International Journal of

Environmental Research
and Public Health

Article
Setting Criterion for Adolescent Circuit Exercise Program
Yeon-Oh Han 1, *, Byung-Sun Lee 2 and Seon-Yeong Shin 2

1 WEPEAK, Subin Art Inn Building, 25 Eonju-ro 159-Gil, Gangnam-gu, Seoul 06024, Korea
2 Health Physical Activity Institute, Subin Art Inn Building, 25 Eonju-ro 159 Gil, Gangnam-gu,
Seoul 06024, Korea; shotace@khu.ac.kr (B.-S.L.); healthlab.shin@gmail.com (S.-Y.S.)
* Correspondence: healthlab.han@gmail.com; Tel.: +82-70-4640-5233

Abstract: The purpose of this study was to develop criteria for an adolescent circuit exercise program.
The subjects of this study were 5268 middle- and high-school students. It consisted of three types of
circuit exercise programs which were conducted in the physical education class. In the result of this
study, we have found two significant finding. First, there were statistically significant differences
by grade level and gender in three types of circuit exercise programs. Second, in order to improve
the utilization rate and convenience of various adolescents’ physical activity environments and the
field of school physical education, the gender of each circuit exercise program was classified and the
five-grade evaluation criteria were presented. The criteria for circuit exercise program developed
in this study will be utilized for various youth physical activities to contribute to improving health
and physical fitness. In addition, physical education teachers are expected to use this criteria as a
standard for evaluating the physical fitness level of adolescents.

Keywords: adolescents; physical education; physical activity; physical fitness; circuit exercise pro-
gram; criteria







Citation: Han, Y.-O.; Lee, B.-S.;

Shin, S.-Y. Setting Criterion for
Adolescent Circuit Exercise Program.
1. Introduction
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, The decline of physical activity in adolescents is emerging as a global concern. Accord-
18, 9996. https://doi.org/10.3390/ ing to the WHO’s survey of adolescent physical activity in 2020, four out of five adolescents
ijerph18199996 worldwide were found to lack physical activity. In particular, 94.2% of Korean adolescents
reported a significant lack of physical activity [1]. Excessive physical activity can have a
Academic Editor: Zisis Kozlakidis negative effect on adolescents, but an appropriate level of physical activity has a positive
effect on mental and physical health. In addition, physical activity habits in adolescence
Received: 12 August 2021
appear to be health levels and physical activity habits in adulthood after growth. Physical
Accepted: 15 September 2021
activity for adult health levels is encouraged to begin as early as adolescence [2]. Various
Published: 23 September 2021
guidelines are being provided to create healthy physical activity habits for adolescents.
The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends that moderate to vigorous physical
Publisher’s Note: MDPI stays neutral
activity (MVPA) be carried out for more than 60 min each day, considering the development
with regard to jurisdictional claims in
of adolescents’ physical and mental health and the effects on their entire lives [3]. The
published maps and institutional affil-
guidelines for physical activities of children and adolescents provided by the Ministry of
iations.
Health and Welfare also recommends MVPA (aerobic exercise) of more than 60 min per
day and strength exercise of more than 60 min per week [4].
The importance of school physical education classes is emphasized as an important
means of maintaining adolescents’ physical activity habits and fitness levels. During
Copyright: © 2021 by the authors.
vacations without physical education classes, students had the lowest level of MVPA, and
Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.
during the semester, the day without physical education was lower than the day when
This article is an open access article
physical education classes were held. Therefore, school physical education classes have a
distributed under the terms and
significant impact on the MVPA of adolescent students [5]. Six out of 10 Korean adolescent
conditions of the Creative Commons
students do not participate in physical activities other than physical education classes held
Attribution (CC BY) license (https://
creativecommons.org/licenses/by/
in schools. As a result, adolescent physical fitness is decreasing while their physique is
4.0/).
growing [6]. In addition, the number of physical education classes is decreasing, suggesting

