Physical fitness among undergraduate students in physical education

Abstract

The aim of this study was to describe and analyze physical fitness of undergraduate students in Physical Education. The sample consisted of 110 women and 115 men. We evaluated weight, height, body mass index, percentage of body fat (BF), heart rate, systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure, flexibility, strength and muscular endurance (ME). As main results we observed a higher percentage of women with body fat and ME above the ideal values for age when compared to men (BF: 37% vs 4%, p = 0.001; ME: 32% vs 13%, p = 0.001), while there were more men with changes in SBP when compared with women (22% vs 6%, p = 0.001). In conclusion, male students had higher levels of physical fitness than women, and a significant portion of undergraduate students in Physical Education showed results different than normal for anthropometric, hemodynamic and performance variables.