Relationship between Physical Fitness and Academic Performance in University Students

Several studies involving students have been developed with the objective to analyse the influence of different factors on academic performance. Nevertheless, all these studies were focused on stress and sympathetic modulation response instead of contemplating other physiological parameters that may affect academic performance. The aim of the present study was to analyse body composition, cardiovascular, sleep habits and physical activity factors related to the academic performance of university students. Two hundred and sixty-one students with bachelor's degrees in physical activity and sports science participated in the present study (age: 22.49 +/- 3.84 years; weight: 73.94 +/- 11.4 kg; height: 176.28 +/- 7.68 cm; 87.7% males). Participants were divided into two groups according to their academic performance: low academic performance group (LAPG) and high academic performance group (HAPG). Body composition, blood pressure, physical activity and sleep habits were measured, and maximum oxygen uptake was estimated by the Cooper's 12 min run test. The results show that students with a high academic performance presented a higher VO2 max than the LAPG (LAPG = 40.32 +/- 6.07; HAPG = 47.91 +/- 6.89 mL/kg/min; p < 0.001), as well as lower diastolic blood pressure (LAPG = 72.44 +/- 14.27; HAPG = 67.48 +/- 13.50 mmHg; p < 0.01) and insomnia levels caused by breathing problems (LAPG = 0.37 +/- 0.8; HAPG = 0.13 +/- 0.42 a.u.; p = 0.046). Therefore, we found a relevant association between academic performance and VO2 max, diastolic blood pressure, and insomnia caused by breathing problems. These results highlight the importance of applying different programmes that may improve these factors, especially those related to physical activity and sleep habits in order to improve academic achievement.