Proceedings of the 3rd Annual GRASP Symposium, Wichita State University, 2007
Cardiovascular Fitness and Physical Activity Levels in Elementary
School Children: An Examination of Seasonal Variation and
Correlation
Aspen J. Ukens*, Amber D. Befort, Amanda L. Wiseman, Angela K. Overman
Department of Physical Therapy, College of Health Professions
physiological method of testing cardiovascular fitness,
or VO2max, and psychological method of assessing
physical fitness by utilizing physical activity and
behavioral conduct questionnaires.
Abstract.
This study examined seasonal variation in
cardiovascular fitness and physical activity levels. It also
examined the relationship between maximum oxygen uptake
(VO2max) and scores obtained from physical activity and selfperception questionnaires. The study involved 83 elementary
school students in grades 3-5. The Progressive Aerobic
Cardiovascular Endurance Run (PACER) was used to
determine cardiovascular fitness, while a questionnaire was
used for reports of physical activity levels. There was no
significant difference in VO2max or physical activity levels in
regard to season. Although the relationship was weak (r=0.074 to -0.262), the correlation between VO2max and
Physical Activity Questionnaire for Children (PAQ-C) scores
was negative in all three months for third graders only. No
significant trends were found among fourth and fifth graders.
2. Experiment, Results, Discussion, and Significance
The subjects consisted of a sample of convenience
composed of 83 elementary students (45 males and 38
females) in grades 3-5 enrolled in a rural Kansas school
district.
The PACER was utilized to assess
cardiovascular fitness. It is a component of the
FITNESSGRAM testing and was developed by the
Cooper Institute for Aerobics Research [1]. The
PACER is set to music, contains 21 levels, and requires
the subject to run a distance of 20-meters back and
forth between two sets of cones as many times as
possible before exhaustion.
Height and weight
measurements were also necessary to calculate the
subject’s VO2max. To assess physical activity levels and
behavioral components of health, the subjects
completed a variety of questionnaires, including the
PAQ-C and Harter’s Self-Perception Profile for
Children (SPPC). Subjects performed the PACER and
completed questionnaires in January, May, and
September.
During each month, the subjects
performed the PACER two times with at least 48 hours
of rest in between testing times.
Descriptive data (mean and standard deviation) for
VO2max were calculated for each grade at each of the
three time points. To calculate VO2max, the following
equation was utilized:
1. Introduction
The physical fitness of America’s children has
recently prevailed as a subject of common interest.
The findings indicate that rather than participating in
activities to promote health-related fitness, children are
engaging in common sedentary recreational behaviors,
such as television viewing and computer use.
Increased television viewing and computer use may
contribute to low levels of cardiovascular fitness
among children.
Therefore, it is important to
determine factors related to low levels of
cardiovascular fitness. Aerobic fitness testing during
winter, spring, and fall seasons may help determine
seasonal variables associated with high or low levels of
physical activity in children. The purpose of the
research was two-fold. The first objective was to
determine how seasonal differences influence healthrelated fitness measures obtained by calculating
maximum oxygen uptake (VO2max) and from scores
obtained by questionnaires that assessed self-perceived
physical activity and behavioral conduct. The second
objective was to identify the relationship between a
VO2max(mL/kg/min) = 0.35(# of laps) – 0.59(BMI) –
4.16(x1 for males, x2 for females) + 50.6 [2].
Descriptive data were also calculated for the PAQ-C,
LAST, MWeek, and HARTER. To analyze the
difference between season and VO2max, PAQ-C, LAST
MWeek, and HARTER, a repeated measures analysis
of variance (ANOVA) was used.
85
Proceedings of the 3rd Annual GRASP Symposium, Wichita State University, 2007
To determine the relationship between VO2max and
PAQ-C, LAST, MWeek, and HARTER, a Pearson
product moment correlation was used. Alpha level
was set at p<0.05.
Descriptive statistics for VO2max, PAQ-C, LAST,
MWeek, and HARTER are presented in Tables 1, 2,
3, 4, and 5. The results of the repeated measures
ANOVA revealed no significant difference between
the months of January, May, and September in regard
to VO2max and scores obtained from the PAQ-C,
LAST, MWeek, and HARTER. The correlations
among measures revealed that there was no
relationship between VO2max and scores obtained from
the PAQ-C, LAST, MWeek, and HARTER at any
time.
May
September
20
20
2.300
2.250
Table 4 Descriptive Statistics for MWeek Scores
Third Grade
Month
Number of
PastWk
Students
(Mean)
January
14
2.235
May
14
2.398
September
14
2.041
Fourth Grade
January
14
2.571
May
14
2.633
September
14
2.755
Fifth Grade
January
15
1.857
May
15
2.343
September
15
2.181
1.218
1.372
Standard
Deviation
0.784
1.055
0.860
1.206
1.106
1.164
1.013
0.775
1.031
Table 1 Descriptive Statistics for VO2max (ml/kg/min)
Third Grade
Month
Number of
VO2max
Standard
Students
(Mean)
Deviation
January
28
41.986
7.042
May
28
41.610
7.117
September
28
42.876
7.436
Fourth Grade
January
23
40.984
4.938
May
23
42.233
6.040
September
23
40.422
5.580
Fifth Grade
January
24
44.754
9.784
May
24
44.288
9.041
September
24
43.217
9.162
Table 5 Descriptive Statistics for HARTER Scores
Third Grade
Month
Number of
Harter
Standard
Students
(Mean)
Deviation
January
20
47.254
6.148
May
20
46.332
10.098
September
20
44.631
5.435
Fourth Grade
January
18
50.556
9.978
May
18
45.716
6.537
September
18
47.253
9.968
Fifth Grade
January
19
46.519
4.670
May
19
46.886
9.660
September
19
47.844
4.102
Table 2 Descriptive Statistics for PAQ-C Scores
Third Grade
Month
Number of
PAQ-C
Students
(Mean)
January
21
18.762
May
21
20.429
September
21
17.771
Fourth Grade
January
20
17.450
May
20
21.550
September
20
21.850
Fifth Grade
January
21
15.971
May
21
17.457
September
21
15.629
3. Conclusions
Table 3 Descriptive Statistics for LAST Scores
Third Grade
Month
Number of
Score
Students
(Mean)
January
17
3.059
May
17
2.882
September
17
2.059
Fourth Grade
January
20
2.600
May
20
2.350
September
20
2.900
Fifth Grade
January
20
2.182
Standard
Deviation
6.796
5.192
5.461
5.266
6.090
5.214
The results revealed no significant difference in
VO2max or physical activity levels in regard to
season. Although the relationship was weak (r=0.074 to -0.262), the correlation between VO2max
and Physical Activity Questionnaire for Children
(PAQ-C) scores was negative in all three months for
third graders only. No significant trends were found
among fourth and fifth graders.
4. Acknowledgements
7.025
7.112
5.228
Standard
Deviation
1.249
1.364
1.435
1.353
1.309
1.447
1.328
86
Special thanks to Dr. Barbara Smith, PT, PhD; Dr.
Kenneth Pitetti, PhD; Mike Beets; and the rural
Kansas school district for their assistance in
completing this research.
[1] Beets M.W. and K.H. Pitetti, and B.J. Cardinal. Progressive
aerobic cardiovascular endurance run and body mass index among
an ethnically diverse sample of 10-15-year-olds. Res Q Exerc
Sport. 76:389-397, 2005.
[2] Beets, M.W. and K.H. Pitetti. A comparison of shuttle-run
performance between Midwestern youth and their national and
international counterparts. Pediatr Exerc Sci. 16:94-112, 2004.