PHYSICAL FITNESS
WHAT IS PHYSICAL FITNESS?
• Physical fitness, in general terms, is a person’s
ability to meet the physical stresses and
demands of a variety of physical activities
efficiently and effectively. Physical fitness
provides a person with the capacity to
perform work safely in activities of daily
living, including activities required for work
at home and in the workplace, for leisuretime pursuits, and for sports
• The physical stresses and demands of daily living range, for example, from sitting,
eating, standing, showering, and walking to the extreme physical demands of
shovelling after a major snowstorm, marathon running, participating in a triathlon,
and firefighting
• Each of these activities requires varying degrees of cardiorespiratory endurance (CRE),
muscular strength, muscular endurance, and flexibility to perform it well
• Fortunately, the physical demands of showering or walking are not great, making it quite easy
for most of us to engage in these physical activities. For a small percentage of the population
these activities pose difficulty
• Many people are faced with demanding tasks, such as lifting/carrying heavy
objects, building, and snow shovelling, which can over-stress the body if it does
not have an adequate level of physical fitness. Adequate preparation for
these periodic tasks is essential to help minimize the risks of heart attack,
stroke, and back injury
REFER TO RM 8–FM: FITNESS RATING OF COMMON
ACTIVITIES
• For which activities was there the greatest agreement in fitness
rating?
• ƒFor which activities was there the least agreement in fitness rating?
• ƒWhich activity would provide the greatest amount of fitness
development? Explain.
• ƒWhich activity would provide the least amount of fitness
development? Explain.
• ƒWhich occupation would require the greatest level of fitness? Why?
PHYSICAL FITNESS DEFINITIONS
• “A set of attributes that people have or achieve that relate to their ability to
perform physical activity” (Howley and Franks).
• “A set of attributes, primarily respiratory and cardiovascular, relating to the
ability to perform tasks requiring expenditure of energy” (Stedman’s Concise
Medical Dictionary for the Health Professions).
• “The ability to perform moderate to vigorous levels of physical activity
without undue fatigue and the capability of maintaining such ability
throughout life” (American College of Sports Medicine).
TWO CATEGORIES OF PHYSICAL FITNESS
COMPONENTS
• Health-related fitness components
•
•
•
•
•
ƒcardiorespiratory endurance
ƒmuscular strength
ƒmuscular endurance
ƒflexibility
ƒbody composition
• Skill-related fitness components
• ƒagility
• ƒbalance
• ƒcoordination
• ƒspeed
• ƒpower
• ƒreaction time
HEALTH-RELATED FITNESS COMPONENTS
• Health-related fitness components not only help the body to perform more
efficiently, but also help prevent disease and improve overall health and wellbeing
FIRST…MAXIMUM HEART RATE (MHR)
• Easiest formula to get an estimate of what your maximal heart rate is
• Only an estimate, not exact (actual MHR is likely less, and varies
depending on gender, age, ethnicity, level of physical fitness,
genetics, etc.)
MHR= 220-age
ACTIVITY
• Calculate resting heart rate
• Perform to failure (as long as you can), either isolated dumb bell hold, wall sit,
or tricep dips.
• With a partner, calculate heart rate
CARDIORESPIRATORY ENDURANCE (CRE)
• is the ability of the cardiovascular system (heart, blood, blood vessels) and
respiratory system (lungs, air passages) to deliver oxygen and other nutrients
to the working muscles and to remove wastes. Tests that involve running (e.g.,
20 m shuttle run test), cycling, and swimming can be used to measure this
fitness component. Aerobic power (maximal oxygen consumption) and aerobic
capacity are terms used to describe CRE fitness
• ƒLight activities are physical activities that involve large muscle groups. While
engaging in light activities, people begin to notice their breathing, but they can
still talk fairly easily.
• ƒModerate activities are physical activities that cause breathing and heart rate to
increase. People engaging in moderate activities can hear themselves breathe, but
they can still talk.
• ƒVigorous activities are physical activities that cause breathing and heart rate to
increase to a higher level, making it difficult to talk.
MUSCULAR STRENGTH
• ƒMuscular strength is the ability of a muscle, or a group of muscles, to exert
force for a brief period of time. Strength of different muscles can be
measured by having a person perform weightlifting exercises and determining
the maximum amount of weight the person can lift. A person’s strength can be
expressed as absolute strength (the actual weight lifted)
MUSCULAR ENDURANCE
• Muscular endurance is the ability of a muscle, or a group of muscles, to sustain
repeated contractions or to continue applying force against a fixed object.
Push-ups and curl-ups are often used to test muscular endurance. The person’s
endurance is expressed as the number of repetitions completed without
stopping for a set period of time (often one minute).
FLEXIBILITY
• Flexibility is the ability to move joints through their full range of motion. The
sit-and-reach test is a good measure of flexibility of the lower back and the
backs of the upper legs (hamstrings). A person’s flexibility is usually expressed
in how far a joint can be moved or the degrees through which a joint can be
moved.