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18, 9996. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18199996 https://www.mdpi.com/journal/ijerph
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18, 9996 2 of 13

the need for various efforts to improve the physical fitness and health of adolescent. The
school’s physical education site is conducting a physical activity promotion system (PAPS)
as a way to prevent obesity and physical fitness deterioration of students. The PAPS
provides information on the health and physical fitness levels of adolescent students by
presenting a five-step criteria [7]. Various efforts are being made to improve health and
physical fitness for students who are at low levels in the PAPS. However, the lack of
motivation, feedback, and exercise prescriptions has left adolescents unable to improve
their physical fitness [8]. Students lack interest in physical activity programs and lack the
willingness to participate in activities unrelated to grades or college entrance. Teachers are
experiencing practical difficulties in guidance due to a lack of health and physical fitness
programs. There is a need to find adolescents’ health and physical fitness programs that
can provide students’ interests and teachers’ convenience [9].
Circuit exercise programs (CEP) are a form of exercise program that carries out a vari-
ety of exercise movements in a fixed order. In previous studies, the CEP was reported as an
effective exercise method to improve the health and physical fitness of adolescents [10,11].
A study by Moyorga-Vega et al. (2013) found that the CEP was effective in improving
students’ physical fitness at school physical education sites. It was reported as an effective
exercise method that allows participation in various forms of exercise with less exercise
time [12]. The Healthy Physical Activity Institute has developed a circuit exercise program
called the “Move Challenge” consisting of various fitness movements. The Move Challenge
has been proposed to strengthen health and physical activity management capabilities
by satisfying the amount of physical activity recommended for students, and to help stu-
dents perform safe and effective physical exercise [13]. However, the link between the
evaluation criteria of physical fitness level and the operation of health and physical fitness
improvement programs through physical activity practice is insufficient. The establishment
of absolute fitness evaluation criteria for adolescents may provide specific and individual
diagnostic information regarding the compliance of health and physical fitness. On the
other hand, the need for appropriate evaluation criteria has been suggested for physical
activity programs, as the criteria may be arbitrary and the disadvantages of classification
errors may arise [14]. Criteria are needed to evaluate the results of adolescents’ health
and physical fitness programs conducted on-site in physical education and to confirm the
degree of improvement.
This study aims to present the evaluation criteria for the adolescents’ CEP constructed
using fitness movements. CEP is effective in improving health and physical fitness. It will
provide teachers with convenience in physical education classes. In addition, voluntary
participation will be possible by presenting goals for each physical level to students.
Therefore, by developing the evaluation criteria of the adolescents’ CEP, we intend to
provide a physical activity program that is linked to the adolescent’s health and physical
fitness improvement and evaluation of physical fitness level.

2. Materials and Methods

2.1. Subjects
The subjects of this study were adolescents aged 14 to 19 (first grade to sixth grade)
in about 200 middle and high schools. It was conducted for students who expressed their
intention to participate in CEP in school physical education classes. If a record was omitted
among the CEP results, it was excluded from each CEP result analysis. In addition, if the
institution or subject did not want, they were excluded from the subject. The physical
education teacher fully explained the purpose and method of this study and was provided
with physical activity (CEP) records. Physical activity data of 5268 people (male: 3082,
female: 2186) were analyzed. In order to secure the homogeneity of the circuit exercise
program records, teachers at the recruited schools were fully trained on how to implement
the circuit exercise program through teacher training. All subjects’ data are secondary data,
and only physical activity records excluding personal information is handled. The physical
characteristics of the subjects are shown in Table 1.
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18, 9996 3 of 13

Table 1. Sample size by gender and grade.

CEP 1 CEP 2 CEP 3

Gender Grade Years BMI (kg·m−2 )
(n = 1719) (n =1830) (n =1067)
1st grade 14 years (n = 493) 284 117 92 22.2 ± 11.90
2nd grade 15 years (n = 399) 149 172 78 21.8 ± 4.58
3rd grade 16 years (n = 456) 185 200 71 22.7 ± 4.69
Male
4th grade 17 years (n = 592) 161 240 191 23.1 ± 4.71
5th grade 18 years (n = 827) 199 382 246 22.4 ± 3.92
6th grade 19 years (n = 325) 100 107 108 23.9 ± 4.06
1st grade 14 years (n = 411) 241 108 62 20.4 ± 3.90
2nd grade 15 years (n = 378) 163 174 41 20.2 ± 3.78
3rd grade 16 years (n = 232) 98 93 41 22.0 ± 3.47
Female
4th grade 17 years (n = 111) 35 41 35 20.5 ± 2.37
5th grade 18 years (n = 308) 72 164 72 20.9 ± 3.14
6th grade 19 years (n = 94) 32 32 30 20.4 ± 2.32
CEP: circuit exercise program, BMI: body mass index.

