Validation of Cardiovascular Fitness Field Tests for Adults with Mental Retardation

This study evaluated the concurrent validity of the 300-yard and the 1.5-mile run with a group of mildly mentally retarded (MR) adults. The subjects, 15 healthy MR adults ( M age = 29.5 + 5.6 yrs, M IQ = 60), underwent a maximal treadmill test utilizing a walking protocol, with heart rate and oxygen consumption data collected every minute. They also completed a 300-yard and a 1.5-mile run. The order of testing was counterbalanced. The results indicated that these subjects exhibited very poor cardiovascular fitness levels, with a mean V̇O 2 max of 28.1 ml•kg -1 •min -1 and mean run times of 98.9 sec and 21.1 min for the 300-yard and the 1.5-mile runs, respectively. The correlation between V̇O 2 max and the 1.5-mile run was –.88, and the correlation for the 300-yard run and V̇O 2 max was –.71. However, partial correlations indicated that when the effect of height and weight were held constant, only the correlation between V̇O 2 max and the 1.5-mile run remained significant whereas that between V̇O 2 max and the 300-yard run dropped. Consequently, the 1.5-mile run appears to be a valid indicator of cardiovascular fitness for these adults with MR, but the 300 yard run is not.