China has officially launched its sixth national physical fitness monitoring campaign, aimed at assessing the health of its citizens and informing public fitness policies.
This initiative, held every five years, is organized by the General Administration of Sport, the Ministry of Education, and several other government departments. It is currently being carried out across all 31 provincial-level regions, with 1,877 sampling points set up to collect data from 248,000 participants aged 3 to 79. The campaign will gather information through questionnaires and physical tests in three categories: children, adults, and seniors.
Feng Qiang, an official with the General Administration of Sport, shared with China Central Television that for the first time, this year’s campaign will involve real-time data uploading to a national platform, ensuring the accuracy and authenticity of the results.
Another new feature of the campaign is the inclusion of specific exercise metrics, such as cycling, high-knee lifts, and pushups. These updates reflect changing health priorities, with 25 core indicators now used to assess body shape, physical function, fitness, and exercise habits.
Among the mandatory measurements are body weight and body mass index (BMI). This aligns with China’s “Weight Management Year” campaign, which encourages the public to focus on weight control, healthy eating, and regular exercise.
A report from 2020 revealed that 49.6 percent of Chinese adults were overweight or obese, marking a 6.4 percentage point increase from the 2014 survey.
In Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, 3,200 residents are taking part in the fitness tests. Xue Liang, a researcher at the Zhejiang Sports Science Institute, noted that the updated standards help identify individual fitness weaknesses. Experts on-site are now offering personalized exercise recommendations based on test results.
“Our goal is to encourage more people to have their fitness monitored and to exercise more often and more scientifically,” Xue said.
Hangzhou resident Wu Xiaowei shared that the assessment revealed balance issues he had not previously noticed. He now plans to address these problems with targeted training.
The national data collection is scheduled to wrap up by June 30, with an official report to be released in November.
Since its inception in 2000, the campaign has helped track shifts in public fitness trends. The fifth survey, conducted in 2019, showed some progress but raised concerns about increasing weight and declining muscle strength in certain groups.
Experts emphasized that 25 years of continuous fitness monitoring have provided a clearer understanding of China’s evolving public health landscape. The collected data is also instrumental in improving public fitness services and identifying gaps in sports infrastructure and participation.
