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Fitness Unit Study Guide
West Essex High School
Warm – Up / Cool - Down
A warm- up increases the temperature of the body and the elasticity of the muscles. A
warm-up improves the muscles’ ability to perform work and reduces the risk of injury.
A cool-down is the reverse process of the warm-up. A proper cool – down may reduce
muscle soreness, help bring the body temperatures back to normal ranges, and allow
muscles to flush wastes generated by exercise.
MUSCULAR STRENGTH
Muscular strength: is the ability of a muscle or muscle group to exert a maximum force
against a resistance through the full range of motion for a short period of time (any
movement less than full range of motion is counterproductive – strength or endurance
gains occur only in the range of motion exercised).Frequency: The number of workouts
per week or number times a muscle group is trained per week.
Intensity: describes how hard a person exercises during a physical activity session.
Specificity: to bring about changes in a particular muscle or skill a person must perform
activities that target that particular part of the body.
Progression: refers to how an individual increases the overload, thereby placing greaterthan-normal demands on the musculature of the body. The level of exercise should be
gradually increased and may be manipulated by increasing frequency, intensity, time, or a
combination of all three components. Overload Principle: This principle says that in
order to train muscles, they must work harder than they are accustomed to. This
“overload” will result in increased strength as the body adapts to the stress placed upon
it.
Repetition: The number of times an exercise movement is performed. Generally based
on % of repetition maximum. Repetition Maximum: The maximum amount of weight
performed for a specific exercise one time. (ex: bench press 225lbs x 1rep)
Set: The number of times an exercise of specified repetitions is performed. (ex: curls 2
sets of 12 reps)
Volume: Total amount of work performed in a training cycle.
Isometric: The contraction of a muscle without significant movement; also referred to as
static tension
Isotonic: The contraction of a muscle with movement against a natural resistance. (ex:
weight lifting)
Isokinetic: The contraction of a muscle against concomitant force at a constant speed.
Flexibility
Flexibility is extremely important for physical fitness
Poor flexibility:
*Decreases your body’s ability to maintain proper posture
*Limits proper joint motion increasing the risk for low-back pain, joint pain, and injury
during everyday activities.
Adequate flexibility and mobility
*Helps reduce joint stress decreasing general aches and pains, improving your overall
quality of movement.
Following are some of the major benefits of flexibility training:
*Reduces stress in the exercising muscles and releases tension developed during the
workout.
*Assists with posture by balancing the tension placed across the joint by the muscles
that cross it.Proper posture minimizes stress and maximizes the strength of all joint
movements.
*Reduces the risk of injury during exercise and daily activities because muscles are more
pliable.
*Improves performance of everyday activities as well as performance in exercise and
sport.
Improve Flexibility by Stretching.
*Stretching should only be started when muscles are warm and the body temperature is
raised.
*Increasing the range of motion creates good posture and develops proficient
performance in everyday activities increasing the length of life and overall health of the
individual.
*American College of Sport Medicine, suggest training 5-7 days a week, holding each
stretch for 15-30 seconds and repeating each stretch 1-3 times each.
Muscular Endurance: The ability of a muscle or muscular group to exert sub-maximal
force repeatedly over a period of time.
Ex; Curl-ups in a minute are a muscular endurance test for the abdominal
muscles.
Ex; Maximum repetitions repetitions for push-ups will work muscular
endurance in the chest and arms.
Ex; Performing bodyweight squats for as many reps in 90 seconds will develop
muscular endurance in the legs
During intense long term repetitive exercise oxygen is depleted in the muscle and the
body flushes in lactic acid as a source of energy.
Olympic Rowers utilize muscular endurance and strength of the legs, upper back and
core to repeatedly perform the rowing movement.
Aerobic Fitness / Capacity
*Regular aerobic exercise can help you live longer and healthier. After all, aerobic exercise
reduces health risks such as high blood pressure, coronary heart disease & diabetes.
* Regular aerobic exercise can help you live longer and healthier. After all, aerobic exercise
reduces health risks, keeps excess pounds at bay, strengthens your heart and boosts your mood.
Healthy adults should aim for at least 150 minutes of moderate aerobic activity — or 75 minutes
of vigorous aerobic activity — a week. That doesn't have to be all at one time, though. Aerobic
exercise can even be done in 10-minute increments.
* Regular aerobic activity — such as walking, bicycling or swimming — can help you live longer
and healthier.
*When you exercise, your heart speeds up to meet your body's energy needs. If you know your
target heart rate, you can make sure you're exercising hard enough to get a good workout, but
not too hard to strain your heart.
Body Composition
*The following are all accurate ways of measuring body composition; hydrostatic
weighing, skinfold calipers, and bioelectrical impedance.
*A long time measure of body composition that fails to recognize muscle and bone
density ( lean mass) is known as BMI.
*In general, the total body fat percentage (essential plus storage fat) is between 12% and
15% for young men and between 25% and 28% for young women {Lohman, 1993 #4151}
(see also table 13.1). Average percentages body fat for the general population and for
various athletes are presented in table 13.2.
Table 13.1 Body fat percentages for males and females and their classification
Males
Females
Rating
5-10
8-15
Athletic
11-14
16-23
Good
15-20
24-30
Acceptable
21-24
31-36
Overweight
>24
>37
Obese
*Two good habits to maintain a healthy body fat percentage are proper diet and exercise.
*The major risk of having a sedentary lifestyle and high percentage of body fat is
cardiovascular disease.