Health-related physical fitness in Brazilian adolescents from a small town of German colonization

Objective: To identify the health-related physical fitness profile of Brazilian adolescents (10–17 years) living in a small town of German colonization and to describe the prevalence of those with low levels of physical fitness according to sex and age. Method: This is a school-based cross-sectional epidemiological study conducted with all adolescents (10–17 years) enrolled in five public schools of São Bonifácio, Brazil. The study included 277 adolescents (145 boys and 132 girls). The FITNESSGRAM® test battery was applied for the assessment of percent body fat, flexibility, muscle strength/endurance and cardiorespiratory fitness. Results: Higher mean values of percent body fat and flexibility (p < 0.01) were found in girls; boys showed higher means (p < 0.01) for pull-up and cardiorespiratory fitness tests. The prevalence of adolescents with low levels of physical fitness was high for percent body fat (boys: 29.3%, girls: 31.8%, p = 0.75), flexibility (boys: 26.9%, girls: 54.5%, p < 0.01), muscle strength/endurance (curl-up: 37.9% of boys and 45.5% of girls, p = 0.25; modified pull-up: 47.6% of boys and 54.5% of girls, p = 0.30) and cardiorespiratory fitness (boys: 28.0%, girls: 36.9%, p = 0.15). As for the overall physical fitness, 75.7% of boys and 88.9% of girls did not meet the minimum recommended values (p = 0.01). Conclusion: Effective intervention programs are necessary to promote changes in the health-related physical fitness profile of adolescents from São Bonifácio, Brazil