Part 3 - Exercise Technique

Question 1

What are the two benefits of flexibility training?

Answer 1

• Increased movement performance

- Injury prevention

Question 2

What are eight factors effecting flexibility?

Answer 2

• Joint structure
• Muscle and connective tissue (e.g. tight elastic connective tissue)
• Hyperlaxity (some people born with joints that allow for higher ROM than normal - extra care must be taken with stretching for these clients)
• Age (gradual loss of elasticity of muscle, best time to start flexibility training is childhood)
• Sex (women are more flexible, probably due to smaller muscle size and stature)
• Temperature (warm up to increase core temp which increases ROM)
• Activity level (to make connective tissue more pliable)
• Resistance training (though this can harm flexibility as well not due to being muscle bound but because of over developing agonists and not antagonist to make imbalances and lifting heavy weights with low ROM)

Question 3

What are the four major types of flexibility training?

Answer 3

• Ballistic (bouncing - no longer recommended due to greater chance of injury, activation of stretch reflex/bouncing back, higher energy requirements, and danger of exceeding extensibility limits)
• Static stretching (most common, doing before dynamic activity may decrease performance, 30 second hold, best to use after a workout)
• Dynamic stretching (functionality based, e.g. lunge walk stretch, best type of stretching to use BEFORE a workout)
• Proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation (PNF, effective method for increasing ROM, stretch for 10 seconds, contract muscle isometrically for 6 with no joint movement, then perform passive stretch for 30 seconds)

Question 4

True or false? Warm up should be completed to the point where a client has broken into a light sweat before stretching

Answer 4

True

Warm up increases body temp and therefore increases viscosity of connective tissue at joints to increase ROM

Question 5

What are three types of warm up? Which is best?

Answer 5

• Passive warm up (hot showers, massages etc)
• General warm up (increase HR through jogging, cycling etc.)
• Specific warm up (movements that are an actual part of the activity that client will be doing e.g. warm up sets on bench press for chest day)

Specific warm up is best

Question 6

When should the valsalva maneuver be used?

Answer 6

Holding breath during sticking point of exercise for structural resistance training movements (those that involve the spinal column like squats).

Provides vertebral support through thoracic pressure. The con of this is increased pressure on heart and blood pressure.

Question 7

When is a weight belt recommended?

Answer 7

For ground-based structural exercises that involve lifting maximal or near maximal loads. Should not be used always as may result in weaker torso muscles.

Question 8

What four types of free weight exercises must a trainer spot?

Answer 8

• Overhead
• Over the face
• With a bar on upper back and shoulders (e.g. back squat)
• With a bar positioned on the front of the shoulders or clavicles (e.g. front squat)

Question 9

What are two body positions trainer should take while spotting?

Answer 9

What are two body positions trainer should take while spotting?

Question 10

When a client is performing an over the head dumbbell movement, where should the trainer spot?

Answer 10

Wrists

Question 11

True or false? Personal trainers should strive to get their clients to use handrails when possible on the treadmill.

Answer 11

FALSE

Handrail use should be discouraged. Clients should swing their arms in the natural way for running on treadmill. Handrails should only be used for balance.

Question 12

What percent of treadmill incline will offset the easiness of running on treadmill indoors with no air resistance as opposed to normal running?

Answer 12

1% incline.

Question 13

Where should a knee be during cardiovascular exercise on stair climber, elliptical or stationary bike?

Answer 13

Never over the toes of the foot of the same leg. This produces strain on the knee that can cause injury.

Question 14

What should the seat height of a stationary bike be?

Answer 14

When patient standing next to it, about to their midhip level.

In motion this means the knee will be bent slightly at bottom of petal stroke.

Question 15

What type of stationary bike should be used for obese, pregnant or lower-back pain clients?

Answer 15

Semirecumbent bikes with a back rest. VO2, HR, and perceived exertion are less on these due to

• reduced workload on postural muscles
• semirecumbent position prevents heart from having to pump blood vertically against gravity

Question 16

The catch part of rowing on rowing machines is what position?

Answer 16

starting position with knees bent and arms extended, torso forward a bit.

After this there is the drive with the body and THEN the bar gets brought into abdomen. The reverse is done to for recovery back to starting position and catch.

Question 17

What is a good measure that indicates a client is ready to start running (is fit enough)?

Answer 17

When they can walk four miles without becoming fatigued.

Can start by running for one minute at a time with 3-5 minutes of walking inbetween as rest.

Question 18

Why is the rolling heel-ball foot strike better for running than bouncing with each step?

Answer 18

Impact is well absorbed by the entire foot preventing energy lost to vertical displacement.

Question 19

What is overstriding?

Answer 19

When someone runs and their foot strikes just past hips. This will cause greater shock and slight breaking effect and should be avoided.

Question 20

What is understriding?

Answer 20

When someone runs and their foot does not reach far enough. This wastes energy as it prevents body moving an optimal distance (hip length)

Question 21

What defines the three difficulty levels of aerobics?

Answer 21

Low-impact: one foot never leaves ground and vertical displacement is minimal.

Moderate-impact: one foot never leaves ground but there is significant vertical displacement

High-impact: both feet leave ground. Vertical forces are greater than three times body weight.

Question 22

How much water should be ingested for every lb of body weight lost during exercise?

Answer 22

20-24 ounces