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. 2025 Jan 1;18(8):65-78.
doi: 10.70252/XTQW5048. eCollection 2025.

Comparison of Cardiorespiratory Fitness Testing Measures in Children

Trey R Naylor  1 , Mariana V Jacobs  1 , Michael C Taylor Jr  1 , Jody L Clasey  1   2
Affiliations

Comparison of Cardiorespiratory Fitness Testing Measures in Children

Trey R Naylor et al. Int J Exerc Sci. .

Abstract

There is currently an exponential increase in the prevalence of childhood obesity thus warranting the demand to appropriately measure and evaluate cardiorespiratory fitness within educational settings. The aims of this study were to (1) compare measured peak oxygen consumption (VO2peak), heart rate peak (HRpeak), and 1-min heart rate recovery (HRRec) responses obtained using a GXTmax and the PACER test; and (2) compare the VO2peak from the GXTmax and PACER test to a PACER prediction equation (ScottEqua).

Methods: This study included 32 (16 boys) children. Despite not having maturational assessments on these children, we limited the subject's age range from 10-11 year old's to decrease the possibility of including additional variability in pubertal status. The participants were classified by body mass index for age and sex percentiles (BMI%) as Healthy-Weight (HW BMI% ≤ 85th percentile) or At-Risk (AR BMI% > 85th percentile). Participants completed the GXTmax and PACER tests while wearing a portable metabolic system to measure VO2peak; and these measures were compared to the estimated VO2peak using the ScottEqua. Group mean differences and correlation analysis were used to compare the testing and predictive procedures.

Results: We found no significant differences between the GXTmax and PACER VO2peak; however, the Scott Equa VO2peak was significantly greater than these measures. HRpeak was significantly greater during the GXTmax; but no significant HRRec were found.

Conclusions: The PACER and GXTmax provide similar VO2peak measures; however, PACER prediction equations should be used with caution in children 10-11 years.

Keywords: Body mass index; FitnessGram™; PACER test; VO2peak.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Correlation plots depicting VO2peak (measured VO2peak – predicted VO2peak) (A) GXTmax VO2peak and PACER VO2peak, (B) GXTmax VO2peak and Scott Equa VO2peak, (C) PACER VO2peak and Scott Equa VO2peak.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Bland-Altman plots depicting VO2peak (measured VO2peak – predicted VO2peak) (A) GXTmax VO2peak and PACER VO2peak, (B) GXTmax VO2peak and Scott Equa VO2peak, (C) PACER VO2peak and Scott Equa VO2peak.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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