2.2. Method of Circuit Exercise Program

In order to present the criteria for circuit exercise programs used at school physical
education sites, the Move Challenge developed by the health Physical Activity Institute
was selected. The Move Challenge developed circuit exercise programs in the design,
composition, and verification stages of physical education activities through the search
process for related books and papers, and consultation with experts. Application and
evaluation steps were carried out to verify effectiveness. The circuit exercise program in
this study utilized adolescents’ physical activity promotion programs and consisted of
fitness movements to promote health and fitness elements of endurance, flexibility strength,
and power [13]. Subjects were measured for the data of the circuit exercise program in three
separate physical education classes during the semester. The physical education classes
had a washout period of one week, and the order of implementation of the circuit exercise
program in each school was randomly selected. The circuit exercise program consists of six
movements, as shown in Table 2 and Appendix A (Figures A1–A3). All movements were
performed in sequence and recorded in seconds increments at the end of all movements.

Table 2. Methods of circuit exercise program.

Program Item Contents

Twist spine put one leg over the pelvis, fix it on the floor, and then move one bean bag while turning
(flexibility) the upper body to the other side (2 sets of 3 repetitions for each side left and right).
Hand walking in the push-up posture, move one bean bag by hand to the tip of the toe in order and then
(strength) return to the place (1 set of 2 repetitions).
Rolling squat prepare in a squat position, roll back until toes are over your head, and roll forward to
(strength) squat position (1 set of 5 repetitions).
CEP 1 (1) cross-jump on the step box (10 repetitions) while holding the ball.
Cross knee up
(2) bend your knees and cross the ball diagonally (5 repetitions on each side alternately).
(endurance)
(3) extend your knees and cross the ball diagonally (5 repetitions on each side alternately).
Jumping & walking (1) jump on top of the box with both feet (5 repetitions).
(power) (2) step up the box (5 repetitions).
Level-up pacer
shuttle run by touching the four cones standing at 1.5 m intervals in sequence.
(endurance)
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18, 9996 4 of 13

Table 2. Cont.

Program Item Contents

Eight-drill
run in an 8-shape shape and touch the target points in order (1 set).
(agility)
Star drill (1) move quickly from center point to target point.
(agility) (2) move 1 bean bag to each target point (1 set).
Zig-zag hopping (1) jump on both feet and move along the maker (1 set).
(power) (2) jump on one foot and move along the maker (once each left and right).
Side-step
CEP 2 move one bean bag to the target point while moving to the side step (1 set of 5 repetitions).
(agility)
(1) move the side of the ladder to the front step (1set).
Ladder exercise (2) move the side of the ladder to the side step (1 set).
(agility) (3) move the ladder head-on in the cross-step (1 set).
(4) move the ladder sideways in the cross-step (1 set).
Hurdle exercise (1) jump on both feet and cross the hurdle (1 set).
(agility) (2) jump on both feet and cross the hurdle sideways (once each left and right).
Hand walking In the push-up posture, move one bean bag by hand to the tip of the toe in order and then
(strength) return to the place (1 set of 2 repetitions).
(1) hold the ball with both hands and lift the upper body (5 repetitions).
Back extension
(2) place the ball between both legs and lift the lower body (5 repetitions).
(strength)
(3) lift the upper and lower body at the same time (5 repetitions).
(1) place both hands on the floor, move forward, lie down, fold and straighten your legs.
(2) lift your knees off the floor and stretch your upper body back.
(3) in the push-up position, kick one leg up to shoulder level (once each left and right).
(4) in the push-up position, place one hand on the floor and lift the other arm up so that it
Heart fit exercise
is perpendicular to the floor (once each left and right).(5) in the push-up position, as you
CEP 3 (endurance)
jump, you widen your feet to the side, and as you jump, you gather both feet (5 repetitions).
(6) in the push-up position, put your feet together, jump 3 times towards your upper body,
and jump 3 times to get back into place (2 repetitions).
(7) in the push-up position, move both hands toward the body and stand straight.
Cross hopping (1) move the markers in order by hopping (front-back-left-right, 1 set each left and right).
(power) (2) move the markers in order by hopping (once each clockwise and counterclockwise).
Kick & lunge after lunge, stretch your back legs forward and touch the ball with your toes (left and
(strength) right each 5 repetitions)
Jumping lunge (1) alternately the feet and move forward by jumping & lunge (5 repetitions).
(power) (2) alternately the feet and move forward by jumping & lunge (5 repetitions).
CEP: circuit exercise program, motion images of circuit exercise programs, CEP 1: https://youtu.be/ht5T4qWSb84 (accessed on 24 June
2019) [15], CEP 2: https://youtu.be/Vdqyk5nuCc8 (accessed on 24 June 2019) [16], CEP 3: https://youtu.be/FS9pP4TaZvc (accessed on 24
June 2019) [17].

