Objectives: This study aims to examine the geographical variation in physical fitness levels among Chinese children and adolescents in Shaanxi province. Methods: A total of 19,175 children from Shaanxi province with physical fitness data in 2019, participated in the study. Physical fitness was assessed using body mass index, force vital capacity, 50 m sprint, sit and reach, 1 min rope skipping, sit-ups, 50 m × 8 round-trip running, standing long jump, pull-ups, 800 m, and 1000 m running, and their standardized scores were aggregated to form a summary score. The total score is used to classify the physical fitness levels into four grades (excellence to failure). Results: The Guanzhong (GZ) region scored the highest, while Northern Shaanxi (NS) scored the lowest. The excellence rate for physical fitness was highest in GZ and lowest in NS, while the failure rate was highest in NS and lowest in GZ. Notably, children and adolescents in NS demonstrated the best endurance levels despite their overall lower fitness scores. The comprehensive physical fitness among Chinese children and adolescents in Shaanxi province showed significant regional disparities. GZ region exhibited the highest physical fitness levels, while Northern Shaanxi had the lowest. Conclusions: Region-specific interventions and targeted health policies are essential to address these disparities and improve the overall physical health status of children and adolescents in Shaanxi province.

Background: Higher blood pressure (BP) in childhood is an important predictor of cardiovascular disease later in life, and adiposity is an important modifiable factor associated with BP. However, updated national evidence on the associations of general and central adiposity indicators with BP outcomes among Chinese children and adolescents remains limited. Methods: This cross-sectional study was based on physical health data collected from 146,399 children and adolescents across 30 provinces in China between October and November 2019. Height, weight, waist circumference, and BP were measured using standardized procedures, and adiposity was assessed using body mass index (BMI) and waist-to-height ratio (WHtR). Linear mixed-effects models were used to evaluate associations of BMI and WHtR with continuous BP outcomes, and generalized linear mixed-effects models were used for screening-defined hypertension (SDH), adjusting for sociodemographic, dietary, and physical activity variables. Results: Mean systolic BP and diastolic BP were 107.40 (SD 12.65) mmHg and 67.78 (SD 9.66) mmHg, respectively. After multivariable adjustment, each 1-unit increase in BMI was associated with increased odds of SDH (OR = 1.131, 95% CI: 1.123, 1.139), and each 0.1-unit increase in WHtR was associated with increased odds of SDH (OR = 1.798, 95% CI: 1.732, 1.866). Conclusions: Higher BMI and WHtR were associated with higher BP levels and greater odds of SDH among Chinese children and adolescents. These findings highlight the importance of early identification and prevention of adiposity-related BP abnormalities in youth.

Yan, J, García-Ramos, A, Courel-Ibáñez, J, Chen, W, Rui, J, Wang, L, Chen, Z, Sun, Y, and Zhu, W. Comparing neuromuscular tests to discriminate striking performance in elite mixed martial arts athletes. J Strength Cond Res XX(X): 000–000, 2026—General upper-body strength and power tests may have limited value for profiling striking-specific performance because they do not replicate the standing, rotation-assisted kinetic chain of punching. We examined whether a standing landmine punch throw (LPT) could better discriminate striking performance in elite mixed martial arts athletes than conventional ballistic and strength tests. Thirty-six elite male athletes (age: 20.0 ± 1.9 years, height: 1.72 ± 0.07 m, body mass: 68.3 ± 8.5 kg) participated in this cross-sectional study and were stratified into higher-impact, middle-impact, and lower-impact groups according to tertiles of relative striking force. Four assessments were evaluated: clap push-up, isometric bench press, bench press throw (BPT), and LPT. Load-velocity profiles were modeled for the ballistic exercises to derive theoretical maximal force ( L ₀ ), theoretical maximal velocity ( v ₀ ), and the area under the load-velocity relationship line (A _line ). Relative impact force was significantly correlated with LPT A _line ( r = 0.64), BPT A _line ( r = 0.44), BPT L ₀ ( r = 0.42), LPT L ₀ ( r = 0.40), isometric peak force ( r = 0.39), and isometric 0–250-millisecond impulse ( r = 0.35) and LPT v ₀ ( r = 0.33) ( p ≤ 0.05). However, only LPT A _line showed a significant main effect across the 3 performance tertiles. Exploratory receiver operating characteristic analysis identified a preliminary cutoff of ≤2.12 W·kg ⁻¹ for LPT A _line to classify lower-impact strikers (AUC = 0.851). These findings indicate that although some general neuromuscular variables were associated with relative striking force, the LPT load-velocity profile showed the greatest discriminative validity, likely because of its greater task specificity. Practitioners may therefore consider LPT profiling to complement traditional upper-body testing when evaluating striking-specific capability in elite fighters.

Purpose : This study investigated whether adding blood flow restriction at graded arterial occlusion pressures (AOPs) during plyometric jumps can enhance and prolong postactivation performance enhancement. Methods : Twenty-one resistance-trained men completed 40 maximal plyometric jumps under 4 conditions: jumps alone or combined with blood flow restriction at 50%, 60%, or 70% AOP. Countermovement jump (CMJ) and squat jump (SJ) height were assessed at baseline and at 15 seconds, 4, 8, and 12 minutes postexercise. Results : Significant condition × time interactions were observed for both CMJ height ( P = .01, ) and SJ height ( P < .001, ). The 70% AOP condition produced significant performance improvements across all time points ( P < .01, g = 0.36–0.53). At 50% and 60% AOP, performance improved at 15 seconds and 4 minutes ( P < .01, g = 0.19–0.40), with CMJ effects persisting to 8 minutes but disappearing by 12 minutes in both jumps. The control condition showed a transient CMJ improvement at 15 seconds ( P = .046, g = 0.20) but no SJ change. Compared with other conditions, 70% AOP outperformed control at 4 and 12 minutes for CMJ and at 12 minutes for SJ, and exceeded 50% AOP at 15 seconds in both tests. Conclusion : Plyometric jumps combined with 70% AOP produced a greater and more sustained postactivation performance enhancement response than jumps alone, suggesting that blood flow restriction may serve as a potential adjunct to enhance the acute effects of plyometric conditioning activities.