# The Impact of Karate and Yoga on Children's Physical Fitness: A 10-Week Intervention Study
## 4 Discussion  
Beginning in early childhood, physical activity is a crucial component in the development of a healthy lifestyle. However, the technological advancements of the 21 st century are altering, and in some cases even limiting, daily physical activity. Children increasingly commute to school by car, spend breaks between classes sitting in hallways or classrooms, and often skip physical education lessons with parental excuses. Upon returning home, they spend time in front of screens [6; 27; 28]. This situation contributes to a decline in the physical fitness of the studied population. An important aspect of the conducted study is the average results of the physical fitness test performed before the intervention, which involved increasing the number of hours of weekly physical activity from three to five for the studied children. The MTSF test used in the study allowed for the comparison of the results obtained by the children, taking into account gender and age, with an accuracy of up to three months. The reference value for all tests was standardized to 50 points. This indicated a significant decline in physical fitness among children in this age group at the population level, as six out of the eight tests did not approach the average value. The weakest performance was observed in the run 50 m test, where the mean score, along with the standard deviation, was 35.25 (13.08), while the best performance was recorded in the hand strength test, with an average score of 51.06 (6.85). These results suggest that the studied children are less physically fit when compared to the population on which the age and gender norms were developed. In one study, data collected over different periods between 1986 and 2016 were analyzed to compare children's physical fitness using five tests: a 5 m sprint, agility run, standing long jump, flexibility in the sit-and-reach test, and a modified Harvard step test. The results showed a significant decline in speed and flexibility, while the other tests did not exhibit a consistent trend [29]. Similar research was conducted in Hong Kong, where the physical fitness of adults was evaluated in 1998 and again in 2015. The results indicated a slight decline, primarily in the sit-up and 9 min run/walk tests. Since other publications have not fully confirmed this trend, conclusions from this study should be drawn with caution [30]. In order to maintain health and well-being, the World Health Organization (WHO) recommends that children engage in one hour of physical activity daily. However, with only 20% of primary school students meeting these guidelines, implementing this standard requires either increasing the number of physical education lessons within the school curriculum or involving parents in their children's physical activities [31; 32; 33]. While the WHO criteria set an important benchmark, even smaller amounts of activity may contribute to initial progress in physical fitness [34; 35]. The study presented in this publication examined the impact of a research program, conducted twice a week, on the physical fitness of children. The supplementary sessions were designed as general developmental activities incorporating elements of yoga or karate. The analysis of the results indicated a significant improvement in the physical fitness of the children following the intervention. Statistically significant improvements were observed in the run 50 m, jump, run endurance, hanging, run agility, sit-ups, and forward bend tests. However, no statistically significant difference was noted in the hand strength test, which may suggest that the training sessions did not include enough exercises