Lower body strength as measured by the 30 s chair stand test across varying levels of physical activity in an Indian population

Abstract

Background: The 30 s chair stand test (CST) has been used as a measure of lower body fitness in older adults from 60 to 90 years, both healthy and unhealthy. This study aimed at testing the technique in an Indian population from 20 to 59 years and comparing scores in groups of high and low physical activity. Aims and Objectives: This study aims to evaluate the 30 s CST as a measure of lower body strength in an Indian population by demonstrating differences across varying physical activity levels. Materials and Methods: A prospective case study was done from June 2017 to December 2018 in the department of physical medicine and rehabilitation in 100 subjects between the ages of 20 and 59 years. For the 30 s CST, individuals are required to stand up from a standard chair to a fully extended standing position as many times as possible with their arms folded across their chest. The number of completed repetitions achieved in 30 s was recorded. Subjects were divided into high and low physical activity groups based on Global Physical Activity Questionnaire and intraclass variations were analyzed. Results: There were a total of 100 subjects out of which 65% (n = 65) were in the younger age group of 20–39 years and 35% (n = 35) were of the older age group of 40–59 years. Further, among 100 subjects, there were 52 males and 48 females. The percentage of people who were physically active was higher in males (80.77%) as compared to females (75%). Out of a total of 100 subjects, 78% were found to be physically active and 22% were not. The scores for physically active group were found to be a mean of 21 whereas for the physically inactive group were found to be 23. Conclusion: On comparing the scores of physically active versus the physically inactive group, scores were lower for physically active participants (mean 21) as compared to physically inactive (mean 23). This is in contradiction to our initial hypothesis that physically active participants would perform better than those who were inactive.