2.3. Statics
The results from this study were analyzed using SPSS PC+ for Windows (version 20.0,
IBM Corporation, Armonk, NY, USA). The following features were considered: (1) de-
scriptive statistics of all variables are presented as mean (M) and standard deviation (SD);
(2) one-way ANOVA was conducted to analyze the differences in the mean between de-
pendent variables for each grade. If the mean difference in each grade is significant, then a
post-hoc (Scheffe test) was conducted; (3) an independent t-test was conducted to analyze
the mean differences in the dependent variables for gender. The significance level (a) for
all statistical analyses is set to 0.05.
The five-level criteria of each circuit exercise program were divided into male and
female students, and the percentile (%) was applied and presented. The five-level criteria
were presented in separate phases, phase 1 (very high, 5% or less), phase 2 (high, 6% or
more to less than 35%), phase 3 (normal, more than 35% to less than 65%), phase 4 (low,
more than 65% to less than 95%), and phase 5 (very low, more than 95%).
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18, 9996 5 of 13

3. Results
3.1. Comparison of Circuit Exercise Program by Grade and Gender
3.1.1. Circuit Exercise Program 1
Table 3 shows the result of the comparison of circuit exercise program 1 by grade and
gender. There were significant differences between grade in male (p = 0.000) and female
(p = 0.000). Also, there were significant differences between male and female students in
all grades except 5th grade.

Table 3. Comparison of circuit exercise program 1 by grade and gender (Mean ± SD).

Program Gender 1st Grade 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th F-Value p-Value Post-Hoc
Grade Grade Grade Grade Grade

Male 119.3 ± 155.1 ± 187.7 ± 174.6 ± 164.9 ± 183.1 ± a < b, c, d, e, f

38.66 * 27.99 *** 66.28 * 42.02 ** 37.65 50.97 *** 69.848 0.000 b < c, d, f
(n = 1078) c>e
CEP 1
Female 113.1 ± 200.6 ± 218.3 ± 209.3 ± 185.4 ± 207.8 ± 115.225 0.000 a < b, c, d, e, f
(n = 641) 33.85 55.14 74.55 21.35 31.80 21.43 c>e
CEP: circuit exercise program, a: grade 1, b: grade 2, c: grade 3, d: grade 4, e: grade 5, f: grade 6, * significant differences between gender,
*: p < 0.05, **: p < 0.01, ***: p < 0.001.

3.1.2. Circuit Exercise Program 2

Table 4 shows the result of the comparison of circuit exercise program 2 by grade and
gender. There were significant differences between grade in male (p = 0.000) and female
(p = 0.000). Also, there were significant differences between male and female students in
all grades except the first grade.

Table 4. Comparison of circuit exercise program 1 by grade and gender (Mean ± SD).

Program Gender 1st Grade 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th F-Value p-Value Post-Hoc
Grade Grade Grade Grade Grade
Male 188.1 ± 156.7 ± 155.4 ± 163.6 ± 152.4 ± 164.3 ± 16.773 0.000 a > b, c, d, e, f
(n = 1218) 42.83 38.71 *** 29.67 *** 47.99 *** 33.66 *** 42.52 ** d>e
CEP 2
Female 194.6 ± 214.5 ± 189.8 ± 200.5 ± 183.9 ± 206.5 ± 7.200 0.000
(n = 612) 45.82 59.74 52.61 27.30 47.73 26.14 b > c, e

CEP: circuit exercise program, a: grade 1, b: grade 2, c: grade 3, d: grade 4, e: grade 5, f: grade 6, * significant differences between gender,
**: p < 0.01, ***: p < 0.001.

3.1.3. Circuit Exercise Program 3

Table 5 shows the result of the comparison of circuit exercise program 3 by grade and
gender. There were significant differences between grade in male (p = 0.000) and female
(p = 0.000). However, there were significant differences between second, third, and fifth
grade, but there were no significant differences in first, fourth, and sixth grade.

Table 5. Comparison of circuit exercise program by grade and gender (Mean ± SD).

