Examining body mass index and health-related fitness marker progression of incarcerated minority youth engaged in a sport-leadership program

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of a sport-leadership program on minority incarcerated young adults’ health-related fitness markers.

Design/methodology/approach

This study occurred at an all-male juvenile detention center. A total of 41 participants in this study were obtained from a sample of 103 incarcerated young adults. Data collection entailed body mass index (BMI) evaluation, cardiovascular endurance tests and 1-min pushups and situps at two different time periods (before and after three months). A 2 × 2 mixed factorial analysis of variances was used to test for differences among the within subjects’ factors (time [pre × post]) and between subjects’ factors (groups [flex × control]) for the above-mentioned dependent variables.

Findings

Over the course of three consecutive months of engagement, preliminary indications demonstrated participants had a slight reduction in BMI and significant increases in cardiovascular endurance and muscle strength. Contrarily, during this same time period, non-participating young adults exhibited significant increases in BMI and decreases in cardiovascular endurance and muscle strength.

Originality/value

Integration of sport-leadership programs is generally not free but can be a low-cost alternative for combatting many issues surrounding physical activity, weight gain and recreational time for those incarcerated.

Citation

Wahl-Alexander, Z., Jacobs, J., Hill, C.M. and Bennett, G. (2024), "Examining body mass index and health-related fitness marker progression of incarcerated minority youth engaged in a sport-leadership program", International Journal of Prison Health, Vol. ahead-of-print No. ahead-of-print. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJOPH-01-2023-0005