5 Components of Physical Fitness & Principles and Methods of Training

Learning Objectives:

1. The students should be able to know the 5 components of Physical Fitness & the
Principles and Methods of Training
2. The students should be able to show appreciation on the importance of physical fitness.
3. The students should be able to perform varied physical activities to test physical fitness.

What kind of physical activity do you do every day?

What is Physical Fitness?

➢ Physical fitness is the capacity of the body to do activities without undue exhaustion.
Physical fitness can be divided into two distinct categories: components of health-
related fitness and components of skill-related fitness.

What are the 5 components of Physical Fitness?

• body composition
• flexibility
• muscular strength
• muscular endurance
• cardiorespiratory endurance.
A well-balanced exercise program should include activities that address all of the health related
components of fitness.

Body Composition

➢ Body composition is how much of your body is made up of fat, bone, and muscle. Body
composition is a way for health professionals to figure out if a person is at a healthy
weight for their body.

Nutrition and exercise are critical for improving body composition. Burpees, pushups,
squat jumps, lunges, and planking can improve body composition. Flexibility

➢ Flexibility is the ability of a joint or group of joints to move through their full range of
motion without pain or restriction. Even though flexibility varies a lot from person to
person, everyone needs to stay within certain minimum ranges to keep their joints and
bodies healthy. Squats, lunges, and stretching can enhance the body's flexibility.
Muscular Strength

➢ Muscular strength is the capacity of the muscle to produce force during a relatively
short period of time. Push-ups, sit-ups, lifting, squats, and lunges promote muscular strength.
Muscular Endurance

➢ Muscular endurance is the highest amount of force that a muscle group is able to pull or
push in a single contraction. Circuit training, and bodyweight exercises are all good ways to
build muscle endurance. Cardiovascular Endurance

➢ Cardiovascular endurance is the ability of the lungs, heart, and blood vessels to deliver
enough oxygen to the cells to meet the needs of long-term physical activity. Getting stronger in
your heart and lungs can make it easier for you to carry out the tasks you need to do every day.
Jogging, running, cycling, and swimming can enhance cardiovascular endurance.

What are the Principles and Methods of Training?

WHAT IS Principles of TRAINING?

The principles of training are the rules that need to be followed when planning and undertaking
a physical activity training program.

There are 5 main principles of training:

• Specificity
• Progressive Overload
• Rest and Recovery
• Reversibility
• Individual Needs
1. Specificity

➢ Working on the correct area of the body or making sure your training relates to the sport
you are doing.

2. Progressive overload

➢ Slowly increasing the amount of exercise you do to ensure gradual improvements.

3. Rest & recovery

➢ Allowing time in the training programme for the body to rest, repair, and restore itself
following exercise.
4. Reversibility

➢ If you stop training ( due to injury or laziness ) you will return to your original fitness
level.

5. Individual Needs

➢ Training programmes must be used by the individual that they are designed for - they will
be specific to their sport and their current level of fitness . ( Extra )

F.I.T.T

➢ Stands for Frequency, Intensity, Time and Type. In order to show progressive overload
(making training harder) you need to use at least one of the FITT principles.

Frequency

➢ relates to how often you train. To make training harder you could train 3 times per week
instead of 2

Intensity

➢ relates to how often you train. You could increase intensity by lifting heavier weights OR
running on the treadmill at a higher speed. Time

➢ relates to the amount of time that you train for. Running for 15 minutes one session and
then running 20 minutes the next session would make it harder.

Type

➢ relates to the type of training you are doing. Using different piece of CV fitness
equipment ( treadmill, rowing machine etc. ) ever session makes it harder and avoids
boredom.

Methods of Training

A number of training methods can be used to improve fitness. Each is designed for a
specific purpose, to improve a specific aspect of fitness, and therefore each suits
different sports and activities.

METHODS OF TRAINING

There are 8 different training methods:

1. Continuous
• Long periods of moderate work, without rest.
• Improves cardiovascular fitness and muscle endurance.
• Suitable for distance runners and tri- athletes.
2. Fartlek (Speed Play)
• A continuous workout involving changes in speed and/or terrain.
• Improves recovery time and both aerobic and anaerobic fitness.
• Suitable for cross country runners and team games involving changes in speed.
3. Circuit
• A series of exercises performed in a circuit.
• Improves cardiovascular endurance and muscular endurance.
• Excellent for general fitness and can be structures to suit most sports.
4. Interval
• Involves alternating periods of works and rest.
• Can be used to improved speed, recovery time, and aerobic and anaerobic
fitness.
• Suitable for team games involving short bursts of speed.
5. Flexibility/Mobility
• Stretching methods including static dynamic and proprioceptive
neuromuscular facilitation (PNF).
• Improves range of movement, reducing the chance of injury.
• Beneficial for all sporting activities, in particular gymnastics and dance.
6. Weight Training
• A workout using weights or a form of resistance.
• Can be tailored to improve muscular endurance power and strength.
• Suitable for all activities and general fitness.
7. Polymetrics
• A series a series of explosive movements such as jumps, bounds, hops, etc.
• Improves power.
• Excellent for activities that require explosive strength, e.g.
Long/high jumps.
8. SAQ (Speed, Agility, Quickness)
• Exercises aimed at activating neural pathways.
• Improves speed agility and quickness.
• Suitable for them games involving changes in direction.