Assertion (A): In the Harvard step test a higher fitness index indicates better cardiorespiratory fitness. Reason (R): A fitter person's heart rate recovers faster after exercise, giving lower recovery pulse counts in the denominator. Choose the correct option.

Both A and R are true, and R is the correct explanation of A

Both A and R are true, but R is not the correct explanation of A

The finding in the 1950s that far more American than European children failed the Kraus–Weber test led directly to

the President's Council on Youth Fitness and the AAHPER Youth Fitness Test

the Heath–Carter somatotype method

the President's Council on Youth Fitness and the AAHPER Youth Fitness Test

Which statements about the Harvard step test are correct? Select all that apply.

The pulse is counted from 1 to 1½, 2 to 2½ and 3 to 3½ minutes after exercise in the long form

The short form divides by 5.5 times the first pulse count

The subject steps at 60 steps per minute

The pulse is counted from 1 to 1½, 2 to 2½ and 3 to 3½ minutes after exercise in the long form

The short form divides by 5.5 times the first pulse count

A lower fitness index indicates better fitness

Test, Measurement and Evaluation II: Tests of Physical Fitness, Motor Fitness, Motor Ability and Motor Educability, Health-Related Fitness Tests, and Tests of the Fitness Components, Strength, Endurance, Speed, Flexibility and Coordinative Abilities, with the Harvard Step Test Worked

This chapter names and explains the fitness tests the syllabus asks for. It first separates four constructs that are often confused, physical fitness, motor fitness, motor ability and motor educability, and gives the classic battery for each; then covers the health-related fitness tests, from the AAHPERD test of 1980 to Fitnessgram and Eurofit; and ends with the standard tests of each fitness component, with the Harvard step test worked in full from its long-form formula, which has been checked against the original procedure.

1. Physical fitness, motor fitness, motor ability and motor educability

The four constructs are nested. Physical fitness is the capacity to carry out daily tasks with vigour and alertness, without undue fatigue, and with energy left for leisure and emergencies; in its narrower, classical sense it comprises strength, muscular endurance and cardiorespiratory endurance, with flexibility. Motor fitness is broader: physical fitness plus the components of performance such as speed, agility, power and balance. Motor ability is broader still: the general, present level of ability in a wide range of fundamental motor skills (running, jumping, throwing, dodging), which underlies performance in many sports. Motor educability is different in kind: the ability to learn new motor skills quickly and well, measured by performance on novel stunts rather than practised skills.

Construct	Classic tests	Items (summary)
Physical fitness	Kraus–Weber Test (1954); AAHPER Youth Fitness Test (1958, revised 1965 and 1976); Rogers' Physical Fitness Index	Kraus–Weber: six items of minimum muscular fitness of the trunk, hips and hamstrings; AAHPER: pull-ups or flexed-arm hang, sit-ups, shuttle run, standing broad jump, 50-yard dash, 600-yard run-walk
Motor fitness	JCR Test (jump, chin-ups, shuttle run); Indiana Motor Fitness Index	Vertical jump, chin-ups and a shuttle run; strength and power items
Motor ability	Barrow Motor Ability Test (1954); Newton Motor Ability Test	Barrow: standing broad jump, softball throw, zig-zag run, wall pass, medicine-ball put, 60-yard dash
Motor educability	Iowa–Brace Test (McCloy's revision of the Brace test); Johnson Motor Educability Test; Metheny–Johnson Test	Novel stunts and movement patterns scored as passed or failed

The Kraus–Weber test has a place in history: when Hans Kraus and Ruth Hirschland reported in the 1950s that about 58 per cent of American children failed at least one of its six items against about 9 per cent of European children, the result prompted the President's Council on Youth Fitness (1956) and the AAHPER Youth Fitness Test, and began the modern era of fitness testing in schools.

⚠️ Educability is learning, ability is present capacity

Motor ability tests measure how well a person performs fundamental skills now; motor educability tests measure how readily a person learns new ones. The Barrow test is motor ability; the Iowa–Brace and Johnson tests are motor educability.

2. Health-related fitness tests

Health-related fitness tests measure the five components linked to health rather than athletic performance, and are usually interpreted against criterion standards. The AAHPERD Health Related Physical Fitness Test (1980) had four items: a one-mile run or nine-minute run (cardiorespiratory endurance), the sum of triceps and subscapular skinfolds (body composition), the sit-and-reach test (flexibility of the lower back and hamstrings) and modified bent-knee sit-ups in one minute (abdominal strength and endurance). Fitnessgram, developed by the Cooper Institute and first released in 1982, uses the PACER (a progressive 20 m shuttle run), the one-mile run or walk test, skinfolds or body mass index, curl-ups, push-ups, a trunk lift and the back-saver sit-and-reach, with "healthy fitness zone" standards by age and sex. The Eurofit battery of the Council of Europe (1988) combines health-related and motor items. In India, the Fit India movement has published age-group fitness protocols for schools and adults, and SAI and the Khelo India programme use fitness assessment in schools.

