Is Fitness Level in Childhood Associated with Physical Activity Level as an Adult?

2009 ◽  
Vol 21 (3) ◽  
pp. 329-338 ◽  
Author(s):  
François Trudeau ◽  
Louis Laurencelle ◽  
Roy J. Shephard

The purpose of this study was to examine the possible influence of childhood physical fitness on physical activity level and some of its psychosocial determinants as an adult. Childhood (age 10–12 years) data from the longitudinal Trois-Rivières Growth and Development Study (body mass index, Physical Work Capacity (PWC170)), number of sit-ups/min, left + right hands grip strength) were correlated with adult data (age 35.0 ± 0.3 years) for physical activity (PA) level, attitude toward PA, intention to exercise, perceived barriers to exercise and support of an active lifestyle by significant others. No significant relationships between childhood physical fitness and adulthood PA were found. Although the sample size is relatively small, our data suggest that the preadolescent physical fitness level has no measurable impact on adult habitual PA, attitudes toward PA, intentions to exercise, perceived barriers to exercise or support from the individual’s entourage.

2015 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 21-35
Author(s):  
Aleksandra Čuprika ◽  
Andra Fernāte ◽  
Leonīds Čupriks

Abstract As it is mentioned in the action direction Healthy and Workable Individual of the National Development Plan of Latvia 2012 –2020: 30% of all the dead in Latvia have lost their life at the age of being able to work. The main causes of death rate are different diseases (cardio-vascular a.o.), as well as outer death causes (injuries) (Pudule et al, 2012; Štale et al, 2013). Only 8% of the EU and 6% of the Latvian population regularly perform moderate and very difficult physical activity (PA) (Eurobarometer, 2013). Therefore it is necessary to implement purposeful and effective health promoting and risk limiting events to develop the physical capital of one. The understanding of the impact of physical activity on one’s physical capital is not well explored in the previous studies (Hutson, 2012; Maguire, 2008; Goldenberg, 2003; Hedblom, 2009). Therefore, the aim of the study is to determine the relationship between PA and the objective indicators of physical capital for women in fitness. In the study voluntarily participated 33 women (30±4.1 years) from 2 fitness clubs in Riga. In order to determine the respondents’ objective indicators of physical capital were applied: bioimpedance method (TANITA SC330, Japan, 89/336/EC), heart rate variability analysis data processing software ‘Omega’, complex load test with expiratory gas analysis (VIASYS Healthcare GMBH, Germany) and Eirofit tests for adults. In order to determine the level of PA the IPAQ (Craig et al, 2003) short version in Latvian (Kaupuzs & Larins, 2010) was used. Descriptive and inferential statistics were made (SPSS ver.18.0). Several moderately close (0.5<|rs|<0.69; p<0.01) and close correlations (0.7<|rs|<0.99; p<0.01) are determined between the level of PA and indicators of body composition, physical work capacity, physical fitness and functional state of the body. The level of PA has a positive impact on the objective indicators of physical capital. The more physically active the respondent is, the better physical fitness, higher work capacity, better the indicators of his body composition are and better functional state.


Author(s):  
Paweł Lisowski ◽  
Adam Kantanista ◽  
Michał Bronikowski

The transition from kindergarten to school is associated with a variety of negative changes. After entry to elementary school physical activity level decreases. Moreover, physical fitness level of children over the past decades have rapidly declined. Children are spending an increasing amount of time in the environments that require constant sitting. We evaluated the differences between boys and girls in physical fitness, frequency of undertaking of different forms of physical activity, prevalence of underweight and overweight, and time spent on sedentary behavior. A total of 212 first grade pupils (mean age 6.95 ± 0.43) from two standard urban schools in Poznań participated in the study. Compared to girls, boys obtained better results in 20-meter run (4.9 s and 5.0 s, p < 0.01), sit-ups (16.8 and 15.3, p < 0.05), six-minute run (829.7 m and 766.4 m, p < 0.001), and standing broad jump (106.8 cm and 99.7 cm, p < 0.01). In the sit-and-reach test girls achieved higher results than boys (17.0 cm and 14.4 cm, p < 0.001). There were no gender differences in prevalence of underweight and overweight. In conclusions, difference between genders should be taken into consideration during designing physical activity programs in the aspects of intensity and forms of physical activities.


2018 ◽  
Vol 72 (12) ◽  
pp. 1141-1146 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jan Máchal ◽  
Filip Zlámal ◽  
Lubomír Kukla ◽  
Jan Švancara ◽  
Hynek Pikhart ◽  
...  

BackgroundLittle is known about the effects of physical activity and fitness on sleep timing parameters in adolescence.MethodsWe investigated the development of sleep timing between age 8 and 15 and its association with physical fitness at age 15 in 787 adolescents (408 males, 379 females). Physical fitness was measured using the physical work capacity (PWC) protocol. Information on sport activity was collected at ages 11 and 15. Finally, the contribution of other covariates (sex, body mass index (BMI), parental education and occupational skill level) to the association between sleep parameters and physical fitness was evaluated. The correlation of BMI and physical fitness was assessed separately.ResultsMild correlation of sleep duration at ages 8 and 15 was observed (r=0.08–0.16). Higher sport activity participation and physical fitness were found to be mildly associated with delayed bedtime and reduced sleep duration; the association with bedtime was significant after adjustment for all covariates. Sport activity at age 11 was not associated with sleep timing at age 15. Interestingly, higher BMI was linked to delayed bedtime and higher physical fitness.ConclusionOur findings do not support existing hypotheses suggesting the association of low physical activity and fitness with shorter sleep duration and high BMI in a generally non-obese adolescent population without severe sleep restriction.


