Over the past few decades, Physical Fitness (PF), Health Literacy (HL), and Self-Efficacy (SE) have become increasingly important topics in the field of health and wellness. Both physical fitness and health literacy are critical components of our overall physical and mental well-being. A better understanding of physical fitness and health literacy can help us make informed decisions about our health and wellness. This study aimed to investigate the current status of and correlations between PF, HL, and SE among college students in Macau. By examining these factors, we can gain insights into the health and wellness of college students in Macau and identify areas for improvement.

A sample of 266 college students aged 18-22 (123 males and 143 females) were collected from Macau and assessed using three tools: the Physical Fitness Test consisting of muscular strength (60s push-up, 60s sit-up, and handgrip) and flexibility (seat-and-reach) and cardiovascular endurance (3mins step-test), the Europe Health Literacy Questionnaire (HLS-EU-Q) with three dimensions (Health Care, Health Promotion, and Disease Prevention) with a Cronbach's alpha of .95 and the General Self-Efficacy (GSE) scale with a Cronbach's alpha of .87.

The key findings included (1) College students in Macau respectively met the medium level of PF (body composition, muscle strength, muscle endurance, flexibility, and cardiovascular fitness), HL (M=3.65, SD=0.47), and GSE (M=6.77, SD=1.35). (2) Male students had better performance on PF than female students (p<0.05); Students who participated in a medium level of physical activity (PA-level) had better performance on PF and HL than those participating in a low and high level of Physical activity (p<0.05). (3) The relationship between PF, HL, and SE was identified; muscle strength had positive and medium correlation with HL-Health Care (r= .18, p<.01), Disease Prevention (r= .14, p<0.05), Health Promotion (r=.14, p<.05) and sum of HL (r= .17, p<.01), while cardiovascular fitness related to SE (r=.12, p<.05); HL (r=.47, p<0.1) had a medium and positive correlation with SE.

 The relationship between physical fitness and health is extremely important. The findings suggest that maintaining a moderate level of physical activity and health literacy may be beneficial for college students in Macau to improve their physical fitness and overall health.