Universidade Federal de Santa

Objetive: To analyze the physical fitness of Brazilian schoolchildren, according to a health-refer-enced criteria assessment. Methods: This was a cross-sectional, school-based, epidemiological study of 7,507 schoolchildren (4,114 boys and 3,393 girls) aged 7 to 10 years. The following variables were measured: body weight, height, flexibility (sit-and-reach), muscle strength/resistance (1 minute modi-fied abdominal) and cardiorespiratory fitness (9- minute walk/run). The criteria and classifications used for the motor tests were recommended by the Physical Best. Results: The motor tests demonstrated low physical fitness, representing health risk in terms of flexibility (boys: 58.3%; girls: 51.2%, p<0.001), muscle strength/resistance (boys: 75.3%; girls: 73.8%, p<0.001) and cardiorespiratory fitness (boys: 80.8%; girls: 77.6%, p<0.001). The overall classification derived from all the three motor tests showed that very high proportion of the schoolchildren (~96%) did not meet the pre-established cut-offs for a satisfactory level of physical fitness. Conclusions: Effective intervention programs promoting changes in physical fitness standards are needed in order to contribute to the development of healthier levels of motor performance, especially based on public policy initiatives that provide opportunities fo