Assessment of aerobic fitness and its correlates in Omani adolescents using the 20-metre shuttle run test: A pilot study

Objective: To assess aerobic fitness in male and female adolescents using the multistage 20-metre shuttle run test and correlate it with selected fitness variables. Method: The subjects comprised 83 girls and 64 boys aged 15-16 years, randomly selected from two segregated government schools in Muscat. After the pupils filled in a short questionnaire on their personal leisure time activities of the preceding week, their heights and weights were measured. Aerobic fitness was assessed by estimating each pupil's minimal oxygen uptake levels (VO_2max) using the multistage 20-metre shuttle running test (20-MST). Results: Boys spent more time than girls on leisure physical activities, television, computer and video games and the Internet. The estimated VO_2max in both boys and girls showed high correlation with their weekly physical activities. The time spent on television and computer negatively correlated with VO_2max in girls but not in boys. Girls had higher body mass index (BMI) and less VO_2max compared to boys; BMI showed a negative correlation with VO^2max in girls but not in boys. Conclusion: Aerobic fitness in this sample was higher in boys than in girls and was strongly influenced by weekly physical activities in both genders. The 20-MST has proved a simple and inexpensive field test for aerobic fitness that could be implemented on a wide scale.