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Introduction and objectives: Physical fitness level is a marker of cardiovascular health in young people. The aim of this study was to analyze the effects of a school-based intervention program, focused on increasing the volume and intensity of physical education (PE) sessions, on adolescents’ physical fitness. Methods: Sixty-seven adolescents (12-14 years old) from three secondary school classes participated in a 16-week intervention. The classes were randomly allocated to the control group, experimental group 1 (EG1) or experimental group 2 (EG2). The control group received standard PE (2 sessions/week), the EG1 received 4 standard PE sessions/week and the EG2 received four high-intensity PE sessions/week. Aerobic fitness, muscle strength, speed-agility and flexibility were assessed using previously validated field-based tests before and after the intervention. Results: Doubling the number of PE sessions/week resulted in improvements in aerobic fitness and flexibility (P =. 008 andP = .04, respectively). Further increases in the intensity of the sessions were related to improvements in speed-agility (P < .001). The maximal oxygen consumption increased by 3 and 5 mL/kg/min in the EG1 and EG2, respectively. No differences were observed for muscle strength. Conclusions: The results suggest that doubling the frequency of PE sessions is a sufficient stimulus to improve physical fitness, particularly aerobic fitness, which has been shown to be a powerful indicator of cardiovascular health in children and adolescents. Future studies involving larger sample sizes should confirm or refute these findings. |
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