HEALTH
Wellness is an expanded idea of health. It is the ability to rise above our limitations to live
life fully- with vitality and meaning. Part of our health is determined by our genes, age and
other factors beyond our control. However, our health or wellness is largely determined by the
decisions we make about how to live our life.
Wellness is composed of six interrelated components, all of which must be developed in order
to achieve overall wellness.

physical well-being

emotional well-being

mental well-being

spiritual well-being

interpersonal and social well-being

the absence of illness and disease

environmental or planetary wellness
Achieving Physical Wellness requires:

eating well

exercising regularly and suitably for physical fitness

getting enough rest (sleep) and relaxation

keeping away from controllable risk factors such as smoking, drinking and drug use and
abuse

learning about and recognising the symptoms of disease

getting regular medical and dental checkups

taking steps to prevent injuries at home, on the road, and on the job

coping with stress
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Qualities and aspects of emotional wellness include optimism, trust, self-esteem, selfacceptance, self-confidence, self-control, satisfying relationships, and an ability to share
feelings.
The qualities of mental well-being include openness to new ideas, a capacity to question and
think critically, and the motivation to master new skills, as well as a sense of humour, creativity
and curiosity.
Spiritual well-being includes possessing a set of guiding beliefs, principles, or values that
give meaning and purpose to your life, especially during difficult times. Spiritual wellness
involves the capacity for love, compassion, forgiveness, selflessness, joy and fulfilment.
Developing interpersonal wellness means learning good communication skills, developing
the capacity for intimacy, and cultivating a support network of caring friends and/or family
members.
Social wellness requires participating in and contributing to your community, country and
world.
Environmental or planetary wellness requires that we learn about; protect ourselves against
and try to reduce or eliminate hazards such as an unsafe food supply, violence in the society,
ultraviolet radiation in sunlight, air and water pollution, lead in old house paint and secondhand tobacco smoke in indoor air.
Health defined:
HEALTH is the attainment of physical, mental, emotional, social, interpersonal,
spiritual and environmental well-being and the absence of illness and disease.
or
HEALTH is a state of physical, mental, emotional, social, interpersonal, spiritual
and environmental well-being and the absence of illness and disease.
Read about Health and Fitness in your text book PE to 16 - pg 6 and pg 7
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HEALTH
HEALTH is achieved by developing the following components of well-being:
 physical well-being
 emotional well-being
 mental well-being
 spiritual well-being
 interpersonal and social well-being
 environmental or planetary wellness
 the absence of illness and disease
Achieving Physical Wellness requires:
 eating well
 exercising regularly and suitably for physical fitness
 getting enough rest (sleep) and relaxation
 keeping away from controllable risk factors such as smoking, drinking and
drug use and abuse
 learning about and recognising the symptoms of disease
 getting regular medical and dental checkups
 taking steps to prevent injuries at home, on the road, and on the job
 coping with stress
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PHYSICAL ACTIVITY ON A CONTINUUM
Physical Activity can be defined as any body movement carried out by the skeletal muscles
and requiring energy.
Different types of physical activity can be arranged on a continuum based on the amount of
energy they require.
 Quick, easy movements such as standing up or walking down a hallway require little
energy or effort.
 More intense, sustained activities such as cycling 5 miles or running in a race require
considerably more energy
Exercise refers to a subset of physical activity. It is planned, structured, repetitive
movement of the body designed specifically to improve or maintain physical fitness.
Physical Fitness is a set of physical attributes (qualities) that allows the body to respond or
adapt to the demands and stress of physical effort – to perform moderate-to-vigorous levels of
physical activity without becoming overly tired.
Levels of fitness depend on the proper functioning of the body’s systems such as the
heart’s ability to pump blood and the size of muscle fibers.
To develop fitness, a person must perform enough physical activity to stress the body and
cause long-term improvements on the functioning of the body’s systems.
Only exercise will significantly improve fitness.
Read your text book PE to 16 - page 7 – What is fitness and The link between health and
fitness
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DEFINITIONS OF PHYSICAL FITNESS
Fitness is the ability to meet the demands of the environment.
Your environment is everything around you. It includes home, school, family and friends. All of
them make demands on you. Meeting the demands means carrying out tasks and activities. If
you can carry out these tasks and activities without getting too tired, and still have energy left
over for emergencies, then you are fit.
Physical fitness is the ability of the body to carry out everyday activities with little
fatigue and with enough energy left for emergencies.
Read your text book PE to16
– General fitness on pgs. 12 and General fitness and health on pg. 13
HEALTH RELATED FITNESS
Health-related fitness is the minimum level of physical fitness that we all need in order to
have good health.
Physical fitness for health means:

Having our body systems work efficiently.

