A Comparative Study of Fitness Levels among Norwegian Youth in 1988 and 2001.

Kari Aaberge,Asgeir Mamen

doi:10.3390/sports7020050

Abstract

We compared the fitness levels of cohorts of 15-year-old youth in 1988 and 2001 to ascertain whether there was a negative trend in fitness. The subjects were 15-year-old boys and girls from the same geographical area, n = 192 in 1988 and n = 191 in 2001. They participated voluntarily and could leave the project whenever they wished. The following variables were used to assess fitness: Maximal oxygen uptake, jump height, shoulder flexibility, and hamstring flexibility. Maximal oxygen uptake was estimated with submaximal ergometer cycling, jump height by the Sargent jump-and-reach test, shoulder flexibility as the distance between thumbs when doing straight-arm backwards circling while holding a broomstick, and hamstring flexibility by an active straight-leg-raise test. Differences between groups and quartiles were analyzed by Gosset’s (Student’s) t-test, using a significance level of 0.05. The two cohorts did show different levels of physical fitness. The 1988 group was 3.9 cm better on jump height and 4.2 cm better on shoulder flexibility, while the 2001 group had 3.3° better hamstring flexibility. The lowest performing quartile did less well in 2001 on oxygen uptake and jump height. We recommend an increased focus on improving fitness in low-performing adolescents.

Highlights

Several studies have reported a secular decline in physical fitness among youth
Eisenmann and Malina [4] found that directly measured peak oxygen uptake had been relatively stable from 1938 to 2000 from age 6 to 18
Analysis of the means showed that the 1988 group surpassed the 2001 group in jump height and shoulder flexibility for boys

Summary

Introduction

Several studies have reported a secular decline in physical fitness among youth. Tomkinson et al.found a global decline of 0.43% per year in running performance from 1980 to 2000 when analyzing data from 11 countries [1]. Several studies have reported a secular decline in physical fitness among youth. Found a global decline of 0.43% per year in running performance from 1980 to 2000 when analyzing data from 11 countries [1]. In 2007, Tomkinson and Olds found a performance decline of 0.36% per year in running performance with data from 27 countries [2]. Westerstahl et al [3] detected a 3% decline in aerobic fitness among Swedish adolescents from 1974 to 1995. Eisenmann and Malina [4] found that directly measured peak oxygen uptake had been relatively stable from 1938 to 2000 from age 6 to 18. The exception was girls from 15 to 18 years old, who showed a decline of 20% over the last decade

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