International Journal of Sports Science 2016, 6(5): 176-179
DOI: 10.5923/j.sports.20160605.02
Does Body Fat Relate to Cardiovascular Fitness in
Young Indians?
Sai Aditya Krishna*, Tvisha Parikh, KA Thiagarajan, S. Lavanya, S. Arumugam
Department of Arthroscopy & Sports Medicine, Sri Ramachandra University, Chennai, India
Abstract Good cardiorespiratory fitness can mitigate the risks to health. Submaximal aerobic fitness tests are commonly
performed for a scientific method of prescribing exercises to improve cardiorespiratory fitness. Young Men’s Christian
Association (YMCA) recommends the Three-Minute Step Test as a convenient method of measurement of submaximal
aerobic capacity to categorise individuals based on cardiorespiratory fitness. Studies have investigated the relationship
between anthropometric variables like the body fat percentage and cardiorespiratory fitness in the West African, Chinese and
American populations. This study aims to evaluate the relationship between Body Fat Percentage and Cardiorespiratory
Fitness in young and active Indian population. 50 healthy gym clients of both genders with no previous medical illnesses or
musculoskeletal injuries were included. Their anthropometric skin fold thickness was recorded and Body Fat Percentage
calculated. The subjects were grouped as per the American Council on Exercise (ACE) classification for Body Fat Percentage
into 5 groups from ‘Essential Fat’ to ‘Obese’. All subjects performed the YMCA Three-Minute Step Test and were
categorised into seven groups as per the YMCA protocol from ‘Excellent’ to ‘Very Poor’ based on their levels of
cardiorespiratory fitness. The Body Fat Percentage groups were cross-matched with the Cardio-respiratory fitness categories,
and the results were analysed. A decline in Cardiorespiratory Fitness was observed with higher Body Fat Percentage in both
genders. This study suggests that the Sum of Four Anthropometrical Skin Fold Thicknesses to determine Body Fat
Percentage could be used as a convenient predictor of Cardiorespiratory Fitness in the Indian population.
Keywords Anthropometry, Body Fat Percentage, Cardiorespiratory Fitness, Aerobic Exercise
1. Introduction
In a healthy exercising population, sub maximal aerobic
fitness tests are commonly performed as a guide to determine
the aerobic exercise capacity of an individual to set a
desirable target exercise intensity to begin or to progress
aerobic training. Young Men’s Christian Association
(YMCA) in 1970, adopted and published a convenient
method of sub maximal measurement of aerobic capacity by
performing a three-minute step test [1, 2]. The heart beat
count measured from this test gives a quick and easy
categorisation of individuals based on their cardiorespiratory
fitness.
Good cardiorespiratory fitness can mitigate the risks to
good health and a possible explanation could lie in a reduced
body fat percentage [3-5].
Sub maximal tests can also be used to assess an athlete’s
physiological profile to select and place them into categories
of sport such as sprint/anaerobic based, medium
distance/mixed, or long distance/endurance/aerobic based
* Corresponding author:
[email protected] (Sai Aditya Krishna)
Published online at http://journal.sapub.org/sports
Copyright © 2016 Scientific & Academic Publishing. All Rights Reserved
sport [9] [10].
Thus, sub maximal tests of cardiorespiratory fitness play a
major role both in the general and sporting populations. Sub
maximal test is also considered safer since it does not place a
maximal load on the cardiovascular system since the general
population may not be accustomed to such an intensity of
exercise. This is particularly useful in the general exercising
population to determine cardiorespiratory fitness.
Anthropometry is a science and technique that deals with
the measurement of the size, weight, and proportions of the
human body. It helps accurately determine the body
composition. It helps determine an ideal target zone of body
fat percentage while planning diet and aerobic exercise
protocols for weight loss regimens.
However, there is a lack of literature investigating the
relationship between anthropometric variables and
cardiorespiratory fitness assessed on sub maximal tests.
This pilot study aims to evaluate the relationship between
body fat percentage and performance on a sub maximal
cardiorespiratory fitness test.
2. Material and Methods
2.1. Subjects
International Journal of Sports Science 2016, 6(5): 176-179
50 healthy exercising Indian males (n=25) and females
(n=25) between the ages of 18 to 30 years were included in
the study. Demographic details of the study population are
shown in table 1. Exclusion criteria were any current medical
illness that prevented the individual from performing
maximum intensity exercise, exercise related cardiovascular
or respiratory symptoms, major surgery in last 6 months and
current musculoskeletal pain or injuries. Prior to data
collection, written informed consent was obtained and a
medical examination was done to ascertain that the
individual was fit to undergo the test. Participants who could
not complete the test were excluded from the study.
