A Scoping Review of 20 Years of College Fitness/Wellness Courses

Ninety percent of higher education institutions in the US offer conceptually based fitness and wellness (CBFW) courses to improve students’ knowledge and behavior relative to physical and mental health. This literature review investigated CBFW course content, structure, and the effectiveness of courses or programs that sought to improve knowledge (K), perceived health/fitness (PHF), physical health (PH), and mental health (MH). Twenty-three articles, published in English between 2003 and 2023 with 8059 subjects, met our inclusion criteria. The majority of research (65%) focused on courses addressing PHF, K, and PH outcomes; some offered physical activity (PA) labs and reported positive physical outcomes such as increased PA. The remainder (35%) focused on MH strategies and improved MH outcomes (e.g. reduced perceived stress). With the variety of positive benefits reported in these studies, higher education institutions should continue to examine ways in which CBFW courses can be used to improve physical and mental health.