The Effects of 12 Weeks of Strength Training with Body Weight on some Components of Physical Fitness and Body Composition of Imam Hussein (AS) Basij Battalions

The aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of 12 weeks of strength training with body weight on some components of physical fitness and body composition of Imam Hussein (AS) Basij battalions in Astana Ashrafieh city.

32 subjects with an age range of 18 to 25 years were selected based on physical fitness criteria and randomly divided into four groups: weak, moderate, strong and control. Three training groups performed strength training protocol with body weight for 12 weeks and 3 sessions per week. 48 hours after the last training session, the variables include strength by sergeant jumping test, upper body strength (throwing a medical ball), muscle strength by chest press and squat test, endurance strength by push-up test, sit-ups, aerobic capacity by One mile running test, anaerobic power was assessed by RAST and body composition using caliper subcutaneous fat measurements. For evaluate the results within the group, paired t-test and descriptive test (mean ± standard deviation) were used.

The results showed a significant improvement in strength, aerobic capacity, endurance and muscle strength in all three groups (P <0.05), but in the control group only aerobic capacity had a significant improvement. The results also showed that the percentage of body fat and lean body mass in all three groups improved compared to before exercise but was not statistically significant (P <0.05).

In general, it can be concluded that strength training with body weight can be used to improve the indicators of physical fitness, especially for the weak subjects, and to train Basijis, adding this type of training can be useful.