Unit 6.3: Components of Fitness Flashcards
What is health-related fitness?
- Components required to meet demands of everyday life/activites without causing injury
- Activities can look irrelevant but are important for health and well-being
- E.g. getting out of chair, walking, … (for elder people)
What is performance-related fitness?
- Components required to execute desired skills with success during sport/physical activity
- Essential for training programme design, because being fit for performance in sport does not necessarily mean being fit for a very different sport
- Some components could become health-related for certain groups (elderly/hypokinetic disease)
- Both health and skill are required in all activities, but relative importance of each may differ
What are the major components of health-related fitness?
Flexibility, Strength, Muscular Endurance/Fatigue Resistance, Cardio-Respiratory Fitness (Aerobic Capacity), Body Composition
Explain Flexibility as a component of health-related fitness
- Ability to move through full range of motion around joint
- Determined y elasticity of ligaments/tendons, strength and opposition of surrounding muscles (including antagonists) and the shape of articulating bones
- All sports require flexibility since development of flexibility can lead to both an increase in speed/power of muscle contraction, and reduce injury risk
- Measured by: sit and reach, arm and shoulder reach, range of motion norms-goniometer
Explain strength as a component of health-related fitness
- Ability to generate force by a muscle/group of muscles
- Maximum force that can be developed by muscle(s) in a single maximal contraction
- Depends on muscular and neural systems -> underpinned to muscle mass available (volume and muscle fiber type), ability to activate muscle, and coordination of muscles
- Measured by: Hand-held dynamometer, Grip strength dynamometer, Bench/shoulder press, leg press/knee extension (1RM, 5-10RM)
Explain Muscular Endurance/Fatigue Resistance as a component of health-related fitness
- Ability of muscle/muscle group to maintain force/power
- Capacity of muscles to repeat movements over period of time without undue fatigue
- Controlled by body’s tolerance of increasing levels of lactic acid which activity creates, although nervous system also plays important role
- Is of high importance in: arms in 200m swim, legs in marathon
- Measured by: push up test, curl up test
Explain Cardio-Respiratory Fitness (Aerobic capacity) as a component of health-related fitness
- Capacity to take in, transport and use oxygen to sustain moevement/effort over period of time
- Commonly characterized by individual’s maximal oxygen uptake -> maximal rate that oxygen can be used during maximal exercise
- Limited by limits of cardiovascular/ventilatory ayatems to take O2 from atmosphere, deliver to tissues and use it
- Component of fitness that underpins all aerobic activities as well as many other sporting situations (Long Distance Running, Cycling, Swimming)
Why is Cardio-Respiratory fitness important for health and sport?
- Low levels -> associated with many disease states and shorter lifespan
- Impaired system -> Only low intensities of physical activity tolerated before anaerobic kicks in and they are less sustainable
- High levels -> enable much higher duration duration and intensity of physical fitness
How can cardio-respiratory fitness be measured?
- In field: Cooper’s test, Rockport 1 mile fitness walking test
- In Laboratory: Open circuit spirometry, Indirect calorimetry, Treadmill test
What is open circuit spirometry?
- Lab test to measure cardio-respiratory fitness
- Subject breathes through valve with nose occluded, while pulmonary ventilation and expired fractions of CO2 and CO2 are measured
Explain body composition as a component of health-related fitness
- Proportion of individual’s total body mass that is made up of fat and fat-free mass
What is body fat mass and free fat mass/lean body mass?
- body fat mass: Mass of stored lipids in body (subcutaneous, visceral & intramuscular)
- Free fat mass/lean body mass: What makes up rest of total body mass, includes combined weight of internal organs, bones, muscles, water, ligaments and tendon
How is body composition measured:
- Hydrostatic weighing
- Anthropometric measurements
- Skinfold/girth measurements
- BMI
Bioelectric Impedance Analysis
What are the components of Performance-Related Fitness?
- Agility, Balance, Coordination, Power, Reaction Time, Speed
Explain Agility as a component of performance related fitness
- Ability yo move and change direction/position of body quickly and effectively while under control
- Complex component that includes factors such as strength, power, speed, flexibility, balance, peripheral vision, anticipation and experience
- Measured by: Illinois Agility Test, 3-Cone Drill
Explain Balance as a component of performance related fitness
. Maintenance of centre of mass over base of support
- Can be done while body is static or dynamic
- Achieved through coordinated contraction/relaxation of postural muscles in response to postural changes
- measured by: Stork stand
Explain coordination as a component of performance related fitness
- Ability to move 2+ body parts under control, smoothly and efficiently
- Interaction of motor and nervous systems, ability to perform motor tasks accurately and efficiently
- Measured by: hard ball toss test
Explain Power as a component of performance related fitness
- Rate of doing work, combination of force and velocity or strength and speed
- Extremely important in sport performance, but importance depends on activity done
- Measured by: vertical jump, standing broad jump
Explain Reaction time as a component of performance related fitness
- Time taken to initiate response to given stimulus
- Depends on integration of neuromuscular systems, can be improved by training
- Stimulus may be visual, aural or verbal guidance
- Measured by: Ruler drop test, Computer simulations