Poor, 20% had Below Average, 10% had Average, 50% had
Above Average and 10% had Good cardiorespiratory fitness.
In the Obese Group 20% had Very Poor, 20% had Poor, 40%
had Below Average and 20% had Average cardiorespiratory
fitness.
Table 1. Demographic details of the participants (n=50)
variable
2.2. Anthropometry for Body Fat Percentage
Height and weight were measured for all participants
using a Seca digital calibrated weighing scale with
Stadiometer. Skin fold thicknesses were assessed using a
Harpenden skinfold calliper- (CE 0120, Baty international
Ltd) to the nearest 0.1mm at four sites namely- Biceps,
Triceps, Subscapular and Suprailiac. The sum of skin folds
was calculated as the additive result of these four skin fold
values. Using these values, the % body fat was calculated
using the Durnin and Womersley equation [8]. The subjects
were grouped as per the American Council on Exercise
(ACE) classification for Body Fat Percentage. The five
groups are: Essential Fat (10-13% for female and 2-5% for
males), Athletes (14-20% for female and 6-13% in men),
Fitness (21-24% for female and 14-17% for males), Average
(25-31% for female and 18-24% for males) and Obese (32%
or more for female and 25% or higher for males).
mean
Sd
mean
mALE
SD
FEMALE
Age
20.08
3.32
21.28
3.43
Height
173.66
6.85
160.21
4.36
Weight
77.93
15.86
68.10
15.96
% Body fat
21.94
4.58
30.64
5.34
Among females, there were none in the Essential Fat
Group. In the Athletic Group all subjects had Good
cardio-respiratory fitness. In the Fitness Group 67% had
Above Average and 33% had Good cardio-respiratory fitness.
In the Average Group 25% had Good, 25% Above Average,
25% Poor and 25% had Very Poor cardio-respiratory fitness.
In the Obese Group, 10.5% each had Excellent, Good, Above
Average, Average and Below Average cardio-respiratory
fitness. 21.5% had Poor and 26% had Very Poor
cardio-respiratory fitness.
Overall, in both men and women, a poorer
cardio-respiratory fitness was observed with increasing body
fat percentage.
Cardiovascular fitness categories
2.3. 3 Minute Step Test for Cardio-respiratory Fitness
Excellent
Below average
Good
Poor
15
Number of individuals in the group
All participants performed the Three-Minute Step Test as
per the Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA)
published protocol [2]. The height of the step was 12 inches.
The post-exercise recovery heart rates were recorded for e 60
seconds after completing the test from the right Radial Pulse
using a Stop-clock. Recording of heart rate was started
within 5 seconds of completion of the test. Participants who
did not complete the 3 minutes were excluded from the
study.
Results were categorised into seven groups as per the
YMCA protocol: Excellent, Good, Above Average, Average,
Below Average, Poor and Very Poor.
The Body Fat Percentage groups were cross-matched with
Cardio-respiratory Fitness categories.
177
Above average
Very poor
Average
Men
12
9
6
3
3. Results
Among males, there were none in the Essential Fat Group.
In the Athletic Group 60% had Good cardiorespiratory
fitness and 40% were Above Average. In the Fitness Group
67% had Good and 33% had Above Average
cardiorespiratory fitness. In the Average Group 10% had
0
5-10%
Essential
10-15%
Athletic
15-20%
Fitness
Body fat percentage
Chart 1. Men
20-25%
Average
>25%
Obese
Sai Aditya Krishna et al.:
178
Does Body Fat Relate to Cardiovascular Fitness in Young Indians?
Cardiovascular fitness categories
Excellent
Good
Above average
Below average
Poor
Very poor
Average
20
Number of individuals in the group
Women
16
12
8
4
0
10-15%
Essential
15-20%
Athletic
20-25%
Fitness
25-30%
Average
>30%
Obese
Body fat percentage
Chart 2. Women
4. Discussion
Sub maximal aerobic fitness tests are used to determine
the aerobic exercise capacity of an individual. This is then
used to set a desirable target exercise intensity to begin
aerobic training. It can also be used to monitor the progress
of aerobic training when an individual enrols in a fitness
centre.
Sub maximal tests are useful when maximal testing is not
possible due to medical contraindications or non-availability
of expensive testing equipment.
