HEALTH & PE DEPARTMENT, CRANSTON HIGH SCHOOL WEST
NAME: _______________ DATE: ________________ PERIOD: ________________
Fitness Study Guide
Warm Up
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A warm-up prepares your body for more vigorous exercise.
Warm, relaxed muscles are less likely to be strained or injured.
Cool Down
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A cool-down prevents dizziness and fainting after exercises. If you stop running
suddenly, blood pools in your legs, and the heart has less blood to pump the brain.
Helps blood return to the heart.
May reduce muscle soreness.
Physical Fitness is made up of both health-related and skill-related fitness.
HEALTH-RELATED FITNESS COMPONENTS – relates to how well the systems of your
body operate.
1. Cardio Respiratory Endurance – ability of the heart, lungs and muscles to perform
activity over a sustained period. The presidential FITNESS test for this component is the
one-mile run.
2. Muscular Strength – ability of a muscle or muscle group to exert maximal force against
a resistance one time through a full range of motion. The Presidential FITNESS test for
this component is Pull-us or Flexed Arm Hang.
3. Musical Endurance- ability of a muscle or muscle group to exert a sub maximal force
repeatedly over time. The Presidential FITNESS test for this component is Curl-ups.
4. Body Composition – the amount of lean mass compared to the amount of body fat
usually is expressed in terms of percent body fat.
5. Flexibility – ability to bend, stretch and twist the body with ease through a full range of
motion. The Presidential FITNESS test for this component is the site and reach test.
SKILL RELATED FITNESS COMPONENTS – factors which relate to you
becoming an athlete.
1. Agility- ability to change direction of the body quickly and easily. The Presidential
FITNESS- Test for this component is the shuttle Run.
2. Balance- ability to maintain control of the body while stationary or moving.
3. Coordination- ability to use the senses, such as sight and hearing, together with body
parts in performing motor tasks smoothly and accurately.
4. Power- ability to combine strength and speed in one movement
5. Speed- ability to move your body quickly from one point to another.
6. Reaction Time- the time between a signal and the start of movement.
PRINCIPLES OF TRAINING
OVERLOAD – a body system must perform at a level beyond normal to adapt and improve
physiological function and fitness. You can increase the overload by manipulating the
frequency, intensity, or duration (time) of an activity. For example: how many minutes can you
sustain an activity, or how many repetitions can you perform? Your body will adapt to lifting a
heavy load over time and eventually you’ll be able to lift that same load with less effort.
Progression – refers to how a person should increase the overload. The person should gradually
increase the level of exercising by manipulating the frequency, intensity, time, or a combination
of all three exercise components. Improving your level of fitness is an ongoing process. All
progression must be gradual in order to be safe. If the overload is applied to soon, the body does
not have time to adapt and the benefits may be delayed or an injury may occur. A method to
keep track of your progress is to keep a journal. Another way is to use pretests and posttests.
Specificity – explicit activities targeting a specific body system must be performed to bring
about fitness changes in that area. For example, you must perform aerobic activities that stress
the cardio respiratory system if you want to improve aerobic fitness. This principle applies to
all areas of health-related and skill-related fitness, and it applies within a single area of fitness.
This means that performing biceps curls will increase the strength of the biceps muscle but will
have no effect on the leg muscles.
Regularity – Based on the saying “use it, or lose it”, we lose any fitness gains attained through
physical activity if we do not continue to be active, too little recovery time between activity
sessions can lead to detraining, or loss of the acquired benefits of physical activity and fitness.
For example the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) recommends 3 alternative days
per week for strength and endurance activities; where as daily activity is best for improving
flexibility. Likewise, the minimum frequency for aerobic improvement is 3 days per week, and
aerobic activity 5-7 days per week is best. Performing physical activity with consistency is
best.
Individuality- each person begins at a different level of fitness, has personal goals and
objectives for physical activity and fitness, and has different genetic potential for change. An
individual’s initial fitness level and personal goals need to be recognized and taken into account
when measuring progress in a particular area.
Terms to know:
One repetition- Doing an activity or exercise once. We often just say, “Rep” for short.
One Set – Several repetitions (reps) of the same activity or exercise.
A workout – One or more sets or reps. Each set may be of the same exercise or a combination of different
exercises.
FITT Guidelines – a formula that gives individuals guidelines to follow to build a
good fitness program while safely applying the principles of training.
F: stands for frequency, how often a person exercises,
I: stands for intensity, how hard a person exercises,
T: stands for time, how long a person exercises.
T: stands for type, what kind of exercise is performed.
Aerobic Fitness Health Benefits
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Strengthens the heart (lower resting and working heart rate, faster recovery)
Decreases blood pressure
Strengthens muscles and bones
Increases energy (to play longer)
Allows performance of more work with less effort (carry a backpack without tire)
Reduces stress and tension (get along better with others)
Enhances appearance and feeling of wellbeing; improves quality of life
Improves ability to learn (get homework done faster)
Promotes healthy body composition
Increases self-confidence and self-esteem (greater social opportunities)
Enhances sleep
Improves lipid profile
Weight control
Heart Rate (HR) is the number of times your heart beats in one minute, in other words, the
number of times per minute your heart contracts.
Resting Heart Rate (RHR) is the number of beats in one minute when you are at complete rest.
Your resting heart rate indicates your basic fitness level. The more well-conditioned your body,
the less effort and fewer beats per minute it takes your heart to pump blood to your body at rest.
Maximum Heart Rate (MHR) is the highest number of times your heart can contract in one
minute.
Heart Rate Reserve (HRR) is the difference between your Maximum Heart Rate and your
Resting Heart Rate.
Target Heart Rate Zone (THRZ) is a heart rate range that guides your workout by keeping
your intensity level between an upper and lower heart rate limit. You gain the most benefits and
lessen the risks when you exercise in your target heart rate zone. Usually this is when your
exercise heart rate (pulse) is 60 to 85 percent of your maximum heart rate.
Karvonen Formula – The mathematical formula that uses maximum heart rate minus resting
heart rate to determine target heart rate.