3. The Harvard step test

The Harvard step test, devised by Lucien Brouha and colleagues at the Harvard Fatigue Laboratory in 1943, measures cardiorespiratory fitness by the rate at which the heart rate recovers after a standard bout of stepping. The subject steps up and down on a bench 20 inches (about 50.8 cm) high at 30 steps per minute, a full step being up with both feet and down with both, for 5 minutes or until exhaustion, when he can no longer keep the cadence for about 15 seconds; at 30 steps a minute for 5 minutes he makes 150 steps. He then sits down, and the pulse is counted for 30 seconds three times: from 1 to 1½, 2 to 2½ and 3 to 3½ minutes after stopping. The long-form fitness index is FI = (duration of exercise in seconds × 100) ÷ (2 × the sum of the three pulse counts). A short form uses only the first count: FI = (duration in seconds × 100) ÷ (5.5 × the pulse count from 1 to 1½ minutes).

Worked example: a student completes the full 300 seconds and the three recovery counts are 75, 65 and 60, which sum to 200. FI = (300 × 100) ÷ (2 × 200) = 30,000 ÷ 400 = 75. The commonly quoted norms for the long form are below 55 poor, 55–64 low average, 65–79 high average, 80–89 good and 90 or above excellent, so this student is high average. A fitter subject recovers faster, giving lower pulse counts and a higher index; a subject who stops early has a smaller numerator. Because bench height relative to leg length affects the work, modified versions with lower benches are used for women and children, with their own norms. The Queen's College step test and the Cooper 12-minute run (1968), in which the distance covered estimates VO2max, and the 20 m multistage shuttle run (Léger), are other field tests of cardiorespiratory endurance.

⚠️ The 2 goes in the denominator of the long form

In the long form the sum of the three 30-second counts is multiplied by 2 in the denominator; in the short form the single count is multiplied by 5.5. Putting the 2 in the numerator, or using the long-form constant with one count, gives a wildly wrong index.

4. Tests of the fitness components

Component	Common tests	Notes
Maximum strength	Hand-grip dynamometer; back and leg dynamometer; one-repetition maximum	Grip strength is a simple general indicator
Explosive strength (power)	Vertical jump (Sargent jump); standing broad jump; medicine-ball put	The Sargent jump dates from 1921
Muscular (strength) endurance	Sit-ups or curl-ups in a set time; push-ups; pull-ups; flexed-arm hang	Repetitions to fatigue or in a fixed time
Cardiorespiratory endurance	Harvard step test; Cooper 12-minute run; 20 m multistage shuttle run; 600-yard run-walk; 1-mile run	Laboratory VO2max is the criterion
Speed	30 m or 50 m sprint from a standing or flying start; 50-yard dash	Timed electronically where possible
Agility	4 × 10 m shuttle run; Illinois agility run; SEMO agility test	Change of direction at speed
Flexibility	Sit-and-reach test (Wells and Dillon, 1952); goniometer; Leighton flexometer; shoulder-reach tests	The goniometer measures a joint angle directly
Reaction ability	Nelson hand (ruler-drop) reaction test; electronic reaction timers	The distance the ruler falls converts to time
Balance	Stork stand (static); Bass stick test; balance-beam walk (dynamic)	Static and dynamic balance are tested separately
Coordination	Alternate-hand wall toss; skipping and rhythm tests; tests of throwing at targets	Eye–hand and whole-body coordination

When component tests are combined into a battery, the raw scores are converted into standard scores (z-scores or T-scores, as in Unit VIII) or percentile norms so that performances in seconds, centimetres and repetitions can be compared and added. Tests should be matched to the component they claim to measure (content validity), to the age and sex of the group, and to the facilities available, and the same protocol should be used at retest so that changes reflect training rather than testing conditions.

Key takeaways

Physical fitness sits inside motor fitness, which sits inside motor ability; motor educability is the capacity to learn new skills and is tested by novel stunts.
Kraus–Weber (1954) and the AAHPER Youth Fitness Test test physical fitness, the JCR test motor fitness, Barrow motor ability, and Iowa–Brace and Johnson motor educability.
Health-related fitness tests include the AAHPERD test of 1980 (distance run, skinfolds, sit-and-reach, sit-ups), Fitnessgram with healthy fitness zones, and Eurofit.
The Harvard step test uses a 20-inch bench at 30 steps a minute for 5 minutes; long-form FI = (seconds × 100) ÷ (2 × sum of three recovery counts), so 300 s with counts summing to 200 gives 75.
Component tests include the grip dynamometer, vertical jump, sit-ups, Cooper run, sprints, shuttle runs, sit-and-reach, ruler-drop, stork stand and wall toss, combined by standard scores.

Practice questions (10)

Attempt each one before opening the answer. Every explanation names the tempting wrong option as well as the right one, because that is where marks are lost.