Program Gender 1st Grade 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th F-Value p-Value Post-Hoc
Grade Grade Grade Grade Grade

Male 120.1 ± 109.0 ± 101.1 ± 143.7 ± 145.3 ± 131.6 ± a > d, e

50.91 26.89 *** 27.10 *** 36.48 36.17 *** 28.02 29.931 0.000 b < d, e, f
(n = 786) c < a, d, e, f
CEP 3 a < d, e, f
Female 123.2 ± 132.9 ± 125.1 ± 202.1 ± 175.0 ± 216.0 ± 27.994 0.000 b > d, e, f
(n = 281) 57.11 58.97 53.90 41.46 42.77 23.27 c < d, e, f
e<f
CEP: circuit exercise program, a: grade 1, b: grade 2, c: grade 3, d: grade 4, e: grade 5, f: grade 6, ***: p < 0.001.
 CEP 3
a < d, e, f
Female 123.2 ± 132.9 ± 125.1 ± 202.1 ± 175.0 ± 216.0 ± b > d, e, f
27.994 0.000
(n = 281) 57.11 58.97 53.90 41.46 42.77 23.27 c < d, e, f
e<f
Int. J. Environ. Res.circuit
CEP: Public Health 2021,
exercise 18, 9996 a: grade 1, b: grade 2, c: grade 3, d: grade 4, e: grade 5, f: grade 6, ***: p < 0.001.
program, 6 of 13

3.2. Criteria of Circuit Exercise Program

3.2. Table 6 and

Criteria Figures
of Circuit 1 andProgram
Exercise 2, presents the criteria based on the results of each circuit
exercise program obtained from the measurement. The results obtained from the meas-
Table 6 and Figures 1 and 2, presents the criteria based on the results of each cir-
urement were presented on a five-step criteria, depending on the percentile.
cuit exercise program obtained from the measurement. The results obtained from the
measurement were presented on a five-step criteria, depending on the percentile.
Table 6. Criteria of circuit exercise program (Unit: sec).

Phase 5 Table 6. Criteria

Phaseof circuit
4 exercise Phase
program
3 (Unit: sec). Phase 2 Phase 1
Program Gender
(Very Low) Phase 5 (Low) Phase 4 (Normal) Phase 3 (High)
Phase 2 (VeryPhase
High) 1
Program Gender
Male 266 or higher (Very Low)265~170 (Low) 169~149 (Normal) 148~119
(High) 118 or less
(Very High)
CEP 1
Female 295 or higher266 or higher
Male 294~215 265~170 214~160169~149 159~120
148~119 119118
oror
less
less
CEP 1 Male 228 or higher 227~168 294~215 167~138214~160 137~109 108119
oror
less
CEP 2 Female 295 or higher 159~120 less
Female 287 or higher 246~215 214~178 177~115 114 or less
Male 228 or higher 227~168 167~138 137~109 108 or less
CEP 2 Male 202 or higher 201~142 141~116 115~79 78 or less
CEP 3 Female 287 or higher 246~215 214~178 177~115 114 or less
Female 245 or higher 244~199 198~122 121~81 80 or less
Male 202 or higher
CEP: circuit 201~142
exercise program. 141~116 115~79 78 or less
CEP 3
Female 245 or higher 244~199 198~122 121~81 80 or less
CEP: circuit exercise program.

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18, x 7 of 13

(a) (b) (c)

Figure
Figure1.1.The
Thecriteria
criteriaofofcircuit
circuitexercise
exerciseprogram
programfor
formales:
males:(a)
(a)circuit
circuitexercise
exerciseprogram
program1;1;(b)
(b)circuit
circuitexercise
exerciseprogram
program2;2;
(c) circuit exercise program
(c) circuit exercise program 3. 3.

(a) (b) (c)

Figure
Figure2. The criteria
2. The of of
criteria circuit exercise
circuit program
exercise forfor
program females: (a)(a)
females: circuit exercise
circuit program
exercise 1; (b)
program circuit
1; (b) exercise
circuit program
exercise 2; 2;
program
(c) circuit exercise program 3.
(c) circuit exercise program 3.

