Chapter 7

Basic Concepts of
Fitness

© 2007 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.

Importance of Physical Activity
• Regular physical activity is critically
important for all ages
• Research demonstrates all individuals
can benefit from exercise
• Regular activity has been shown to
reduce morbidity and mortality

(U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services, 2002)

Hypokinetic diseases: illnesses related to the
lack of physical activity
© 2007 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.
 Physical Fitness

Physical fitness is the ability to meet all the

ordinary demands of life without becoming
tired and to respond to extra demands when
necessary

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 Types of Fitness
• Health fitness
• Important for prevention and remediation of
disease and illness
• Motor-performance fitness
• Important in sport performance and job
performance

Wellness is about achieving a high

quality of life and a continuing sense of
physical and psychological well-being
© 2007 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.
Components of Health Fitness
1. Body composition
2. Cardiovascular endurance
3. Flexibility
4. Muscular endurance
5. Strength

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 Body Composition

Percentage of lean body mass and fat body

mass

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 CV Endurance
• Efficient use of the heart, blood
vessels, and lungs.

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 Medical benefits
• Potential of preventing circulatory and
heart diseases
• Means of caloric expenditure: 5 cals.
Per liter of Oxygen, approximately 100
cals. Per mile
• Improving work efficiency

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 Flexibility
• Range of movement within a joint and
its specified muscle group

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 Strength
• The capacity to exert force against
resistance in one max. effort.
• Anaerobic training.

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 Muscular Endurance
• Force against sub maximal resistance.
• Anaerobic training.
• Number of sit ups per minute.

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Components of Motor Performance
Fitness

1. Agility 5. Reaction time

2. Balance 6. Speed
3. Coordination
4. Power

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Dose-Response Debate on Aerobic
Exercise

• What “dose” of exercise is

necessary to achieve benefits?
1. Intensity in an aerobic sense; target
heart rate (Example: 220 – age x 70% =
target heart rate zone)
2. Duration refers to the amount of time
spent performing aerobic work; 20-30
minutes is recommended
3. Frequency refers to how often you
should exercise; 3-5 times a week is
recommended

© 2007 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.

Health Benefits Associated with Physical
Activity

•Reduction of blood •Decreased risk of cancer

pressure •Gains in cognitive
•Decreased risk of CHD function
•Boosted immune system •Reduction of depression
•Controls body fat gains •Reduction of
•Reduction in osteoarthritis
osteoporosis •Lowers mortality

© 2007 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.

 Social Gradient in
Health and Fitness
• Refers to the socioeconomic impact on
health and fitness
• Hypothesis states that relative social and
economic deprivation within societies
accounts for higher or lower health
• Wilkerson (1994) states where income
inequality is less, life expectancy is higher
• People in lower socioeconomic groups have
less access to nutritious food and information
about food
• Unhealthful settings cannot support physical
activity involvement

© 2007 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.

Fitness Training Concepts

• Specificity: to produce a desired effect

• Progressive overload: load creates a
conditioning effect
• Recovery time: muscles need a period
of time for recovery
• Intensity: refers to the load of exercise
bout
• Duration: length of an exercise
session

© 2007 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.

 Health Fitness
Training Concepts
• Interval training
• Anaerobic exercise
• Strength training
• Amount of resistance
• Number of reps
• Number of sets
• Number of workouts per week

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 Strength Training Principles
• Range of motion around a joint
• Two types:
1. Static
2. Dynamic: isotonic and isokinetic

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 Informal Methods of
Measuring Fitness
• Checking resting pulse rate
• Checking recovery pulse rate
• Keep distance and time recordings

© 2007 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.