Health Related Fitness

There are five areas of health related fitness to gauge how good a shape we are in: 

• Heart and lung endurance or cardiovascular endurance, 

• Muscular strength, 

• Muscular endurance, 

• Flexibility,

• Body composition.

 

Heart and lung endurance or cardiovascular endurance:

Sustaining oxygen and fuel to the body during running, cycling, swimming requires the heart and lungs to work together. This working together of the heart and lungs gauges our cardiovascular endurance.

 

Muscular strength

To gauge our muscular strength we need to measure the amount of force a muscle can produce. Weight lifting including bench press (chest strength), leg press (leg strength), bicep curls (arm strength) or even simple pushups will gauge our muscular strength.

 

Muscular endurance

Unlike muscular strength that measures force of the muscle, muscular endurance measures continuous muscle performance overtime without getting tired. Sit ups or lifting weights with many repetitions can measure muscular endurance.

 

Flexibility

Flexibility is using a range of motion through specific joints. When joints are freely moving and muscles are stretched long enough you are considered ‘flexible.’ The sit and reach test is used to test flexibility.

 

Body composition

Body composition is the balance or make up of your body in terms of fat, muscle mass, bone and organs. If body composition is not balanced you are more likely to become sick or higher mortality. The body mass index or BMI is a popular way to measure body composition using weight to height ratio.