Clean and Jerk
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gVAqwyv1uN0
BODY COMPOSITION
• Body composition refers to the makeup of the body in
terms of lean mass (muscle, bone, vital tissue, and
organs) and fat mass. Good body composition has
strong bones, adequate skeletal muscle size, a strong
heart, and a low amount of fat mass. Regular
physical activity and exercise will help decrease
body fat and increase or maintain muscle mass,
increase bone mass, and improve heart function.
Although body composition entails muscle, bone, and
fat, it is often expressed only as percentage of body
fat.
• *A healthy body comes in all shapes and sizes
PRINCIPLES OF FITNESS DEVELOPMENT
• Specificity
• Overload
• Reversibility
• Progression
• Diminishing Returns
• Individual Differences
SPECIFICITY
•
ƒSpecificity: The type of training in which individuals engage should be directed specifically
at improving their abilities in life. Therefore, choose the right kind of activities to improve
each physical fitness component, and the right combination of physical fitness components to
help in activities of daily living. Strength training results in increases in strength for the
muscles being exercised but does little to improve cardiorespiratory endurance.
•
Also, train specifically for the specific activity of interest. For example, optimal running
performance is best achieved when the muscles involved in running are trained for the
movements required. It does not necessarily follow that a good swimmer is a good runner.
Specificity also requires that one consider the speed of motion, the number of limbs moving,
the direction in which they are moving, and the range over which the movement occurs.
OVERLOAD
• If a person works often (frequency) enough, hard (intensity) enough, and long
(duration) enough to load the body above its resting level, physical fitness will
improve. If this is done regularly over a period of time, the body will gradually
adapt to the increase in demands. The term overload does not refer to the idea
that one needs to overexert or exert at high intensities to obtain gains in fitness;
it simply means that one needs to load the body more than it is usually
accustomed to.
REVERSABILITY
•
Physical fitness or the effects of a
physical activity program or an
exercise program cannot be stored. If
a person stops training for a period of
time (three to five days, in some cases)
a process of detraining will begin. The
gains in fitness that were made begin
to reverse themselves. At least three
balanced workouts a week (three
hours minimum) are necessary to
maintain a good level of fitness.
PROGRESSION
•
Increasing the frequency, intensity, and/or
duration of an activity over periods of time is
necessary for continued improvement in
physical fitness. Improvements in physical
fitness are realized fairly rapidly at the onset
of an exercise or training program. The rate of
improvement will gradually slow down and
level off (adaptation) if an overload is present
(meaning that the load is increasing and that
there is progress). At high levels of physical
fitness it may even be necessary to change the
type(s) of exercise(s) being performed
DIMINISHING RETURNS
• The fitter a person becomes, the more difficult it is to continue to become fitter at
the same rate. Individuals who begin jogging can, over a relatively short time,
improve the speed and duration of their runs. However, experienced distance
runners may have to spend an entire training season to decrease their run time by
just a few seconds
HOW TO TRAIN???
• Sports-related cross-training is essential to supplement the sport you train in
• Exact exercise can’t be conducted in the gym, but related exercise can
• Michael Phelps Training
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r6z9wYrBVFg
TRAIN INTELLIGENTLY
• Start with a dynamic warm-up
• Use proper technique in training
• Eat healthy foods, at the right times
DYNAMIC WARM-UP: PURPOSE
• 1: Increase Muscle Temperature: Dynamic stretching means your body is still
continuously moving, even while stretching. Given the fact that the purpose of
the warm up is to raise your muscles' core temperature, keeping on the move is
very beneficial. 5-10 minutes spent doing static stretching can lead to your
muscles' core temperature dropping. As such, your muscles, although stretched,
would be less elastic and less powerful
• 2. PREVENTS INJURIES!
•
3. Sport Specific:Dynamic stretching prepares the muscles in a sport specific way.
Whereas a static stretches warm up may loosen off the muscles, it has no relevance
to what you are actually about to perform. A warm up including dynamic stretching
prepares your muscles for the movements they will make in a game situation
•
4. Increase Range of Movement: Dynamic stretching helps to improve the range of
motion around your joints. This can help reduce the chances of injury, while over time
it improve your performance maximum due to the improved movements the increased
flexibility in your joints will allow
•
5. Enable the Stretch Reflex: This is designed as a protective measure for the
muscles, to prevent tearing. The muscle spindle is stretched and the impulse is also
immediately received to contract the muscle, protecting it from being pulled
forcefully or beyond a normal range. is a pre-programmed response by the body to
a stretch stimulus in the muscle. When a muscle spindle is stretched an impulse is
immediately sent to the spinal cord and a response to contract the muscle is received.
DYNAMIC WARM-UP:
EXERCISES
SPIDERMANS
7 OTHER DYNAMIC WARM-UP EXERCISES: VIDEO
• http://greatist.com/fitness/full-body-dynamic-warm-up
BENCH PRESS
1. Lie back on a flat bench. Using a medium
width grip (a grip that creates a 90-degree
angle in the middle of the movement
between the forearms and the upper arms),
lift the bar from the rack and hold it straight
over you with your arms locked. This will be
your starting position.