4. Discussion
4. Discussion
TheThe decrease
decreaseininphysical
physicalactivity
activity of adolescentstudents
of adolescent studentshas
hasemerged
emerged as as
an an educa-
educational,
tional,
social, and national problem due to poor health and physical fitness. In order to prevent to
social, and national problem due to poor health and physical fitness. In order and
prevent
improveandobesity
improveandobesity and
physical physical
fitness due tofitness due
lack of to lackactivity
physical of physical activity in regular
in adolescents, ado-
lescents, regular physical activity should be conducted to maintain health and physical
fitness factors at a certain level [18]. The Ministry of Education implements PAPS as a way
to solve the health and physical fitness problems of adolescents. Various prior studies
suggest methods for adolescent fitness assessments but lack the ability to improve health
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18, 9996 7 of 13

physical activity should be conducted to maintain health and physical fitness factors at a
certain level [18]. The Ministry of Education implements PAPS as a way to solve the health
and physical fitness problems of adolescents. Various prior studies suggest methods for
adolescent fitness assessments but lack the ability to improve health and physical fitness.
In addition, criteria are insufficient in exercise programs developed to improve the health
and fitness of adolescent students. This study utilized a circuit exercise program developed
to improve adolescent health and physical fitness. Based on fitness movements, it can be
carried out indoors, at home, and in narrow spaces without restrictions on the environment,
so it can be highly utilized. A circuit exercise program was implemented for adolescents,
and it was intended to present criteria for circuit exercise programs based on gender that
can be used at physical education sites.

4.1. Comparison of Circuit Exercise Programs by Grade

In order to prevent obesity and deterioration of physical fitness among Korean ado-
lescent students, the school’s physical education field is conducting PAPS. In addition, a
comprehensive fitness assessment is conducted based on physical fitness for health as-
sessments, and information on health and physical condition is provided [7]. Evaluating
students’ health and physical fitness and conducting physical activities on low-level stu-
dents is a very important role in school physical education. To improve student health and
physical fitness levels, physical activities are encouraged, including health factors such as
endurance, strength, and agility [19].
Although PAPS assesses student health and physical fitness levels, physical activity
programs that improve students’ health and physical fitness levels at school physical
education sites are lacking. In this study, the difference between grades was compared
using circuit exercise programs that are effective in improving the health and physical
fitness factors of adolescents. As a result of implementing the circuit exercise program,
significant differences were shown by grade. A recent study comparing physical fitness to
secondary school students showed that physical fitness improved as grades increased [19].
The results of this study were different from previous studies comparing the physical
fitness of adolescents. In Korea, students are very interested in grades and college entrance,
and there is a phenomenon of avoiding classes that do not help grades and entrance to
college, especially as they move through grade levels and enter high school. In addition,
students’ physical education classes are decreasing as the school grade level increases [9].
In this study, the influence of entering from middle school (first to third grade) to high
school (fourth to sixth grade) seems to have resulted in different results from previous
studies. However, in the same study, the lower the grade, the higher the physical fitness
perception, supporting the findings of this study [20].
The circuit exercise program sequentially performs various forms of exercise. The
circuit exercise program of the Move Challenge consists of self-practicable movements
without restrictions of place and time constraints to prevent obesity and physical fitness
deterioration in adolescents. Various physical activity programs for adolescents are known
through previous studies, but the continuous and voluntary practice is difficult. In a study
by Han Yeon-Oh et al. (2009), the physical self-concept and self-efficacy of psychological
factors were improved, and the body mass index was effectively reduced through student
health promotion programs [21]. Another study reported the improvement of psychologi-
cal factors and physical factors, such as confidence in physical activity, physical activity
volume, and body fat through adolescents’ physical activity programs [22]. In addition,
adolescent physical activity habits have an important effect on adulthood physical activity
habits and are closely related to health factors of life, recommended that MVPA be imple-
mented to promote adolescents’ health and physical fitness [23]. Therefore, in order for
adolescent students to improve physical and psychological factors, continuous physical
activity is required.
In this study, the difference in physical fitness by grade was compared by conducting
a circuit exercise program for adolescents. As a result of the adolescents’ circuit exercise
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18, 9996 8 of 13

program, there were significant differences by grade. Due to the nature of the circuit exercise
program, various exercises can be experienced; however, it is difficult to evaluate the fitness
level of each movement. Therefore, it is difficult to evaluate a specific physical fitness
element, so an underestimation may appear depending on the degree of development of
the physical fitness element. It is necessary to develop a method for measuring physical
fitness factors according to each movement of the circuit exercise program.

