What Aspects of Fitness Influence Movement Efficiency?

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WHAT ASPECTS OF FITNESS INFLUENCE MOVEMENT EFFICIENCY?              

Physical fitness : the ability to perform physical tasks in life (eg. walking) or to participate in general leisure activities without undue fatigue, health risk or injury.

The level of fitness differs from person to person as some people are happy to maintain a basic level of fitness to go about their daily lives in a energetic and productive way whereas others may aim for higher levels so they can participate in competitive sport or meet particular health needs. Therefore, different people need different types of fitness.

Components of Physical Fitness                                                                               

A common method of describing physical fitness is to categorise these elements into health and skill-related components.

Health-related                                                      Skill-related

  • cardiorespiratory endurance (aerobic power)
  • strength
  • flexibility
  • muscular endurance
  • body composition

  • power
  • balance
  • agility
  • speed
  • coordination
  • reaction time

Measurements of Health-Related Physical Fitness                                                        .

Health-related components are relevant to everyone because of their contribution to the development and maintenance of good health and well-being. This can be measured through measuring each of the components using a valid and reliable fitness test. Measurement allows you to:

  • identify your base level of fitness
  • monitor progress
  • compare yourself with others
  • plan specific programs
  • motivate yourself by improving
  • reveal undetected medial or health problems

This can then be used to guide many future decisions you may need to make about your health and lifestyle.

MEASURING CARDIORESPIRATORY ENDURANCE

Cardiorespiratory endurance, or aerobic power is the ability of the heart, lungs and circulatory system to supply oxygen to the working muscles. Two methods which are used to measure this is the direct measurement of oxygen uptake and submaximal tests.

The direct measurement of maximal oxygen uptake is the best test for cardiorespiratory endurance as it is the most accurate however it requires expensive and sophisticated equipment. During this test, expired air is collected whilst individual is exercising at maximum level of effort. The collected air is then analysed to measure the amount of oxygen used.

Submaximal exercise tests make a prediction of maximal oxygen consumption or maximal aerobic power by measuring heart rate response to specific levels of physical work whilst taking into account other factors eg. age, gender, and body weight. Measurements gained are compared with standardised “norm” tables to estimate maximal oxygen uptake. Examples of submaximal exercise tests include the multistage fitness test (MFT), PWC 170 bicycle ergometer test and the Astrand-rhyming bicycle ergometer test.

The multi-stage fitness test is conducted by an audiotape. It is made up of 20 levels where subjects run back & forth between two lines 20m apart, gradually increasing as they progress through the levels. The subjects are encouraged to keep going as long as possible and on completion of test, the results are compared against a norm based table to get an estimate of their maximal aerobic power.

The PWC170 test tests physical working capacity (PWC) of an individual. Its undertaken on a bicycle ergometer which indicates the amount of physical work you can complete in a given time (power output measured in kilopond meters per min (kpm) or watts (W)). The individual starts the test through exercising at a low level (300kpm) and is increased through 2min intervals to higher levels (900kpm), therefore, reaching a heart rate of 140bpm. The amount of physical work required to accomplish this is recorded and plotted into a graph which predicts the maximal aerobic power of the individual. Other factors eg, person’s gender, age and weight are recorded as these factors influence the estimation of maximal oxygen consumption.

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The Astrand bicycle ergometer test consists of an Astrand-Rhyming Nomogram which is a mathematical formula that has been worked out to predict maximal oxygen comsumption. This is carried out through attempting to get the person to work at approx. 70% of their maximal aerobic power on an exercise bicycle which in small amounts increases through intensity. The submaximal heart rate result is then compared to an Astrand nomogram for the calculation of aerobic work capacity. Other important factors eg. gender, age and body weight are considered when calculating maximal aerobic power

TESTS FOR MUSCULAR STRENGTH

Muscular strength refers to ability ...

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