Anglia Ruskin Research Online (ARRO)
Browse
Smith_2019_14.docx (45.56 kB)

Body composition, physical fitness, physical activity and nutrition in Polish and Spanish female students of Sports Sciences

Download (45.56 kB)
journal contribution
posted on 2023-08-30, 16:12 authored by Guillermo F. López-Sánchez, Lukasz Radzimiński, Maria Skalska, Joanna Jastrzębska, Lee Smith, Dorota Wakuluk, Zbigniew Jastrzębski
Objectives: It is important to study differences in body composition, physical fitness and lifestyle behaviours between university students from different countries to develop country-specific recommendations on health promotion to provide to students when transitioning to university. The objective of this study was to analyze the differences in body composition, physical fitness and lifestyle between Polish and Spanish students of Physical Activity and Sports Sciences. Equipment and methods: 230 female students participated. 188 females were from Poland and 42 females from Spain. Polish females were 21.2±1.9 yr old and Spanish females 21.1±2.2. The body composition variables measured were: body weight (kg), fat-free mass (FFM, kg and %), fat mass (FM, kg and %), total body water (TBW, kg and %), and basal metabolic rate (BMR, kcal), body mass index (BMI, kg/m2), fat-free mass index (FFMI, kg/m2), fat mass index (FMI, kg/m2). The physical fitness variables measured were: squat jump (SJ, height in cm, power in watts and w/kg), counter movement jump (CMJ, height in cm, power in watts and w/kg), running speed 10, 20, 30 m (time in s), progressive aerobic cardiovascular endurance run (PACER, stage, final speed in km/h, distance in m, VO2max in ml/kg/min). Lifestyle variables measured were: vigorous physical activity (VPA, days/week, min/week), moderate physical activity (MPA, days/week, min/week), walking (days/week, min/week), sitting (min/week), meals/day, vegetables/day, fruits/day, seafood/week, dairy products/week, sweets, chips, fast food/week, litres of liquid/day, litres of sugary drinks/day, alcohol/week, and cigarettes/day. Results: Polish females had more favourable profiles than Spanish females for body composition and physical fitness, and consumed more vegetables, more fruits and more liquids. Spanish females did more physical activity, consumed more seafood, more dairy products, less sweets, chips, fast food, less sugary drinks, less alcohol and less tobacco than Polish females. Conclusions: Curricula should be adapted, in Poland to promote a healthier lifestyle and in Spain to improve body composition and physical fitness.

History

Refereed

  • Yes

Volume

35

Issue number

1

Page range

e21-e28

Publication title

Science and Sports

ISSN

0765-1597

Publisher

Elsevier

File version

  • Accepted version

Language

  • eng

Legacy posted date

2019-04-10

Legacy creation date

2019-04-09

Legacy Faculty/School/Department

Faculty of Science & Engineering

Usage metrics

    ARU Outputs

    Categories

    No categories selected

    Exports

    RefWorks
    BibTeX
    Ref. manager
    Endnote
    DataCite
    NLM
    DC