Associations between fitness tests and the international physical activity questionnaire-short form in healthy men.

The objective of this study was to evaluate the relationship between the components of health-related fitness (flexibility, muscular strength and endurance, and cardiorespiratory) with the outcomes of short version of International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ-SF). Four hundred eight healthy men (aged 21-43 years) answered the IPAQ-SF and performed the following tests: sit-and-reach, hand grip dynamometer, sit-ups and push-ups, and 20-m shuttle run test. The weekly energy expenditure expressed in metabolic equivalent task minutes per week (METs min·wk) from all IPAQ-SF categories showed a significant association with the flexibility (p < 0.05) and the cardiorespiratory fitness (p < 0.05). The METs min·wk of vigorous-intensity physical activity (PA) and total PA score were significantly correlated with upper-body muscular endurance (p < 0.05). In addition, 44% (n = 176) of the subjects presented high PA level and showed greater flexibility, upper-body muscular endurance, and cardiorespiratory fitness than subjects who presented moderate and low PA levels (p < 0.05). In conclusion, IPAQ-SF's outcomes reflect not only the association with the cardiorespiratory fitness but also the flexibility and the upper-body muscular endurance.

Energy system contributions during incremental exercise test.

The main purpose of this study was to determine the relative contributions of the aerobic and glycolytic systems during an incremental exercise test (IET). Ten male recreational long-distance runners performed an IET consisting of three-minute incremental stages on a treadmill. The fractions of the contributions of the aerobic and glycolytic systems were calculated for each stage based on the oxygen uptake and the oxygen energy equivalents derived by blood lactate accumulation, respectively. Total metabolic demand (WTOTAL) was considered as the sum of these two energy systems. The aerobic (WAER) and glycolytic (WGLYCOL) system contributions were expressed as a percentage of the WTOTAL. The results indicated that WAER (86-95%) was significantly higher than WGLYCOL (5-14%) throughout the IET (p < 0.05). In addition, there was no evidence of the sudden increase in WGLYCOL that has been previously reported to support to the "anaerobic threshold" concept. These data suggest that the aerobic metabolism is predominant throughout the IET and that energy system contributions undergo a slow transition from low to high intensity. Key PointsThe aerobic metabolism contribution is the predominant throughout the maximal incremental test.The speed corresponding to the aerobic threshold can be considered the point in which aerobic metabolism reaches its maximal contribution.Glycolytic metabolism did not contribute largely to the energy expenditure at intensities above the anaerobic threshold.