Effect of Aerobic Activities on Promoting Healthy Fitness Standards of Freshman Students

Obesity is one of the greatest threats to child and adult health in the United States. Adolescents are engaging in sedentary behaviors, and their body fat composition is directly affected by a lack of exercise. The purpose of this quantitative study was to determine if participation in aerobic activities promoted healthy fitness standards for 9th grade high school students who were required to take the state mandatory physical education course. Behaviorism, specifically direct instruction, was used as the framework for this quantitative study. Conducted at one of the largest southern high schools in the United States, data were obtained from 3 physical education classes taught by 1 physical education teacher in order to control as many extraneous variables as possible. The criterion for inclusion was whether these 86 9th grade students had completed both the pre- and post-test for body mass index and Progressive Aerobic Capacity Endurance Run. This study compared the school site pre- and post-test scores to the FitnessGram RTM Healthy Fitness Zone standards. Data from this research study were analyzed with paired samples t tests to identify statistically significant differences between pre- and post-test scores. Although the findings for this specific sample were not significant, other research has shown that there will be improvements to students' overall health if they continue to participate in aerobic activities. Social change implications include the school taking a primary leadership role in the promotion of physical activity among children. Therefore, physical activity helps lower the risk of disease and obesity.