In the Harvard step test a student steps for the full 300 seconds, and the three 30-second recovery pulse counts are 75, 65 and 60. Using the long form, FI = (duration in seconds × 100) ÷ (2 × sum of the pulse counts), what is the fitness index? Type the number.
Numerical answer — type the value.
Show answer
Answer: 75
Sum of counts = 75 + 65 + 60 = 200; FI = (300 × 100) ÷ (2 × 200) = 30,000 ÷ 400 = 75, high average on the usual norms. Leaving out the 2 gives 150, and using only the first count with the long-form constant gives 200.
In the standard Harvard step test the subject steps at 30 steps per minute for 5 minutes. How many steps are completed? Type the number.
Numerical answer — type the value.
Show answer
Answer: 150
30 steps per minute × 5 minutes = 150 steps, each a full cycle of up with both feet and down with both. The bench is 20 inches (about 50.8 cm) high.
The Barrow test, whose items include the standing broad jump, softball throw, zig-zag run, wall pass, medicine-ball put and 60-yard dash, measures
1. minimum muscular fitness
2. body composition
3. motor ability
4. motor educability
Show answer
Answer: C — motor ability
Barrow's battery (1954) samples fundamental skills and measures general motor ability. Motor educability is tested by novel stunts such as the Iowa–Brace, and minimum muscular fitness by the Kraus–Weber test.
The Iowa–Brace test is a test of
1. badminton skill
2. motor educability
3. cardiorespiratory endurance
4. posture
Show answer
Answer: B — motor educability
McCloy's revision of Brace's test uses novel stunts to measure the capacity to learn new motor skills, that is, motor educability. It measures neither endurance, a specific sport skill nor posture.
Assertion (A): In the Harvard step test a higher fitness index indicates better cardiorespiratory fitness. Reason (R): A fitter person's heart rate recovers faster after exercise, giving lower recovery pulse counts in the denominator. Choose the correct option.
1. Both A and R are true, and R is the correct explanation of A
2. Both A and R are true, but R is not the correct explanation of A
3. A is true, but R is false
4. A is false, but R is true
Show answer
Answer: A — Both A and R are true, and R is the correct explanation of A
Both are true and R explains A: the pulse counts sit in the denominator, so faster recovery lowers them and raises the index, as does completing the full duration, which raises the numerator.
Which of the following were items of the AAHPERD Health Related Physical Fitness Test of 1980? Select all that apply.
1. Sum of triceps and subscapular skinfolds
2. The 50-yard dash
3. A one-mile or nine-minute run
4. The sit-and-reach test
Show answer
Answer: A — Sum of triceps and subscapular skinfolds; C — A one-mile or nine-minute run; D — The sit-and-reach test
The 1980 test had a distance run, skinfolds, sit-and-reach and modified sit-ups, covering the health-related components. The 50-yard dash measures speed, a skill-related component, and belonged to the older Youth Fitness Test.
Which test measures flexibility of the lower back and hamstrings?
1. The Sargent jump
2. The ruler-drop test
3. The stork stand
4. The sit-and-reach test
Show answer
Answer: D — The sit-and-reach test
Wells and Dillon's sit-and-reach test (1952) measures lower-back and hamstring flexibility. The stork stand tests static balance, the Sargent jump explosive power and the ruler-drop test reaction time.
The finding in the 1950s that far more American than European children failed the Kraus–Weber test led directly to
1. the Heath–Carter somatotype method
2. the President's Council on Youth Fitness and the AAHPER Youth Fitness Test
3. the Harvard step test
4. the first modern Olympic Games
Show answer
Answer: B — the President's Council on Youth Fitness and the AAHPER Youth Fitness Test
The Kraus–Weber results prompted the President's Council on Youth Fitness (1956) and the AAHPER Youth Fitness Test (1958). The Harvard test is older (1943), the modern Olympics began in 1896 and the Heath–Carter method dates from 1967.
Which statements about the Harvard step test are correct? Select all that apply.
1. The subject steps at 60 steps per minute
2. The pulse is counted from 1 to 1½, 2 to 2½ and 3 to 3½ minutes after exercise in the long form
3. The short form divides by 5.5 times the first pulse count
4. A lower fitness index indicates better fitness
Show answer
Answer: B — The pulse is counted from 1 to 1½, 2 to 2½ and 3 to 3½ minutes after exercise in the long form; C — The short form divides by 5.5 times the first pulse count
The long form uses three 30-second counts and the short form the first count × 5.5. A higher index means better fitness, and the cadence is 30 steps per minute, not 60.
A 4 × 10 m shuttle run is chiefly a test of
1. agility
2. static balance
3. flexibility
4. maximum strength
Show answer
Answer: A — agility
Repeated sprints with sharp changes of direction test agility. Flexibility is tested by the sit-and-reach, static balance by the stork stand and maximum strength by a dynamometer or 1RM.