Changes in Body Build and Physical Fitness of PE Students in the Years 1989-2004-2014-2024

Abstract Introduction. In the current situation of demographic decline and, at the same time, strong competition in the educational market, issues are increasingly raised not only about the level of teaching but also about the competencies and predispositions of the students themselves. Therefore, this report aimed to analyze the differences in physical education students’ body build and physical fitness in the years 1989-2004-2014-2024. Material and methods. The material for the study included anthropometric measurements and physical fitness tests of second-year students of the Faculty of Physical Education and Health in Biała Podlaska examined in the years: 1989 (n = 111), 2004 (n = 181), 2014 (n = 127) and 2024 (n = 84). The Martin and Saller technique was used to measure anthropometric features necessary to calculate body type using the Heath-Carter method. Physical fitness was measured using the International Physical Fitness Test. Differences in the size of the analyzed features between the selected groups were estimated using ANOVA and the Newman-Keuls test. Results. Until 2004, our research revealed an increase in men’s basic somatic features and endomorphy and a decrease in mesomorphy and physical fitness levels. The ectomorphy of subjects from 2024 is at the level of the results from 1989. The pace of the described changes is different in the analyzed research periods. Students assessed in the last study, compared to those observed a decade earlier, had greater endomorphy levels and lower mesomorphy and ectomorphy levels. From 1989 to 2014, a gradual decrease in physical fitness was observed in the assessed students. However, in the last decade the level of physical fitness increased. Conclusions. The observed secular trends in body build and physical fitness can be interpreted as the effects of environmental differences in the standard of living of the surveyed students, rather than the recruitment procedure itself and, consequently, the educational profile.