Gerontology ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 65 (3) ◽  
pp. 229-239 ◽  
Author(s):  
Haritz Arrieta ◽  
Gotzone Hervás ◽  
Chloe Rezola-Pardo ◽  
Fátima Ruiz-Litago ◽  
Miren Iturburu ◽  
...  

Background: Myostatin has been proposed as a candidate biomarker for frailty and sarcopenia. However, the relationship of myostatin with these conditions remains inconclusive. Objective: To determine the association of serum myostatin concentration with body composition, physical fitness, physical activity level, and frailty in long-term nursing home residents. We also aimed to ascertain the effect of an exercise program on myostatin levels. Methods: We obtained study data on 112 participants from long-term nursing homes. Participants were randomly assigned to a control or an intervention group and performed a 6-month multicomponent exercise program. Serum myostatin levels were analyzed by ELISA. Assessments also included body composition (anthropometry and bioelectrical impedance), physical fitness (Senior Fitness Test), physical activity level (accelerometry), and frailty (Fried frailty criteria, Clinical Frailty Scale, and Tilburg frailty indicator). Results: The concentration of myostatin at baseline was positively correlated with: a leaner body composition (p < 0.05), and a higher number of steps per day and light and moderate-vigorous physical activity in women (p < 0.005); greater upper and lower limb strength, endurance, and poorer flexibility (p < 0.05) in men; and better performance (less time) in the 8-ft timed up-and-go test in both women (p < 0.01) and men (p < 0.005). We observed higher concentrations of serum myostatin in non-frail than in frail participants (p < 0.05). Additionally, we found that the implemented physical exercise intervention, which was effective to improve physical fitness, increased myostatin concentration in men (p < 0.05) but not in women. The improvements in physical condition were related with increases in serum myostatin only in men (p < 0.05–0.01). Conclusions: Higher serum levels of myostatin were found to be associated with better physical fitness. The improvements in physical fitness after the intervention were positively related to increases in myostatin concentrations in men. These results seem to rule out the idea that high serum myostatin levels are indicative of frailty in long-term nursing home residents. However, although the direction of association was opposite to that expected for the function of myostatin, the use of this protein as a biomarker for physical fitness, rather than frailty, merits further study.


2005 ◽  
Vol 30 (2) ◽  
pp. 140-156 ◽  
Author(s):  
Normand G. Boulé ◽  
Claude Bouchard ◽  
Angelo Tremblay

Physically fit individuals have a lower risk of cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes. However, it is unknown whether the associations between physical fitness and the metabolic syndrome are independent of total and abdominal adiposity. Physical fitness was defined as the physical work capacity on a cycle ergometer at heart rate of 150 bpm (PWC 150) in a sample of 158 men and 198 women 20-60 years of age. PWC 150 was adjusted for fat-free mass prior to the analyses. Percent body fat was estimated by hydrostatic weighing. Visceral and subcutaneous abdominal fat were measured by computed tomography. The prevalence of the metabolic syndrome was based on two definitions. The metabolic syndrome decreased with increasing fitness in men (approx. 6 times higher in less fit vs. most fit fertile, p <  0.05) and in women (approx. 4 times higher in less fit vs. most fit tertile, p <  0.05). Fitness was negatively associated with most individual components of the metabolic syndrome, except HDL-cholesterol for which the correlation was positive. However, in men and in women, the effects of physical fitness on the individual components of the metabolic syndrome were attenuated after considering total and abdominal adiposity. Key words: aerobic capacity, adiposity, abdominal fat, insulin resistance syndrome


2001 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 225-237 ◽  
Author(s):  
Terence Dwyer ◽  
James F. Sallis ◽  
Leigh Blizzard ◽  
Ross Lazarus ◽  
Kimberlie Dean

The objective of this study was to examine the association of scholastic performance with physical activity and fitness of children. To do so, school ratings of scholastic ability on a five-point scale for a nationally representative sample of 7,961 Australian schoolchildren aged 7–15 years were compared with physical activity and fitness measurements. Consistently across age and sex groups, the ratings were significantly correlated with questionnaire measures of physical activity and with performance on the 1.6-kilometer run, sit-ups and push-ups challenges, 50-meter sprint, and standing long jump. There were no significant associations for physical work capacity at a heart rate of 170 (PWC170). The results are concordant with the hypothesis that physical activity enhances academic performance, but the cross-sectional nature of the observations limits causal inference, and the disparity for PWC170 gives reason to question whether the associations were due to measurement bias or residual confounding.


2006 ◽  
Vol 38 (Supplement) ◽  
pp. S371
Author(s):  
Anne Katrine Blangsted ◽  
Jesper Strøyer ◽  
Anne Faber ◽  
Gisela Sjøgaard ◽  
Karen Søgaard ◽  
...  

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