ATLANTA – A survey of 5,000 fifth- and seventh-graders in the state of Georgia revealed that more than half of them failed to pass a fitness test, according to a study by the Georgia Youth Fitness Assessment.
The study weighed and measured students in 93 public and private schools across Georgia. The students were asked to perform set tasks, such as running back and forth between two lines within a set amount of time. The students also did modified pull-ups.
To pass the test, pre-teen girls had to do four of the pull-ups, fifth-grade boys had to do five and seventh-grade boys had to do seven. Fifty-seven percent of the students could not meet the standard, and 52 percent failed the running test.
About 30 percent of Georgia students weigh too much, and 44 percent do not get enough exercise, according to the study.
“Georgia children are unfit. They’re overweight. They’re inactive,” says Dr. Ken Powell, one of the study’s authors.