II.

The heel-rise test is highly reliable. The regression models herein can be employed by clinicians to evaluate the outcomes of heel-rise tests of individuals against a comparable normative population.

The aim of this investigation was to study self-related health, physical activity and level of exertion, as well as body complaints in Swedish high school students. A total of 993 high school students aged 16–19 years participated in the study. A questionnaire was completed at school and included questions about self-related health, physical activity behavior, type of physical activity/sport, intensity, duration, possible injuries or complaints, and absence from physical training at school, during the last 3 months. The results showed that 26% of the high school students participated in sports on a regular basis. Males reported significantly better health than females (p < 0.0005). A significantly higher number of females participated in physical activities at a lower level of effort (p < 0.0005) and a higher number of males trained at a higher level of effort (p < 0.005). Sixtyone percent reported body pain during the last 3 months, representing a higher number of females than males (p = 0.03). A higher number of females than males reported complaints from the back (p = 0.002), the knees (p = 0.015), the neck (p = 0.001), and the hip (p = 0.015). Females with body complaints reported poorer health than those without complaints. There was a correlation between poor self-related health and a lower level of physical effort (0.219; p < 0.001). The results showed that the prevalence of musculoskeletal symptoms was high in this population and demonstrated a certain association with self-related health. Therefore, it is important to make it easy for adolescents to perform physical activity at school and during their leisure time in order to prevent chronic diseases.

As the population of older adults increases, healthy aging has become a global public health issue. Physical activity can help older adults reclaim or maintain a healthy aging process. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between physical activity, physical performance, quality of life and cognition in non-frail adults aged 65 and older. English articles in peer-reviewed journals about healthy, non-frail adults aged 65 and older were included in the present review. Additionally, articles were obtained from reviewing the reference lists of the aforementioned articles. Research proves an overwhelmingly positive correlation between physical activity and the reduction of preventable chronic illnesses, lower healthcare costs, improved cognition, improved muscle function, decreased fear of falling, and thereby, inevitably, an increased self-perceived quality of life. There is research evidence on healthy aging and the effect of physical activity, which could be of importance in a public health perspective.