Among the many sub maximal tests which have been
described, Kasch et al. validated a single test using a
3-minute step test with a 1-minute post exercise recovery
heart beat count as a reliable method of sub-maximal aerobic
fitness measurement [1]. This was adopted by YMCA in
1970 as a quick and easy method of determining and
categorising individuals based on cardiorespiratory fitness
into seven categories [2]. This method utilises a 96 per
minute cadence and a fixed step height of 12 inches. The
heart rate is measured for the immediate one-minute
recovery after the test within 5 seconds of termination of the
test. Shahnawaz et al. reported that leg length of the
participant can affect the results and adjusting the bench
height according to the participant could offer better results
[6]. However, there has not been any validated modification
to the YMCA protocol till date and we did not modify it
either
Data from sub maximal tests are usually used to predict
VO2 max. However, the YMCA test cannot predict VO2 in
any way but can categorise individuals based on their fitness
for easy clinical and training purpose.
Individuals with different body composition may show
different performances on such tests [7]. Leaner individuals
are expected to perform better on the test because they have a
lower heart rate on the test would recover faster from the
stepping exercise. Individuals with higher % body fat would
have a higher exercise heart rate and would be assigned to a
lower fitness category [7]. A previous study in Brazilian
military men revealed that for the same BMI, individuals
with better cardiorespiratory fitness have lower fat
percentages [8]. Hence using BMI to predict the fitness level
of an individual would be erroneous.
This pilot study thus focused on using the sum of four
anthropometric skin fold thicknesses to calculate body fat
percentage and establishing a trend of relationship between
body fat percentage and cardiovascular performance
obtained from the step test. The results show that in both
genders, poorer performance on step test was observed as
body fat percentage increased. Very poor performances were
observed only in the Obese or Average fat percentage groups
in both men and women. This is in concurrence with
previous studies. We observed one exception to this trend
among women in whom Good or even Excellent
performances were observed in the Obese body fat group. A
possible explanation for this could be that improvement in
aerobic fitness is probably achieved earlier than appreciable
fat loss [11]. Among women, there were a higher number of
individuals in the Average and Obese body fat percentage
groups overall. This could be due to more obese females
joining the gym seeking weight loss. Females require a
higher percentage of essential fat for the basic metabolic
functions in general and hence essential fat percentage
intervals tend to be higher compared to men. This study
established a trend that anthropometric measurements are a
simple tool that could be used to predict cardiorespiratory
fitness in gym-goers.
5. Conclusions
This pilot study concludes that Body Fat Percentage
calculated from the “Sum of Four Skin Fold Thicknesses”
corresponds to Cardiorespiratory Fitness measured by the
Three-Minute Step Test. Thus Body Fat Percentage is a
convenient predictor of cardiorespiratory fitness.
6. Scope for Future Study
Future studies could be done using other sub-maximal
tests such as the Cooper test or 6-minute walk test to clearly
establish the correlation between anthropometric variables
and cardiorespiratory fitness. Estimation of lean muscle
mass can also be used as a parameter for study in future
research.
International Journal of Sports Science 2016, 6(5): 176-179
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
[5]
Stevens, J., Cai, J., Evenson, K.R. and Thomas, R., 2002.
Fitness and fatness as predictors of mortality from all causes
and from cardiovascular disease in men and women in the
lipid research clinics study. American Journal of
Epidemiology, 156(9), pp.832-841.
[6]
Shahnawaz, H., 1978. Influence of limb length on a stepping
exercise. Journal of Applied Physiology, 44(3), pp.346-349.
[7]
Santo, A.S. and Golding, L.A., 2003. Predicting maximum
oxygen uptake from a modified 3-minute step test. Research
quarterly for exercise and sport, 74(1), pp.110-115.
[8]
Durnin, J.V.G.A. and Womersley, J.V.G.A., 1974. Body fat
assessed from total body density and its estimation from
skinfold thickness: measurements on 481 men and women
aged from 16 to 72 years. British journal of nutrition, 32(01),
pp.77-97.
[9]
Sporis, G., Jukic, I., Ostojic, S.M. and Milanovic, D., 2009.
Fitness profiling in soccer: physical and physiologic
characteristics of elite players. The Journal of Strength &
Conditioning Research, 23(7), pp.1947-1953.
We wish to acknowledge the fitness trainers of the
Department of Arthroscopy and Sports Medicine whose
contributions were invaluable in conducting this study.
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