Can eight weeks of judo and taekwondo physical education improve the health-related fitness of male university students?

Purpose: This study aimed to determine if Judo and Taekwondo in a physical education (PE) setting could improve the fitness of university students. Material: Students who registered voluntarily for the courses were considered for the study (n=27, 18-22 years for Judo; n=39, 18-22 years for Taekwondo). The control group (n=32, 20-24 years) was composed of students who were not part of a physical education course. None of the participants were college athletes nor PE students. The duration of the courses was eight weeks, twice a week with 50 minutes per session. Both courses included training for muscular fitness, flexibility, explosive strength, and cardiovascular fitness. The courses also included sparring matches and sport-specific training. The following health-related fitness parameters were measured before and after eight weeks: cardiovascular fitness using the Cooper Test, muscular endurance using 60 seconds curl-up test, trunk flexibility using the sit-and-reach test, and explosive leg strength using the standing long jump test. Parametric tests were applied to detect any effect of the courses on the students. Differences with p = 0.05 and Vargha-Delaney Common language effect size (VD) = 42% or = 58% were considered as evidence for any improvements in the fitness parameters. Results: Most of the tested parameters, apart from body composition, improved in both martial arts groups while those of the control group dropped. These changes were significantly different (p = 0.05 and VD = 42% or = 58%). The regular curl-ups and sitting stretch done during the eight weeks improved the muscular endurance and trunk flexibility of the Judo group, respectively. Moreover, continuous practice of the rolling/falling technique may have contributed to the improvement in flexibility of the Judo students. Conclusions: There is evidence that eight weeks of Judo and Taekwondo in a PE context improves the health-related fitness of male university students.