4.2. Comparison of Circuit Exercise Programs by Gender

In this study, the results of adolescent circuit exercise programs differed according to
gender. In a previous study, the physical fitness of adolescents growing up was compared
according to their physique. It was reported that overweight and obese adolescents
showed lower physical fitness than their normal-weight peers, and that a physique within
the normal range was associated with high physical fitness. However, overweight and
obese male adolescents showed higher fitness levels than female adolescents. These results
were related to fat mass and free fat mass, and it was interpreted as the result that male
adolescents had higher free fat mass than female adolescents [24]. In this study, male
students showed a higher record of circuit exercise programs than female students. This is
the same result as the previous study, and it is interpreted as the result of male students in
the growing stage having higher lean body mass than female students.
In the results of this study, in the case of the first grade (14 years old), there was no
difference in the records of circuit exercise programs between male adolescents and female
adolescents. In a study by Ortega et al., there was no difference in physical fitness between
male and female students. This was explained by the high homogeneity of the sample [25].
In the results of this study, there was no difference in the records of the circuit exercise
program for the first graders, but a large difference appeared as the grades went up. In
the case of the first grade, the development of female adolescents was high in elementary
school, but when they entered middle school, the growth level of male adolescents was
reversed. Differences according to gender in the circuit exercise program were similar to the
results shown in previous studies. However, this study did not include the measurement
of the adolescents’ physique level, so it was not possible to determine the gender difference
according to the difference in the physique level.
The adolescent circuit exercise program has two purposes. (1) To improve physical
fitness by satisfying the amount of physical activity through continuous implementation,
and (2) to contribute to the presentation of goals for each fitness level by providing physical
fitness evaluation standards. In future studies, it is considered necessary to investigate the
effect of continuous adolescent circuit exercise programs on the physique and physical
strength level of adolescents.

4.3. Development of Criteria for Circuit Exercise Program

Adolescents are at a time when physical factors such as physique and physical fitness
develop, and the lack of physical activity appears to be a decrease in physical fitness. A
decrease in physical fitness leads to a decrease in motivation for participation in physical
activity. This process leads to a vicious cycle that negatively affects adolescents’ physical
fitness for health [26]. Operational effects are insufficient due to the lack of understand of
PAPS by ordinary teachers. Various methods of operation are required to improve student
health and physical fitness [27]. Efforts are continuing to improve the environment of
physical activities and develop programs and fitness evaluation tools to solve problems
of decreasing adolescents’ health and physical fitness. In particular, it is important to set
criteria for physical activity for adolescent students. High criteria do not create a sense
of purpose, while low criteria make it difficult to induce motivation for accomplishment.
Therefore, appropriate criteria for the purpose, target, and situation are required, along
with physical activity programs that can improve adolescents’ physical fitness at school
physical education sites [28].
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18, 9996 9 of 13

PAPS assesses students’ health and physical fitness levels and prescribes appropriate
physical activity [29]. School physical education provides physical activities to improve
health and physical fitness for students who received low evaluation of PAPS. The ab-
sence of school physical education due to social and environmental problems such as
fine dust and infectious appeared. In addition, the lack of physical activity programs
that the opportunities for physical activity among adolescents are insufficient. In 2020,
the Ministry of Education conducted a “Untact National school sports Club Festival” for
adolescents whose physical activity opportunities were reduced due to coronavirus [30].
For the purpose of invigoration, the school sports club, elementary, middle and high school
students across the country were given the opportunity to participate in 15 sports events.
Furthermore, the Descente Sports Foundation conducted the ‘2020 Online Move Chal-
lenge’ [31,32]. Move Challenge was developed by the Health Physical Activity Institute as
a circuit exercise program consisting of six movements and supported the physical fitness
activities of middle and high school students [13,31]. Through these Untact events, it was
suggested that criteria for physical activity programs are needed so that adolescents can
continue to participate in physical activities and voluntarily practice health and physical
fitness management suitable for individual levels.
As students go up in grade, voluntary health and physical activities decrease. It was
suggested that voluntary participation should be induced in a variety of ways to improve
the health habits of adolescents [33]. A previous study suggested that improvement in the
method of measuring and managing students’ physical fitness was necessary and reported
that the utilization of circuit exercise programs will be high at school physical education
sites. In addition, the Move Challenge was correlated with the PAPS measurement results,
suggesting the possibility of a physical fitness measurement method [34]. In this study, set
criteria with adolescents’ circuit exercise programs provided by the Health Physical Activity
Institute were presented. Each circuit exercise program showed significant differences in
grade and gender.
It may be necessary to present evaluation criteria for each grade in consideration of
the impact on the development, and growth of students. However, in order to provide
convenience at school physical education sites, the evaluation criteria for the circuit exercise
program were presented in five steps, depending on gender. The circuit exercise programs
were difficult to compare the effects of each fitness factor and movement. However, it
was reported positively to improve students’ overall physical strength due to the high
utilization at school physical education sites [12,35]. The circuit exercise program of
adolescent students conducted in this study is believed to be used as a physical activity
program to set goals for adolescent students. The circuit exercise program conducted in this
study can be used as a physical activity program for adolescent students to establish their
physical activity goals. In the future, it is necessary to study the comparison of physical
fitness of adolescents using circuit exercise programs and establish criteria for various
adolescents’ physical activity programs.

