Does muscular fitness predict cardiorespiratory fitness in adolescent girls? A 3-year follow-up study

ABSTRACT

The main purpose of the study was to establish, whether future cardiorespiratory fitness might be predicted by the level of muscular fitness at baseline. In this 3-year follow-up study, we recruited 240 secondary school girls at the age of 15 y, who were followed until the age of 17 y. Muscular fitness included the following tests: (i) standing broad jump (cm), (ii) sit-ups in 60 s (#) and (iii) squats in 60 s (#). Cardiorespiratory fitness was split into aerobic endurance (the 800-m run test) and speed endurance (the 400-m run test). Better performances in the 800-m run and the 400-m run tests at follow-up were correlated with higher levels of standing broad jump, sit-ups and squats in 60 s measured at baseline. In regression models adjusted for fat mass and maturity offset, standing broad jump, sit-ups and squats in 60 s were positively associated with the 800-m run test, while only standing broad jump remained significantly and positively associated with the 400-m run test. These data suggest that interventions enhancing muscular fitness should be recommended, as the effects are likely to be associated with future cardiorespiratory fitness in adolescent girls.

KEYWORDS:

• Performance
• adolescence
• follow-up
• prediction

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank all the physical education teachers, children and their parents or guardians for enthusiastic participation in the study.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Ethics approval and consent to participate

The informed consent voluntarily was signed by the participants, participants’ parents or their guardians. Analyses and procedures performed in the study were conducted in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki.

Additional information

Funding

The author(s) reported there is no funding associated with the work featured in this article.