Abstract: The purpose of the study was to investigate the effect of folk sports on the physical health of college students.A total of 309 college students were recruited in a university in western China.All participants were randomly assigned to three different groups,including competitive,recreational,and control group.The results are as follows:a) male college students in competitive group showed a significant improvement in VO2,endurance,flexibility,speed,and agility;recreation group manifested a significant improvement in VO2,flexibility,speed,and agility；b) female college students in competitive group had a significant improvement in VO2,endurance,flexibility,speed,and agility;however,recreational group had a significant improvement only in VO2.

Key words: folk sports；project, college students；physical health