Aim. Physical fitness has been considered a powerful marker of health, in childhood and in adulthood, independent of physical activity. A low fitness status during childhood and adolescence is associated with important health-related outcomes, such as increased future risk for obesity and cardiovascular diseases, impaired skeletal health. Moreover, the main objectives of weight loss interventions in children and adolescents are to decrease fat mass while maintaining fat-free mass. The aim was to assess the relation between body-fat changes and strength performance in obese adolescents after 13 months in a multidisciplinary intervention.
Methods. Multi-intervention approach (diet, physical activity and psychological support in a family-group-based treatment) was implemented with a one-year intervention in 13-to-16-year-old overweight or obese Spanish adolescents. A total of 78 adolescents were recruited from Granada and Zaragoza, males (n = 42) (31.98 kg/m2) and females (n = 36) (32.24 kg/m2). We measured body composition with dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry and muscular fitness was assessed by standing broad jump and handgrip strength. All measurements were made at baseline and 13 months. Non-parametric Spearman's rho partial correlation coefficients were applied to assess the associations between body-fat and strength performance based on anthropometric measurements at the end of the EVASYON treatment programme (13 months), controlling for potential confounders (age and Tanner stage).
Results. After controlling for age and Tanner stage, the body-fat during the EVASYON programme was significantly correlated with handgrip strength changes in females (rho = -0.438, p = 0.022). Moreover, in males body-fat changes was correlated with standing broad jump changes (rho = -0.407, p = 0.058).
Conclusions. We found handgrip strength would be a good predictor of body-fat composition changes in females and standing broad jump in males. However, more researches are needed to find the best physical fitness predictor to body composition changes.
Corresponding author. pilardm@unizar.es