Being able to move with ease and enjoyment.

Being able to be physically active for long periods without becoming tired.
SPORT RELATED FITNESS
Sport-related fitness is the level of physical fitness necessary to take on the demands of
regular sporting activity.
Different kinds of sports make its own kinds of demands on the body. For example the fitness
required to be a table tennis player is totally different from the fitness demands of the triathlon.
Read your text book PE to16
– Specific fitness on pgs. 13 and 14
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THE BENEFITS OF EXERCISE
Exercise can.....
 help prevent disease such as high blood pressure, diabetes, back pain, overweight and
reduce the risk of heart trouble
 help speed up the recovery from illness
 help the body work better
 help control your weight
 help you control stress and think clearly
 help you to feel better about yourself, e.g. self-confidence, independence, self-control
 give you a large choice of finding and making new friends
 give you the ability to use less energy to do more work in less time
 prevent you from getting tired quickly and recover faster
 help you to look and feel better
 help ease the aging process
 help you understand how to take better care of the body e.g. eating properly and getting
enough rest and relaxation
THE BENEFITS OF SLEEP AND REST
 Repair body tissue
 Restore physical alertness
 Restore mental alertness
Read your text book PE to 16
- Why Exercise on pg. 8 and pg. 9
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RULES FOR EXERCISING
Before beginning an exercise programme visit a doctor to make sure that your body is ready
for vigorous exercise.
When exercising for health and fitness the activities should be enjoyable and suitable for you.

Exercise with friends if you enjoy company.

Plan your exercise so that it does not become boring.

Vary your activities so that you remain interested.
Suggested activities for health and fun:

Water recreation – swim, walking through water for ten minutes, canoe, wind surf, etc.

Sports – Tennis, Badminton, Cricket, Football, Hockey, Netball, Basketball etc.

Outdoor – Athletics, walking, jogging, running, orienteering, hiking, cycling.

Gym work – aerobics, spin, weight training.

Dance – Modern, Folk, Tap, Latin, Ballroom etc.
When you begin an exercise programme, always remember:

Warm up before you start to exercise and cool down after you exercise.

Do not exhaust yourself. If you feel pain, upset or that you are loosing control of your
body, STOP.

Start exercise at your level of fitness and build up slowly as your fitness improves.

Exercise regularly. You should exercise for no less than 20 minutes a session and
three times a week.

Give your body time to recover from exercise. Every other day rest or have an easy
exercise session and at night get plenty of sleep.
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Name_______________________________
Class_______________
HEALTH, FITNESS & EXERCISE
1. Health is more than the absence of illness and disease.
Name the components of health.
(5 marks)
2. Identify two ways we can achieve physical health.
(2 marks)
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
3. What is physical fitness for health?
(2 marks)
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
4. Identify two advantages of being fit.
(2 marks)
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
5. You are not physically fit and you want to begin an exercise programme.
What should you do before you begin?
(1 mark)
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
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6. To get the best benefits from exercise:
a) How many times a week should you exercise?
(1 marks)
__________________________________________________________
b) What is the least amount of time should an exercise session last?
(1 marks)
____________________________________ ______________________
7. What should you do before each exercise session?
(1 mark)
__________________________________________________________
8. What should you do at the end of each exercise session?
(1 mark)
___________________________________________________________
9.
Never exhaust yourself when you exercise?
(2 marks)
Identify two danger signs that would cause you to stop an exercise session?
___________________________________________________________
10. State two benefits of sleep.
(2 marks)
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
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