PHYSICAL AND HEALTH PROMOTION ACTIVITIES IN FEMALE UNIVERSITY STUDENTS WITH DIFFERENT HEALTH LEVELS

Abstract

Aim. To substantiate and develop a program of physical and health promotion activities for students with different health levels. Materials and methods. The study involved 64 female students, ages 19–21, from the main medical group. In the experimental group, health promotion activities included health-enhancing aerobic exercises. The following research methods were used: literature review, pedago­gical testing, anthropometrical measurements, functional tests and related indicators, pedagogical experiment, and mathematical statistics. Results. Two programs of health-enhancing aerobic exercises were developed with respect to the health levels and motor abilities of students. Our nine-month program included two 90-minute classes per week. The main feature of the program was the integration of two programs into a single training module, “Health-enhancing aerobic exercises”. The first program contributed to the improvement of morphological indicators in female students, including circumference measurements (waist by 8.2 %, shoulders by 9.2 %, hips by 6.3 %, buttocks by 5.3 %). After the first semester, 34.5 % of female students improved their physical fitness and entered a new functional group with more intense aerobic exercise. Conclusions. The study shows that our complex two-level system of health-enhancing aerobic exercises resulted in the development of various morphofunctional parameters. A significant increase was recorded for such parameters as flexibility (82 %), speed and strength (28 %), and dynamic strength (22 %). The proposed program allowed female students with different health levels to unite while differentiating their physical activities and individualizing the approach to each student.