Belanger, KevinBreithaupt, PeterFerraro, Zachary MBarrowman, NickRutherford, JaneHadjiyannakis, StasiaColley, Rachel CAdamo, Kristi B2015-04-132015-04-132013-062013-0610.4137/CMPed.S12524http://www.la-press.com/redirect_file.php?fileId=5206&filename=3869-CMPed-Do-Obese-Children-Perceive-Submaximal-and-Maximal-Exertion-Differently.pdf&fileType=pdfhttp://hdl.handle.net/10393/32214We examined how obese children perceive a maximal cardiorespiratory fitness test compared with a submaximal cardiorespiratory fitness test. Twenty-one obese children (body mass index ≥95th percentile, ages 10-17 years) completed maximal and submaximal cardiorespiratory fitness tests on 2 separate occasions. Oxygen consumption (VO2) and overall perceived exertion (Borg 15-category scale) were measured in both fitness tests. At comparable workloads, perceived exertion was rated significantly higher (P < 0.001) in the submaximal cardiorespiratory fitness test compared with the maximal cardiorespiratory fitness test. The submaximal cardiorespiratory fitness test was significantly longer than the maximal test (14:21 ± 04:04 seconds vs. 12:48 ± 03:27 seconds, P < 0.001). Our data indicate that at the same relative intensity, obese children report comparable or even higher perceived exertion during submaximal fitness testing than during maximal fitness testing. Perceived exertion in a sample of children and youth with obesity may be influenced by test duration and protocol design.enobesitychildrencardio respiratory fitnessperceived exertionArticle10.4137/CMPed.S12524