Relation of college students' self-perceived and measured health-related physical fitness.

This study examined the relation of college students' self-perceived and measured physical fitness. Students (30 men, 30 women; M age = 20.1 yr., SD = 1.4) completed the Physical Self-description Questionnaire and four fitness tests: air displacement plethysmography, submaximal treadmill test, curl-up test, and sit-and-reach test. Significant correlations were obtained for self-perceived physical fitness with measured body composition, cardiorespiratory endurance, muscular endurance, and flexibility (r = .33-.62). Significant correlations were also found between self-perceived overall fitness and actual body composition, cardiorespiratory endurance, and muscular endurance (|r| = .26-.55). These findings suggest that college students can gauge their own fitness in terms of four distinct health-related components with some accuracy.

Comparison of metabolic and perceptual responses during maximal exercise on two ergometers: NOVA 5000 vs treadmill.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the physiological and perceptual responses to exercising on the NOVA 5000 (NO). The NO is a new computer controlled multi-limb exercise device which allows the exerciser to work arms and legs individually or in any combination from a seated position. Eleven subjects (7 males, 4 females) participated in two sessions of graded exercise testing (GXT) within the same week. One session involved a GXT treadmill test (TR) to exhaustion utilizing the Bruce protocol. A second GXT was performed on the NO that utilized a protocol consisting of successive 3 minute stages starting at 50 watts and increasing 25 watts until exhaustion. A Quinton Q-5000 and a Sensor Medics metabolic cart monitored cardiorespiratory function during both tests. MANOVA analysis revealed no significant (p < 0.05) differences between the NO and TR maximal values for VO2 (1.min-1 and ml.kg-1.min-1), HR, RER, VE, and workload (WR). There were significant (p < 0.05) differences between the to modes of testing for RPE and TT (time on task) with the NO having significantly higher values on both variables. The correlation coefficient for the VO2max values on the TR vs NO was r = 0.97. When the HR and VO2 means from each stage of the NO GXT were correlated over the duration of the test, a positive correlation (r = 0.99) was obtained. The results of this study indicate that the NOVA 5000 may be a suitable alternative device for testing healthy adults.

Nasal strips do not affect cardiorespiratory measures during recovery from anaerobic exercise.

Nasal dilators supposedly aid recovery from exercise by reducing nasal airway resistance. Research has focused on the effectiveness of nasal dilators during exercise. The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of nasal dilators on heart rate (HR), minute ventilation (VE), and oxygen consumption (Vo2) during recovery from anaerobic exercise. Fourteen subjects (19-32 years) performed a modified Cunningham-Faulkner anaerobic treadmill test (1-minute walk at 2.0 miles per hour [mph], 0% grade; 1-minute jog at 5 mph, 0% grade; and sprint at 8 mph, 20% grade) under 3 randomly assigned conditions: (a) control, (b) nasal strip, and (c) placebo nasal strip. A 10-minute recovery period consisting of 5 minutes of walking (2 mph, 0% grade) and 5 minutes of passive recovery (seated) was completed. During the test and recovery periods, the participant wore a fireman's face mask to allow for simultaneous sampling of nose and mouth breathing. Vo2 and VE were monitored by a TEEM 100 metabolic analyzer. Each subject wore a Polar Heart Watch to monitor HR every minute during recovery. Mean time to exhaustion was 48.4 seconds (+/-14.9). One-way repeated-measures analyses of variance (ANOVAs) indicated no significant nasal dilator effect on 5-minute recovery HR or 10-minute recovery HR, 5-minute recovery Vo2 or 10-minute recovery Vo2, and 5-minute recovery VE or 10-minute recovery VE. Nasal strips appear to have no significant impact during recovery from anaerobic exercise.

The effects of continuous and discontinuous walking on physiologic response in college-age subjects.

The Surgeon General's Report on Physical Activity recommends an accumulation of 30 minutes of moderate physical activity on most, if not all, days of the week. The purpose of this study was to determine if 3 10-minute bouts of walking had the same effect on physiologic response as 1 30-minute bout of continuous walking when both were performed 3 d x wk(-1) for 12 weeks. Thirty (18 completed the study) college-aged subjects (VO2max: 44 ml x kg(-1) x min(-1) +/- 8.37) were randomly assigned to either a nonexercising group (N = 7), a group (N = 5) that performed 3 10-minute bouts, or a group (N = 6) that performed 1 30-minute bout of exercise. Intensity was set at 50-60% of estimated maximum heart rate. A mixed factor 2 x 3 analysis of variance (time by group) was used to analyze the data (alpha = 0.10). Controls demonstrated a significant decrease in VO2max, while the exercise groups demonstrated no significant change. There was no significant difference demonstrated for pre- and postmaximal heart rates or for pre- and postmaximal respiratory exchange ratio. Continuous and discontinuous walking were equally effective in maintaining, but not improving, VO2max.