Measurements of fitness. The Canadian experience

The history of fitness assessment in Canada is reviewed briefly, with an emphasis upon geographic and socio-cultural factors that have influenced the Canadian approach to this issue. The current policy continues to be a three-tiered system of testing: self-assessment, paramedical testing and detailed medical evaluation. At the intermediate level (large-scale representative population sampling), the emphasis is upon a combination of physical activity questionnaires and simple test procedures that can be applied by a paramedical professional in the subject's home. Observations include height, weight, blood pressure, skinfold readings, simple tests of muscular force and endurance, a stepping test of aerobic performance and the sit and reach test of flexibility. Possible modifications to sampling, questionnaires and fitness test procedures are discussed in the context of the 1981 and 1988 Canada Fitness Surveys.