Comparative Analysis of Health-Related Fitness Between Urban and Peri-Urban Secondary School Students in Enugu State

Health-related physical fitness disparities between urban and peri-urban youth populations may reflect differential access to physical education, sports facilities, and active transportation patterns, with implications for targeted health promotion. This study comparatively analyses health-related fitness components between urban and peri-urban secondary school students in Enugu State, South East Nigeria. A comparative cross-sectional design was employed, with 400 students equally drawn from urban and peri-urban secondary schools across four local government areas. Health-related fitness was assessed using the FitnessGram battery, evaluating cardiovascular endurance, muscular strength, muscular endurance, flexibility, and body composition. Independent samples t-tests, Mann-Whitney U tests, and analysis of covariance controlling for physical education lesson time were applied. Findings reveal that peri-urban students demonstrate significantly superior cardiovascular endurance and muscular endurance compared to urban counterparts, attributed to higher rates of active transportation, outdoor physical labour-related activity, and more time in unstructured outdoor play. Urban students demonstrate better flexibility, attributed to more structured physical education delivery. Body mass index is significantly higher among urban students, reflecting dietary pattern differences and greater sedentary leisure activities. Physical education lesson time does not fully explain the observed fitness differences, indicating the importance of out-of-school activity contexts. Recommendations include incorporating active transportation promotion into urban school health programmes and ensuring equitable physical education quality across both settings. Keywords: health-related fitness, urban, peri-urban, secondary students, Enugu State