composition was not associated with psychological difficulties. Muscular strength independently was associated with psychological difficulties, but when all independent variables were entered in the fully adjusted model, only cardiorespiratory fitness was associated with psychological difficulties. School clusters were included as random effects and all models were controlled for sex, socioeconomic status and birthplace (domestic or foreign). Conclusions: There was a small but significant inverse association between higher cardiorespiratory fitness and lower levels of psychological difficulties in Norwegian adolescents. The results suggest that muscular strength is not associated with psychological difficulties in adolescents, when controlling for cardiorespiratory fitness. Future research on how exercise affects mental health outcomes should investigate whether there is a greater effect for those who improve their cardiorespiratory fitness, compared to those who improve other components of fitness.

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