5. Conclusions
This study intended to propose criteria based on the results of a circuit exercise
program developed to improve the health and physical fitness of adolescents students.
As a result, both grade and gender differences were shown in each of the developed
circuit exercise program. In order to enhance the utilization and convenience of various
adolescents’ physical activities environments and school physical education sites, five-step
criteria were presented according to gender. The circuit exercise program of this study will
be utilized for various adolescents’ physical activities to contribute to the improvement
of the health and physical fitness levels of adolescent students. In addition, it is believed
that it provides convenience for teachers by being used as a criterion for briefly evaluating
students’ physical fitness levels in various adolescent physical activity environments.

Author Contributions: Conceptualization, Y.-O.H.; Data curation, Y.-O.H. and S.-Y.S.; Formal analy-
sis, Y.-O.H. and B.-S.L.; Methodology, Y.-O.H.; Resources, S.-Y.S.; Supervision, Y.-O.H.; Validation,
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18, 9996 10 of 13

Y.-O.H. and B.-S.L.; Visualization, S.-Y.S.; Writing—original draft, B.-S.L.; Writing—review & editing,
Y.-O.H. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.
Funding: This research received no external funding.
Institutional Review Board Statement: The study was conducted according to the guidelines of the
Declaration of Helsinki and approved by the Institutional Review Board of Kyung Hee University
(Reg No. KHGIRB-21-212).
Informed Consent Statement: Not applicable (Study using secondary data).
Data Availability Statement: The data presented in this study are available on request from the
corresponding author.
Acknowledgments: This study was conducted with the support of the Descente Sports Foundation.
With the cooperation of the Ministry of Education, more than 200 schools nationwide and about 5000
students participate each year. This contributes to the vitalization of school physical education and
the promotion of health and physical activity of students. Thank you for your continued support of
the
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18,Descente
x Sports Foundation. 11 of 13

Conflicts of Interest: The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Appendix A
Appendix A

Figure A1. The sequence ofFigure Thecircuit

A1. for
motions sequence of motions
exercise for 1:
program circuit exercise
(1) Twist program
spine, 1: (1)walking,
(2) Hand Twist spine, (2) Hand
(3) Rolling walking,
squat,
(3) Rolling
(4) Cross knee-up, (5) Jumping squat,(6)
& walking, (4)Level-up
Cross knee-up,
pacer. (5) Jumping & walking, (6) Level-up pacer.
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18, 9996 11 of 13
Figure A1. The sequence of motions for circuit exercise program 1: (1) Twist spine, (2) Hand walking, (3) Rolling squat,
(4) Cross knee-up, (5) Jumping & walking, (6) Level-up pacer.

Int. J. Environ.
Figure Res.
A2. Public Health 2021,
The sequence of18, x
motions for circuit exercise program 2: (1) 8exercise
drill, (2) Star drill, (3)8Zig-zag 12 of 13
Figure A2. The sequence of motions for circuit program 2: (1) drill, (2) hopping,
Star drill, (4)
(3) Side
Zig-zag
step, (5) Ladder exercise, (6) Hurdle exercise.
hopping, (4) Side step, (5) Ladder exercise, (6) Hurdle exercise.

Figure A3. The sequence Figure Thecircuit

A3. for
of motions sequence of motions
exercise program for3:circuit exercise
(1) Hand program
walking, 3: (1)
(2) Back Hand walking,
extension, (2)fitBack
(3) Heart
exercise, (4) Cross hopping, (5) Kick &
extension, (3)lunge,
Heart(6)
fit Jumping lunge.
exercise, (4) Cross hopping, (5) Kick & lunge, (6) Jumping lunge.

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