ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Studying the relationship between flexibility and body composition of college students is of great significance for enhancing the levels of physical health and sports. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the relationship between sit-and-reach and body composition of college students in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region and differences between sexes. METHODS: Totally 2 175 students from a Guangxi university were randomly selected. Body composition was determined by the MC-180 body composition tester. The students were divided into four groups: ≤ 12.10 cm group,＞ 12.10-16.40 cm group,＞ 16.40-20.70 group and＞ 20.70 group according to quartile of sit-and-reach measured in accordance with the National Physical Health Test Standard. All data were processed by SPSS 22.0 software. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: Sit-and-reach was significantly correlated with body mass index, percentage of body fat, fat-free mass index, upper limb lean mass and lower limb lean mass (P ＜ 0.05), and percentage of body fat was negatively correlated with sit-and-reach (P ＜ 0.05). The body mass index, fat-free mass index, upper limb lean mass and lower limb lean mass in the ≤ 12.10 cm group were significantly lower than those in the other groups. Fat-free mass index and upper limb lean mass were correlated with sit-and-reach in male college students (P ＜ 0.05). The fat-free mass index and upper limb lean mass in the＞ 16.40-20.70 cm group were significantly higher than those in the ≤ 12.10 cm group. Therefore, there is a positive correlation between the flexibility and fat-free mass index and upper limb lean mass in college students.