Motor fitness , particularly balance , was the most studied fitness component , while cardiorespiratory fitness was the least studied .
While we wait for more evidence to be accumulated in preschool children , the PREFIT battery hereby proposed is a useful tool for assessing physical fitness in children aged 3–5 years
Background Physical fitness is a powerful health marker in childhood and adolescence , and it is reasonable to think that it might be just as important in younger children , i.e. preschoolers .
At the moment , research ers , clinicians and sport practitioners do not have enough information about which fitness tests are more reliable , valid and informative from the health point of view to be implemented in preschool children .
Objective Our aim was to systematic ally review the studies conducted in preschool children using field-based fitness tests , and examine their ( 1 ) reliability , ( 2 ) validity , and ( 3 ) relationship with health outcomes .
Our ultimate goal was to propose a field-based physical fitness-test battery to be used in preschool children .
After analyzing the information retrieved in the current systematic review about fitness testing in preschool children , we propose the PREFIT battery , field-based FITness testing in PREschool children .
Interrater Reliability and Time Measurement Validity of Speed–Agility Field Tests in Adolescents
Vicente-Rodríguez , G , Rey-López , JP , Ruíz , JR , Jiménez-Pavón , D , Bergman , P , Ciarapica , D , Heredia , JM , Molnar , D , Gutierrez , A , Moreno , LA , and Ortega , FB . Interrater reliability and time measurement validity of speed-agility field tests in adolescents . J Strength Cond Res 25(7 ) : 2059 - 2063 , 2011—The aim of this study was to examine the interrater reliability ( trained vs. untrained raters ) and criterion-related validity ( manual vs. automatic timing ) of the 4 × 10-m shuttle run and 30-m running speed tests ( times measured ) . The study comprised 85 adolescents ( 38 girls ) aged 13.0 - 16.9 years from the Healthy Lifestyle in Europe by Nutrition in Adolescence study . The time required to complete the 4 × 10-m shuttle run and 30-m running tests was simultaneously measured ( a ) manually with a stopwatch by both trained and untrained raters ( for interrater reliability analysis ) , and ( b ) by using photoelectric cells ( for validity analysis ) . Systematic error , r and om error , and heteroscedasticity were studied with repeated-measured analysis of variance and Bl and -Altman plots . The systematic error for untrained vs. trained raters and the untrained raters vs. photoelectric cells were in all cases ∼0.1 seconds ( p < 0.01 ) , that is , untrained raters recorded higher times . No systematic error was found between trained raters and photoelectric cells ( p > 0.05 ) . No heteroscedasticity was shown in any case ( p > 0.05 ) . The findings indicate that manual measurements by a trained rater , using a stopwatch , seem to be a valid method to assess speed and agility fitness testing in adolescents . Research ers must be trained to minimize the measurement error
Motor fitness , particularly balance , was the most studied fitness component , while cardiorespiratory fitness was the least studied .
While we wait for more evidence to be accumulated in preschool children , the PREFIT battery hereby proposed is a useful tool for assessing physical fitness in children aged 3–5 years
Background Physical fitness is a powerful health marker in childhood and adolescence , and it is reasonable to think that it might be just as important in younger children , i.e. preschoolers .
At the moment , research ers , clinicians and sport practitioners do not have enough information about which fitness tests are more reliable , valid and informative from the health point of view to be implemented in preschool children .
Objective Our aim was to systematic ally review the studies conducted in preschool children using field-based fitness tests , and examine their ( 1 ) reliability , ( 2 ) validity , and ( 3 ) relationship with health outcomes .
Our ultimate goal was to propose a field-based physical fitness-test battery to be used in preschool children .
After analyzing the information retrieved in the current systematic review about fitness testing in preschool children , we propose the PREFIT battery , field-based FITness testing in PREschool children .