5 COMPONENTS OF PHYSICAL FITNESS

Our bodies are machines of flesh and blood, and like machines they require maintenance to function at their top level. If you are some-body that takes good care of their body, then there’s nothing like it. You’re already on the first step.

However, it is necessary to know what attributes factor into our bodily maintenance, or exercise.

The best way to exercising doesn’t involve focusing on developing a particular part of the body. It requires an adequate balance of five components of physical fitness.

What are those? Some may ask (no doubt you have heard of them).

Key Takeaways

• To maintain a healthy body, it is necessary to maintain a balance of five components of physical fitness: body composition, cardiovascular and respiratory endurance, flexibility, muscular endurance, and muscular strength.
• Body composition refers to the percentages of fat, bone, water, and muscle in our body, and it’s important to keep body fat to a minimum to develop a healthy body.
• Cardiovascular and respiratory endurance is important for the smooth functioning of both respiratory and circulatory systems and can be improved through aerobic exercises like swimming, running, and other physical activities.
• Flexibility is important to improve the range of movement in a joint and can be improved through regular stretching.
• Muscular endurance and strength are essential to perform physical activities for extended periods and can be improved by engaging in repetitive exercises while slowly increasing the level of difficulty and training with heavy weights.

The Components of Physical Fitness are:

• Body Composition

• Cardiovascular & Respiratory Endurance

• Flexibility

• Muscular Endurance

• Muscular Strength

In the following article we will give you, the reader, a rundown on each of these important elements. None of them should be neglect-ed when training. Remember, seek balance!

Body Composition

A brief way to explain Body Composition is it’s nothing but a description of the percentages of fat, bone, water and muscle in our body.

However, let’s get on with a detailed explanation. It’s a given that our bodies consist of lean body mass and fat. Lean body mass includes all of that mass in our body that isn’t fat— including organs, bones, muscle and skin. While two people may have an exact same weight and height, their bodies can and will be different from each other, owing primary because of body composition.

The term “leanness” comes into account here, and keeping body fat to a low is the key to developing a healthy body.

– A healthy male between the age of 20 and 39 must have bet-ween 8 and 20% body fat.- A healthy female between the age of 20 and 39 must have between 21 and 33% body fat.

A good diet will help ensure a correct Body Composition — remember, it isn’t all about lifting weight and exercising!

Cardiovascular & Respiratory Endurance

This has everything to do with your heart, the organ of love and life; as well as your lungs. Both of them are equally responsible for the smooth functioning of both respiratory and circulatory systems to aid in the supply of oxygen to muscles during the period of heightened physical rigours .

What physical activities? Well, it includes almost everything you do on a daily basis. For example, swimming and running are excellent examples of activities for which you need to possess a high cardio-vascular and respiratory endurance. On the other hand, other sports such as soccer and weightlifting will require a certain optimal level of endurance to excel at them.

Your Cardiorespiratory fitness depends a lot on genetic potential and physical adaptation, but — here’s the best part — you can increase your capacity by exercising.

You can start by investing some time of your training sessions in aerobic exercises. With this regimen, not only will you be fit, but also are less likely to suffer from heart disease, lung cancer, diabetes, stroke and other diseases!

Flexibility

Well, this one might seem obvious, doesn’t it?

However, despite everything you think you know, there’s always something to learn. Flexibility represents the range of movement in a joint (or joints), as well as the length of a muscle. It cannot be measured in a regular test, since each joint or muscle in our body has its own level of flexibility.

Flexibility declines naturally with disease, age, activity level and even temperature, so in all likelihood, one must be prepared to counter those negative factors.

To improve flexibility, it is necessary to spend some time stretching. But to stretch, you must first raise your body temperature by warming up.

Try to stretch regularly, even when just spending all day lying down or sitting: it will improve your flexibility quite a bit. Also you can stretch before any demanding physical activity; your joints will thank you for it.

Muscular Endurance

Not to be confused with Strength, Muscular Endurance is your muscle’s ability to perform for extended periods of time. The word Endurance says it all: Resistance, Immunity, ability to Withstand.

To improve endurance, it is important to engage yourself in repetitive exercises, while slowly increasing the level of difficulty (be it time spent or repetitions) on each go.

Eventually you’ll realize how useful this fitness element is. You may have noticed that even a big guy (or girl) can have trouble with lifting weights if they have low Muscular Endurance. The same is applicable for some physically fit people not being able to run, swim or ride a bike for as long as they’d want to.

Muscular Strength

Strength; one of the main reasons people start training to begin with. In essence, it’s the desire to get stronger, more powerful and ready for the challenges on an everyday basis.

Muscular strength represents your physical power; it is also heavily governed by genetics. To improve muscular strength, you must seek to gain muscle. We’re not saying go all out and become a huge, bulging weightlifter, but increasing your muscle mass is essential as well.

To gain muscles, it is necessary to train with heavy weights and begin with as many repetitions as you can, rest, and repeat. You may want to increase these repetitions as you go to improve your muscular endurance.

A good diet is also important to avoid developing unnecessary weight in the form of fat. Possessing an optimal muscular strength will improve your posture and metabolism, and help you avoid bodily injuries. Be safe and try to be careful with injuries during the exercises! Don’t lift more than you can.

So there you have it, the five elements of physical fitness discussed in details.

Exercising that involves all five elements — is not only the required for fitness but it also saves you time.

Good luck out there, and remember: Be fit, be healthy and believe in yourself!

FAQ

• What is cardiovascular endurance?

Cardiovascular endurance refers to the ability of the heart, lungs, and blood vessels to deliver oxygen to working muscles during prolonged exercise.

• What is muscular strength?

Muscular strength is the ability of the muscles to exert maximum force against resistance.

• What is muscular endurance?

Muscular endurance refers to the ability of the muscles to exert force repeatedly over some time.

• What is flexibility?

Flexibility refers to the range of motion around a joint and the ability of muscles to stretch without causing injury.

• What is body composition?

Body composition refers to the body’s proportion of fat, muscle, and bone.

• Why is cardiovascular endurance important?

Cardiovascular endurance is important for overall health and fitness because it improves heart and lung function, reduces the risk of chronic diseases, and increases energy levels.

• Why is muscular strength important?

Muscular strength is important for performing daily activities, improving athletic performance, reducing the risk of injury, and increasing bone density.

• Why is muscular endurance important?

Muscular endurance is important for repetitive activities, such as running, cycling, or swimming. It helps to delay the onset of fatigue and improve overall performance.

• Why is flexibility important?

Flexibility is important for maintaining good posture, preventing injury, and improving athletic performance.

• Why is body composition important?

Body composition is important for overall health and fitness. Healthy body composition can reduce the risk of chronic diseases, such as diabetes, heart disease, and stroke.