Factors relating to the strength of male adolescents.

Factors relating to the strength of 53 postpubertal adolescent males have been examined. A strength index, composed of left and right handgrip and back strengths, was related to the following: anthropometric measurements and their derivatives; level of habitual activity; body shape as characterized by Heath-Carter and Sheldonian somatotype ratings; and anthropometric ratios. Strength was found to be positively related to all anthropometric measurements with the exception of skinfold thicknesses. When body weight was held constant, strength was positively related to arm circumference, bicondylar diameters of the humerus and femur, thigh volume, and biacromial diameter, and negatively related to percentage of fat. Strength was not related to the level of habitual activity. The relative contributions of overall body size and body shape to predictions of strength are approximately 57 and 47%. Measures of overall size appear to make no independent contribution to strength, beyond that contributed by limb segment volumes, or a combination of linear limb dimensions and measures of body shape.