Effects of a 10-Week Zumba Program on Adiposity and Flexibility in 8-Year-Old Children

GENDER-SPESIFIC EFFECTS OF A 10-WEEK ZUMBA DANCE-BASED EXERCISE PROGRAM ON PEDIATRIC ADIPOSITY AND FLEXIBILITY IN HEALTHY 8-YEAR-OLD CHILDREN: A PROSPECTIVE INTERVENTION STUDY

The purpose of this study is to investigate the effects of a 10-week Zumba dance-based exercise program on body fat (adiposity) and flexibility in healthy 8-year-old children. The study also aims to explore if these effects differ between boys and girls. Participants will take part in a 10-week Zumba exercise program. Researchers will measure the children's body composition (body fat percentage) and physical fitness (flexibility and abdominal endurance) before the program begins (baseline) and immediately after the 10-week intervention is completed.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Adiposity; Physical Fitness
• Intervention / Treatment: Behavioral: Zumba Dance-Based Exercise Program

Detailed Description

Childhood obesity and physical inactivity are growing global health concerns. Engaging children in enjoyable physical activities is crucial for their physical development and overall health. Zumba, a dance-based exercise, offers a fun and rhythmic alternative to traditional exercises, which may increase participation and adherence among children.

This prospective intervention study aims to evaluate the gender-specific effects of a 10-week Zumba dance-based exercise program on pediatric adiposity and flexibility. Healthy 8-year-old children will participate in a structured Zumba program (consisting of 40-minute sessions, 3 days a week) for 10 weeks. Anthropometric measurements (to assess adiposity via body fat percentage) and physical fitness tests (including the sit-and-reach test for flexibility and sit-up test for abdominal endurance) are conducted at baseline and after the 10-week intervention. The findings will help determine the effectiveness of Zumba as a school-based or extracurricular physical activity intervention for improving body composition and physical fitness in prepubertal children.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 115
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• Turkey (Türkiye)
  • Muş, Turkey (Türkiye), 49250
    • Muş Alparslan University

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: Child
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

Healthy children aged exactly 8 years.

Voluntary participation with signed written informed consent from parents or legal guardians.

Ability to understand and follow basic exercise instructions.

Exclusion Criteria:

Any physical, orthopedic, or neurological disability that would prevent participation in a dance-based exercise program.

Diagnosis of any chronic metabolic, cardiovascular, or respiratory disease.

Regular participation in other structured sports or dance programs outside of the school curriculum during the study period.

Missing more than 20% of the total Zumba sessions.

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Prevention
• Allocation: N/A
• Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
• Masking: None (Open Label)

Number of Arms

1

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Zumba Exercise Group; Healthy 8-year-old children participating in a 10-week Zumba dance-based exercise program.	Behavioral: Zumba Dance-Based Exercise Program; A 10-week structured Zumba program consisting of 40-minute sessions, conducted 3 days a week.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Change in Adiposity (Body Fat Percentage)	Adiposity will be evaluated by measuring the children's body fat percentage using standard anthropometric methods.	Baseline (Week 0) and immediately after the 10-week intervention (Week 10)

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Change in Flexibility	Flexibility will be measured using the standard sit-and-reach test.	Baseline (Week 0) and immediately after the 10-week intervention (Week 10)

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Ege University
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: AYŞEN ÇALIKUŞU, PHD, Ege University

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): January 2, 2023
• Primary Completion (Actual): March 10, 2023
• Study Completion (Actual): March 10, 2023

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: March 30, 2026
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: March 30, 2026
• First Posted (Actual): April 6, 2026

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): April 6, 2026
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: March 30, 2026
• Last Verified: March 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: Exercise; Children; Body Fat; Flexibility; Zumba
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Nutrition Disorders; Overnutrition; Body Weight; Overweight; Pathological Conditions, Signs and Symptoms; Behavior; Nutritional and Metabolic Diseases; Signs and Symptoms; Obesity; Motor Activity
• Other Study ID Numbers: 69928

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: YES
• IPD Plan Description: De-identified individual participant data that underlie the results reported in this article will be shared.
• IPD Sharing Time Frame: Data will be available immediately following the publication of the article and will be accessible for a period of 5 years.
• IPD Sharing Access Criteria: Data will be shared with researchers who provide a methodologically sound proposal. Proposals should be directed to the corresponding author via email. To gain access, data requestors will need to sign a data access agreement.
• IPD Sharing Supporting Information Type: STUDY_PROTOCOL; SAP

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No