British Journal of Sports Medicine, Vol 30, Issue 2 94-101, Copyright © 1996 by British Association of Sport and Medicine
Associations between health behaviours and health related fitness
RJ Shephard and C Bouchard
School of Physical and Health Education, University of Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
OBJECTIVE: To examine relations between health behaviours and health
related fitness. METHODS: Subjects were a convenience sample of 350 healthy
adults (172 men, 178 women). Covariance analysis adjusted data for
significant influences of age and socioeconomic status. Obesity was
assessed by anthropometry and body density. Cardiovascular fitness was
assessed and various metabolic measurements were made. Questionnaires on
physical activity and health related behaviours were completed. RESULTS:
Cigarette abstinence was associated with a small abdominal circumference
(men) and a low trunk/extremity skinfold ratio (women). Obesity indices
(body mass index, total skinfolds, percent fat, and abdominal
circumference) were negatively associated with perceived fitness. Leisure
activity and exercise frequency were also negatively linked to some obesity
indices. Blood glucose, cholesterol, HDL- cholesterol, and triglycerides
were favourably influenced by perceived activity, exercise frequency, and
perceived fitness, but not by exercise intensity. Abstinence from coffee
was associated with a low cholesterol/HDL ratio (men only). Principal
component, discriminant, and multiple logistic regression analyses showed
only weak clustering of habitual physical activity with other positive
health behaviours. CONCLUSIONS: Although multiphasic health promotion
programmes are economical, favourable interactions between individual
programme elements seem likely to be quite limited.
