Age-Based Comparison of Explosive Strength and Strength Endurance in 9- to 11-Year-Old School Boys

Background: Physical fitness in children is crucial for health, athletic performance, and obesity prevention. Analyzing age-based differences in key fitness components, such as explosive strength and endurance, can guide the development of effective physical education programs. Study Purpose: This study examined age-based differences in explosive strength and endurance among schoolboys aged 9 to 11 years. Material and Methods: A total of 90 boys, equally distributed across the three age groups, were selected from two schools in Jashore, Bangladesh. The primary criterion measures were explosive strength, assessed through the standing broad jump, and strength endurance, measured by a 30 seconds bent knee sit-up test. Data analysis was conducted using IBM SPSS (version 25), with mean and standard deviation, calculated for each age group. One-way ANOVA followed by a post-hoc LSD test was performed to determine significant differences, with a significance level set at 0.05. Results: Results revealed a significant age-based effect on both performance measures. In the standing broad jump test, 11-year-olds outperformed both 9- and 10-year-olds, showing a mean difference of 22.80 cm compared to 9-year-olds and 19.17 cm compared to 10-year-olds (p = 0.00). Similarly, in the sit-up test, 11-year-olds demonstrated significantly higher endurance than both 9-year-olds (mean difference = 4.07, p = 0.00) and 10-year-olds (mean difference = 4.20, p = 0.00). These findings suggest that explosive strength and strength endurance improve with age among schoolboys in this age range. Conclusions: The study underscores the importance of considering age when assessing physical performance in youth and highlights the potential influence of age-related development on explosive strength and endurance capabilities.