The Correlation between Body Composition and Physical Fitness Parameters in High Theological School Students

Abstract

Previous research findings support the claim that physical activity (PA) and maturation result in changes in physical fitness (PF) and body composition (BC) parameters. Fitness assessment tests are especially important for monitoring the health of adolescents. The purpose of this study was to find the correlation between BC and PF parameters in studnts enrolled in High Theological School in Niš. Thirty-seven male students living in boarding schools were included in the participant sample. The average age of the participants was 17.48±1.48 years. The body composition analyser Omron BF 511 (Omron, Tokyo, Japan), was used to measure the BC values. A modified Eufitmos testing protocol was determined to evaluate PF parameters such as: Progressive aerobic cardiovascular endurance run (Pacer), 1-Mile run (1MR), Push-ups (PU), Handgrip (HG), Standing broad jump (SBJ), 20-Meter run (20mR), Back-saver sit and reach (BSR), and Body mass index (BMI). The results showed that the weight status parameters were highly correlated with each other. Regarding PF parameters, they correlated moderately with each other. The correlation analysis between BC and PF parameters showed that BMI, Fat%, and Muscle% achieved moderate correlations with PACER, VO2max, PU, SBJ, and 20mR, while BW had a significant correlation only with HG and PU. Also, BH had a moderate correlation with VO2max, PACER, SBJ, and HG. The findings indicate a correlation between body composition and physical fitness parameters among theology students. However, a suggestion for further research is to conduct multiple regression analysis, which would reveal the relationship between the overall body composition composite and the fitness of the students, rather than just individually determined parameters.