Physical fitness

File:Soldier running in water original.jpg

Physical fitness is an attribute required for service in virtually all military forces.

Physical fitness is used in two close meanings: general fitness (a state of health and well-being) and specific fitness (a task-oriented definition based on the ability to perform specific aspects of sports or occupations).

Physical fitness is the capacity of the heart, blood vessels, lungs, and muscles to function at optimum efficiency. In previous years, fitness was defined as the capacity to carry out the day’s activities without undue fatigue. Automation, increased leisure time, and changes in lifestyles following the industrial revolution meant this criterion was no longer sufficient. Optimum efficiency is the key. Physical fitness is now defined as the body’s ability to function efficiently and effectively in work and leisure activities, to be healthy, to resist hypokinetic diseases, and to meet emergency situations.

General fitness

General physical fitness includes - but is not limited to - all of the following:

(in alphabetical order)

• Accuracy
• Agility
• Balance
• Body composition
• Cardiovascular endurance
• Coordination
• Flexibility and joint range of motion
• Power
• Speed
• Stamina
• Strength

Many sources also cite mental and emotional health as an important part of overall fitness. This is often presented in textbooks as a triangle made up of three sub-sections, which represent physical, emotional, and mental fitness. The "ideal triangle" is balanced in all three areas. Like the nutrition pyramid designed for healthy eating, the "triangle" is in alignment with practicioners today that wish to address a more wholistic approach as well as a preventive one. Physical fitness can also concern itself with chronic health conditions brought on by an unhealthy lifestyle or through the effects of aging.

Specific fitness

Specific or task-oriented fitness is a person's ability to perform in a specific activity with a reasonable efficiency, for example, sports or military service. Specific training prepares athletes to perform well in their sports.

Examples are:

• 400m sprint - in a sprint the athlete must be trained to work anaerobically throughout the race.
• Marathon - in this case the athlete must be trained to work aerobically and their endurance must be built-up to a maximum.

Fire fighters and police officers must undergo regular Fitness testing to determine if they are capable of the physically demanding tasks required for the job before they are employed. In the Scouting programs of some countries, students can earn fitness badges, such as the Physical Fitness Badge which is earned in the United States.

See also

• Physical exercise
• Exergaming
• Neutral spine
• Health club (fitness center)

References

ISBN links support NWE through referral fees

• What's Really Making America's Children Fat? in TIME Magazine (Special Health issue) June 23, 2008.

External links

• HealthierUS.gov Official website. Retrieved May 23, 2008.
• President's Council on Physical Fitness. Retrieved May 23, 2008.

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