Health-Related Fitness During Early Years, Childhood, and Adolescence

Abstract

Physical fitness is a key marker of health, not only in adulthood but also in childhood and adolescence. Ensuring and monitoring physical fitness during the first years of life should be regarded as one aspect of primary prevention and health promotion. It is considered one of the foundations of an active lifestyle later in life and its levels will have direct and indirect effects on health status and the prevention of disease in adulthood. This chapter is designed to provide an updated understanding of (1) the components of health-related physical fitness (cardiorespiratory endurance, muscular strength and endurance, flexibility, and body composition); (2) how measures of health-related fitness are influenced by growth and maturation; (3) the available laboratory and field-based health-related fitness tests from a health perspective, mainly centered on cardiorespiratory endurance and muscular fitness; (4) the tracking of health-related fitness from childhood and adolescence to adulthood; (5) the secular trends of health-related fitness components; (6) the health-related fitness components and their relationship with physical and mental health; and (7) the effects of physical training on health-related fitness.