Fitness teasting

GCSE Physical Education (Sport & Coaching)

Sarah Cornell

Advantages and disadvantages of fitness tests

Task three:

In this assignment I am going to explain one fitness test for each component of physical fitness which is cardiovascular fitness, muscular strength, muscular endurance, flexibility and body composition. I will also include advantages and disadvantages for each test.

Fitness test for Cardiovascular fitness

Cardiovascular fitness is the efficiency of the heart, lungs, and vascular system in delivering oxygen to the working muscle tissues so that prolonged physical work can be maintained.

To test a client’s cardiovascular fitness, you could use the Vo2 max test which relies mostly on the client’s stamina and endurance also using their heart and lungs. This test is done by using a treadmill and an assistant. At the start of the test the client runs on the treadmill at a low speed and a flat gradient, but within the test the speed and the grade of the slope is adjusted, the assistant uses a stopwatch and makes the adjustments. When the client runs on the treadmill and at certain times e.g every three minutes the assistant would increase the grade of the slope and the speed. The client then runs on the treadmill for as long as possible, whilst the assistant is still making the adjustments and timing the client with the stopwatch. When the client cannot carry on any longer the test and the stop watch is stopped, then the assistant will then see how long the client run for and what gradient they got to. They will use these results to analyse their performance.

Advantages:

You can get an understanding of your body’s stamina and endurance
You can try and improve yourself on each stage
It’s a good way to challenge yourself
Good exercise
It’s not very time consuming

Disadvantages:

Equipment is required (treadmill)
You need an assistant present
Data could be more valid, for example at the end of the test you could be given a mark/grade so it could be more valid in the outside world
Could cost money if the person didn’t have a treadmill at home because they would need to go to a gym

Fitness test for Muscular strength

Muscular strength is the ability of your body's muscles to generate force in a short period of time. Muscular strength relies on anaerobic energy, for ...

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Disadvantages:

Equipment is required (treadmill)
You need an assistant present
Data could be more valid, for example at the end of the test you could be given a mark/grade so it could be more valid in the outside world
Could cost money if the person didn’t have a treadmill at home because they would need to go to a gym

Fitness test for Muscular strength

Muscular strength is the ability of your body's muscles to generate force in a short period of time. Muscular strength relies on anaerobic energy, for example allowing you the short burst of energy you need to lift a heavy weight.

To test your muscular strength you can do a test called one-repetition maximum (1RM), this test is about force and strength and is used to measure dynamic strength in a specific muscle group. Within this test the client tries to lift their maximum mass in kilograms in one single movement, using a fixed resistance machine. At first the client will start with a light weight that they can lift then after each attempt the client increases the mass by 5kg in till they can’t lift anymore. You chose the machine by the clients specific muscle group used in their sport, for example if they were a runner then you would a machine like a leg press. When the client has reached their one rep max, the score can be converted into percentage by the client’s body mass. An example of this is, if a rugby players body mass was 100kg and their 1RM was 110kg that means they would have a 1RM of 110 percent.

Advantages:

You get a valid score at the end of the test, which is reliable in the outside world
The score is accurate
Get a good understanding of your muscles strength
A bench-mark is set which makes a target to inspire the lifter to become stronger

Disadvantages:

You need a weight machine which can be expensive and a room that as a supportive floor
If not warmed up properly, could cause an muscle injury
There is a tremendous amount of stress on the muscles at work during 1RM testing and this could interrupt the established training routine, because 24-hours rest will be needed before another test.

Fitness test for Muscular endurance

Muscular endurance is where a specific muscle group makes a repeated contraction over a period of time, for example a continuous press ups.

To test muscular endurance you can do a test called one-minute press up, which is used to test the muscle endurance of the upper body. To do this test you will need a stop watch and an assistant to place their hand under the client’s chest on the floor, to ensure that each press up is counted as one repetition. The assistant needs to time how many repetitions the clients does within one minute. When the stopwatch is started the client will begin doing their press ups and try to do as many as they can within the minute. At the end of the test you can compare your score to a table, which shows the rating for the number of press ups that you did. For example if a female aged 15-19 did 11 or less press ups within the minute they would be classed as poor, but if they did 33 or more then they would be classed as excellent.

Advantages:

It doesn’t cost anything as no equipment is required, a part from a stopwatch
Only takes one minute to complete
The results are accurate and would be very valid in the outside world, because you can compare it against a grading criteria at the end.

Disadvantages:

If the press ups are not done properly then the validity of the results could be incorrect
If you rush to much you can strain yourself
Not everyone will know how to get the table to compare their score

Fitness test for Flexibility

Flexibility is the range of movement in a joint or series of joints and muscles. To test flexibility you can do a test called sit and reach, which assess the flexibility of the hamstrings and lower back.

A fitness test that tests someone’s flexibility is a sit and reach test. To do this test you need a meter stick and a sit and reach box. The client sits on the floor with legs out straight, legs should be about 12 inches apart with the heels touching the box. The client needs to reach forward as far as they can, with their hands going parallel with the meter stick. After three practice reaches, the fourth reach is held for at least two seconds while the distance is recorded. The assistant needs to make sure there are no jerky movements and that the fingertips remain level and the legs are flat. At the end of the test to evaluate the scores you need to compare the clients results to a data table, for example if a male reaches to less than 15.0cm his rating would be classed as poor, but if he reached to 17.9 or more than his rating would be excellent.

Advantages:

Having good flexibility can improve posture, prevent lower back pain, good maintenance of healthy joints, better balance when moving, reduction in muscle soreness after exercise and increase blood flow
You can get an understanding of how flexible your hamstrings are
It’s easy to do and doesn’t take a lot of time
it doesn’t require a lot of equipment and can be done at home

Disadvantages:

if you stretch to hard and don’t warm up properly then you can pull a muscle
the results aren’t very reliable in the outside world
you need an assistant to read your measurements and to ensure the test is performed correctly
doesn’t show how flexible your body is in general
This tests only measures the flexibility of the lower back and hamstrings
The reliability will depend on the amount of warm-up allowed, and whether the same procedures are followed each time

Test for Body composition

Body composition is used to describe the percentages of fat, bone and muscle in human bodies. Body composition (particularly body fat percentage) can be measured in several ways.

The most common method to test someone’s body composition is by using a set of measurement calipers to measure the thickness of subcutaneous fat in multiple places on the body. This includes the abdominal area, arms, buttocks and thighs. These measurements are then used to estimate total body fat. One way to test your body composition is you can take your BMI (body mass index) this shows the amount of body fat and lean body tissue the clients possess. To do this test you will need an assistant that is trained to know how to measure the body fat. The assistant needs a skinfold calliper to measure the subcutaneous fat in millimetres, down the right side for consistency. The assistant can take measurements from the abdomen, triceps, biceps, chest, calf and thigh muscle, and then the assistant takes the reading from the gauge. If you measured three places then you would add them together to produce a total in millimetres, which can then be evaluated in terms of percentage using a conversion table. For example the average body fat percentage for a woman is 15-25 percent, and for men it is 10-20 percent.

Advantages: