CIRCUIT TRAINING STUDY GUIDE
Circuit training is a fitness program; a way to increase your physical fitness. Stations are set up to work
on certain components of fitness either for a certain number of times or for a certain time period. Circuit
training can be done with or without equipment. Some of the equipment that we use in class: jump ropes,
fitballs, mats, medicine balls, dumbbells, scooters, and agility ladders.
Benefits of Circuit Training
1. Improves your strength and aerobic fitness.
2. It’s a fat burning workout.
3 Works all muscles of the body.
4. You are able to perform more work in the same time period of other workouts.
5. Circuit training doesn’t need a gym – you can do it at home.
6. Keeps your workout interesting because of constantly changing stations
Being Physically Fit means having the energy and strength to perform daily activities without getting run
down and having enough energy left over for leisure activities or an emergency.
Benefits of Physical Fitness
Why exercise? Here is a list of some of the many benefits of exercise:
1. It gives you more energy.
2. It helps you cope with stress.
3. It helps improve your self-image.
4. It helps you lose weight.
5. It helps you tone your muscles.
6. It helps you fight fatigue.
7. It helps you control your appetite.
8. It improves your ability to fall asleep and sleep well.
9. It provides an easy way to share an activity with your friends.
10.It helps reduce the chance for illness.
Components (Parts) of Fitness:
Agility- Being able to react quickly
Balance – Staying in an upright position; not falling over; stable
Coordination – Using 2 or more body parts at the same time
Cardio-vascular endurance: Strength of the heart and lungs to supply your body with oxygen and
nutrients for a long period of time.
Flexibility – Being able to move the joints of the body easily.
Muscular endurance – Ability of the muscles to be used for a long period of time.
Muscular strength – power your muscles can generate to push, pull or lift something
Speed – how fast a person is.
How to measure how hard you are working:
You measure how hard your workout is by how hard or fast your heart is beating. This is called your
working heart rate. To find this, count the number of times your heart beats for 6 seconds in the middle
of your workout. Multiply that number by 10 to get beats per min. For 12-14 year old people, the
working heart rate range is 140-180 beats per minute. If your heart rate is below 140, that tells you that
you need to work harder. If your heart rate is above 180, you should slow down as you work out.
Terms:
Circuit Training – setting up different stations for each component of fitness and work at each station for
a certain amount of time or number of repetitions.
Exercise Principles – Frequency – how often the workout is
-Intensity=how hard the workout is
-Time/Duration=how long the workout lasts.
Do’s and Don’ts for a Healthy Life
DO
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
Get at least 8 hours of sleep each night.
Get some exercise each day.
Warm-up before exercise
Cool down and stretch after strenuous exercise.
Eat foods from all basic food groups each day.
Drink milk regularly.
Try to go to bed at the same time each night.
Drink at least 8 glasses of water each day.
DON’T
1. Skip meals
2. Work out to the point of exhaustion.
3. Eat refined sugar foods as snacks.
4. Jog or cycle on busy streets.
5. Try to work at someone else’s pace.
6. Continue to work out if injured.
7. Eat too many fried foods.
8. Chew/smoke tobacco.
.THE IMPORTANCE OF WATER
Next to air, water is the element most necessary for survival. A normal adult is 60-70% water. We can
go without food for almost 2 months, but without water for only a few days. Yet most people have no
idea how much water they should drink. In fact, many people live in a dehydrated state.
Without water, we’d be poisoned to death by our own waste products. Waste products filtered out by the
kidneys must be dissolved in water. If there isn’t enough water, wastes are not removed effectively and
may build up as kidney stones. Water is also vital for chemical reaction in digestion and metabolism. It
carries nutrients and oxygen to the cells through the blood and helps to cool the body through
perspiration. Water also lubricates our joints.
We need water to breathe; our lungs must be moist to take in oxygen and excrete carbon dioxide. It is
possible to lose a pint of water each day just breathing.
If you don’t drink enough water, you can impair every aspect of your physiology. By not drinking
enough water, many people develop excess body fat, poor muscle tone, decreased digestive efficiency,
increased toxicity in the body, joint and muscle soreness and water retention.
DRINK 8 GLASSES OF WATER EACH DAY!!