La competencia motriz es un componente importante para la participación en la cultura del juego, deportes y actividad física, por lo que su desarrollo es fundamental en el inicio de la trayectoria escolar. Este estudio tuvo como propósitos describir el desempeño en la competencia motriz de Control de Objetos y Control del Cuerpo de estudiantes de primer y segundo grado de primaria de Chile; determinar la relación entre la competencia motriz y la edad; y establecer la existencia de posibles diferencias según el sexo de los estudiantes. Se utilizó un enfoque cuantitativo, siendo un estudio no experimental de corte transversal y de tipo descriptivo-correlacional. Participaron 289 escolares (51,2% niñas, 48,8% niños) de entre seis y ocho años de cinco establecimientos educacionales de la región de La Araucanía, Chile. Se utilizó el test MOBAK 1-2 para la evaluación de la competencia motriz en dos dimensiones (Control de Objetos y Control del Cuerpo). Para establecer la relación entre competencia motriz y edad se utilizó el coeficiente rho de Spearman, y para determinar la existencia de diferencias según sexo se utilizó la prueba U de Mann-Whitney, determinando el tamaño del efecto a través del cálculo de probabilidad de superioridad (PS). Los resultados indican que la edad se relaciona de forma positiva con el Control de Objetos (p<0.001, r=0.315) y el Control del Cuerpo (p<0.001, r=0.261). Al comparar los desempeños motrices según sexo, los niños presentan mejores resultados que las niñas en tareas motrices asociadas al Control de Objetos (U=13533.000, Z=4.439, p<0.001, PSest=0.61), mientras que en Control del Cuerpo no se encontraron diferencias estadísticamente significativas. Tanto la edad como el sexo de los estudiantes son variables asociadas al desarrollo de la competencia motriz. Estos resultados aportan información relevante para diseñar de estrategias pedagógicas que busquen fomentar la competencia motriz de manera óptima y equitativa.

The aim of this study was to assess the effects of a high intensity interval training (HIIT) program on anthropomorphic and cardiometabolic variables in schoolchildren with overweight and obesity. A total of 443 schoolchildren (age: 6.37 ± 0.65 years) took part in this study. The experimental group (EG; n = 295; age = 6.40 ± 0.64 years) was compound with children with overweight and obesity, whereas children with normoweight were included in the control group (CG; n = 148; 6.31 ± 0.67 years). The EG performed a training program based on HIIT two times per week for 28 weeks (56 sessions), whilst the CG performed their habitual physical education classes based on the national curriculum. Body mass index (BMI), waist circumference, body fat, ∑ 4 skinfold fat, waist to height ratio, waist circumference, and cardiometabolic risk were measured. The dependent variables were analysed by two-way analysis of covariance (ANCOVA 2 × 2). To analyse the percentage differences between groups, the chi-square test was used. P-value was set at p < 0.05. Significant differences were found in the EG in BMI, waist circumference, body fat, ∑ 4 skinfold fat, and waist to height ratio. In conclusion, an HIIT training program can be an effective tool for improving anthropomorphic variables and reducing cardiometabolic risk in schoolchildren with overweight and obesity.

Background: High Intensity Interval Training has showed to be an effective method to improve physical fitness and reduce the risk of obesity in adults. However, these effects have not been studied in the preschool population. Objective: The aim of this study was to determine the effects of a long-term High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) program on anthropomorphic and cardiometabolic variables in preschool children with overweight and obesity. Methods: A total of 349 (164 boys and 185 girls) preschool children (age: 4.38 ± 0.62 years) participated in the study. All the participants completed a 28-week intervention based on HIIT (2 sessions/week), carried out during physical education classes at their schools. Anthropomorphic variables (body mass index, waist circumference, body fat, ∑4 skinfold fat), cardiometabolic variables (blood pressure, resting heart rate, cardiorespiratory fitness), and cardiometabolic risk were measured. Results: After intervention program, significant differences were found in ∑4 skinfold fat, body fat, blood pressure, resting heart rate, and cardiorespiratory fitness. Conclusion: 28-week HIIT training program can reduce cardiometabolic risk and improve cardiorespiratory fitness in preschool children with overweight and obesity regardless of sex. Keywords: Preschool children; HIIT; Cardiometabolic Risk; Obesity

Purpose: The aim of this study was to evaluate the performance of healthy Chilean children aged 3–10 years in the 6-minute walking test (6MWT) and cardiometabolic risk variables and to determine sex- and age-specific reference values. Methods: This study involved 1165 healthy children (age = 6.36 [1.70] y old). The 6MWT was used to evaluate exercise performance. Furthermore, anthropometric measures were collected, like weight, height, body mass index, waist circumference, and skin folds. Resting heart rate and blood pressure (BP) were also evaluated. Results: The prevalence of overweight and obesity was 35.0% and 25.4% in preschoolers and 29.0% and 36.2% in school-age children, respectively, showing significant differences (P < .05) between age groups. The distance walked (6-min walk distance) increased significantly year on year at ages from 3 to 10 years. According to the regression analysis, 6MWT performance was positively related to age, systolic BP, and height, whereas it was negatively related to ∑4 skinfold fat, resting heart rate, diastolic BP, and waist circumference. Conclusions: This study provides a reference equation and an age- and sex-adjusted percentile curve to assess the predicted 6MWT performance in a cohort of prepubertal Chilean children. The 6-minute walk distance depends mainly on age; however, other variables, such as resting heart rate, BP, skinfold fat, and waist circumference, add significant information and should be taken into account.