Implications of the New FITNESSGRAM® Standards for Youth Fitness Assessment

Background/Purpose

Method

Analysis/Results

ConclusionsThis presentation will summarize the new criterion referenced health standards and describe implications for evaluation of youth fitness through the FITNESSGRAM program. The new Standards for body composition and aerobic fitness were developed using similar methodologies and the same outcome measure from NHANES. Similar approaches were also used for creating the specific healthy fitness zones. The “Healthy Fitness Zone” was established by determining the threshold that indicates reduced risk for potential health risks. Two separate Needs Improvement Zones were established to provide more customized feedback depending on how far below a child fell below the Healthy Fitness Zone. The Needs Improvement: High Risk Zone” was set at a level that denotes a clear risk for the development of metabolic syndrome. Youth between the two zones (i.e. above the Healthy Fitness Zone but below the High Risk zone) would be classified in the “Needs Improvement: Some Risk” zone. The clear delineation of fitness into three empirically derived health zones provide a strong basis for delivering effective feedback to parents and children about health risks. Youth achieving the HFZ would receive messages congratulating them on having a healthy level of fitness (based on low risk for developing metabolic syndrome) while youth in the needs improvement zone would receive appropriate messages encouraging them to improve their fitness to reduce their risks. The presentation will describe the new standards and compare them to the previous standards employed in FITNESSGRAM to illustrate how the changes could impact interpretation of fitness data.