The Effect of Local Indigenous Games on children's Physical and Perceived Fitness

Background: local indigenous games have been formed in the socio-cultural context of Iran since the past, but their impact on various aspects of human development has not yet been determined. Therefore, this study aimed to examine the effect of Local Indigenous games on Physical Fitness Factors (PFFs) and the perceived fitness of 7-11-year-old boys.Methods: Thirty elementary school boys (Age: 10.2 +/- 0.2) in Aran and Bidgol, Iran, were selected and randomly divided into experimental and control groups. The experimental group played Local Indigenous games for eight weeks, with three training sessions per week and 45 minutes per session. The control group only performed their routine daily activities. Data collection tools included Abadi's perceived physical fitness scale (1988), 10x5 meter running test to measure agility (Paschaleri et al., 2016), long jump test to measure explosive power (Paschaleri et al., 2016), sitting test and reaching to measure flexibility (Paschaleri et al., 2016) and 20-meter running test (Agha Alinejad et al., 2013) to measure speed. Covariance analysis was used to analyze the data.Results: The results indicated that eight weeks of Local Indigenous games significantly affect boys' PFFs, including agility, speed, flexibility, and explosive power (p <0.05). Moreover, Local Indigenous games had a significant effect on perceived fitness (p <0.05). Conclusion: According to the results, a course of Local Indigenous games effectively improves PFFs and the perceived fitness of boys aged 7-11 years and could be used as a suitable intervention.