Tip: NEVER EVER USE A FALSE GRIP (check
next slide) WHEN DOING BENCH PRESS.
Always wrap your thumb around the bar
and rest the bar in the palm of your hand.
Bench Press Grips
GOOD
False Grip= BAD
BENCH PRESS CONT’D
• 2. From the starting position, breathe in and begin coming
down slowly until the bar touches your middle chest.
Tip: Your upper arms should be about a 45 degree angle
from your body. Visualize ripping the bar in half which
will automatically help you with this.
• 3. After a brief pause, push the bar back to the starting
position as you breathe out. Focus on pushing the bar using
your chest muscles. Lock your arms and squeeze your chest
in the contracted position at the top of the motion, hold for
a second and then start coming down slowly again.
Tip: Ideally, lowering the weight should take about twice
as long as raising it.
• 4. Repeat the movement for the prescribed amount of
repetitions.
• 5. When you are done, place the bar back in the rack.
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sss-zYhHpq0
HOW TO LEARN THE SQUAT (THE KING OF ALL
EXERCISES)
• “Rock the Squat: Wall Squat Progression
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ZNELZKigUk#t=263
OVERHEAD SQUAT
1.Start out by having a barbell in front of you on the floor. Your
feet should be wider than shoulder width apart from each other.
2.Bend the knees and use a pronated grip (palms facing you) to
grab the barbell. Your hands should be at a wider than shoulder
width apart from each other before lifting. Once you are
positioned, lift the barbell up until you can rest it on your chest.
3.Move the barbell over and slightly behind your head and make
sure your arms are fully extended. Keep your head up at all times
and also maintain a straight back. Retract your shoulder blades.
This is your starting position.
4.Slowly lower the weight by bending your knees. Tip: Keep your
back straight while performing this exercise to avoid any injuries
and your arms should remain extended and over your head at all
times.
5.Now use your feet and legs to help bring the weight back up to
the starting position while exhaling.
6.Repeat for the recommended amount of repetitions.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OOCPvqaQROs
GOBLET SQUAT
1.Stand holding a light kettlebell by the horns close to
your chest. You can also use a dumb bell in this exact
same position. This will be your starting position.
2.Squat down between your legs until your hamstrings
are on your calves. Keep your chest and head up and
your back straight.
3.At the bottom position, pause and use your elbows to
push your knees out. Return to the starting position,
and repeat for 10-20 repetitions.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AHE6kpogQ_s
SPLIT SQUAT DUMBBELL ROW
1. Position yourself into a staggered stance with the rear foot
elevated and front foot forward.
2. Hold a dumbbell in each hand, letting them hang at the
sides. This will be your starting position.
Begin by descending, flexing your knee and hip to lower your
body down. Maintain good posture througout the movement.
3. Keep the front knee in line with the foot as you perform the
exercise.
4. At the bottom of the movement, drive through the heel to
extend the knee and hip to return to the starting positio
DUMBBELL SQUAT
1.Stand up straight while holding a dumbbell on each hand
(palms facing the side of your legs).
2.Position your legs using a shoulder width medium stance
with the toes slightly pointed out. Keep your head up at all
times as looking down will get you off balance and also
maintain a straight back. This will be your starting
position. Begin to slowly lower your torso by bending the
knees as you maintain a straight posture with the head up.
Continue down until your thighs are parallel to the floor
3.Begin to raise your torso as you exhale by pushing the
floor with the heel of your foot mainly as you straighten the
legs again and go back to the starting position.
4.Repeat for the recommended amount of repetitions
BENT-OVER DUMB BELL ROWS
1. With a dumbbell in each hand (palms facing your torso),
bend your knees slightly and bring your torso forward by
bending at the waist; as you bend make sure to keep your
back straight until it is almost parallel to the
floor. Tip: Make sure that you keep the head up. The
weights should hang directly in front of you as your arms
hang perpendicular to the floor and your torso. This is your
starting position.
2. While keeping the torso stationary, lift the dumbbells to your
side (as you breathe out), keeping the elbows close to the body
(do not exert any force with the forearm other than holding the
weights). On the top contracted position, squeeze the back
muscles and hold for a second.
3. Slowly lower the weight again to the starting position as you
inhale.
4. Repeat for the recommended amount of repetitions.
STANDING ONE-ARM DUMB BELL PRESS
1. Start by having a dumbbell in one hand with your arm fully extended to the side
using a neutral grip. Use your other arm to hold on to an incline bench to keep your
balance.
2. Your feet should be shoulder width apart from each other. Now slowly lift the
dumbbell up until you create a 90 degree angle with your arm. Note: Your
forearm should be perpendicular to the floor. 3. Slowly lift the dumbbell up until
your arm is fully extended. This the starting position.
4. While inhaling lower the weight down until your arm is at a 90 degree angle
again.
5. Feel the contraction for a second and then lift the weight back up towards the
starting position while exhaling. Remember to hold on to the incline bench and keep
your feet positioned to keep balance during the exercise.
6. Repeat for the recommended amount of repetitions.
7. Switch arms and repeat the exercise.