Physical Fitness

Explore the Components of Physical Fitness

Fitness means something Different for Everybody

In the wild fitness means everything. An unfit animal has a far less chance of surviving than an animal that is fit.

In the civilized world, human beings have controlled most of the dangers which exist in the wild but have opened the door to other problems with our sedentary lifestyle.

The sedentary lifestyle we have created as decreased the fitness levels of our species as a whole. Today, physical fitness could be looked at as a preventative cure for many of the diseases caused by physical inactivity.

“Those who do not Find time for Physical Fitness will have to Make time for Illness.”

Exercise is what keeps you physically fit. Being physically fit has numerous benefits including keeping you mentally fit and confident. There are infinite benefits of physical fitness and learning about all aspects of health and fitness is what AskTheTrainer.com is all about.

General Information about Physical Fitness

Definition of Physical Fitness
Just what is the exact definition of physical fitness and why is fitness so important to your health?

Benefits of Exercise
You have always heard that exercise is good for you but have you ever wondered exactly why? Learn many important benefits to exercise including the not so obvious ones.

5 Components of Physical Fitness
In order to consider yourself physically fit you need to be balanced. Learn all about the 5 health components components of physical fitness and why each is important.

Learn about the 5 Components of Physical Fitness

1, 2. Muscular Strength & Endurance

Exercise Information
Don’t make the mistake of doing exercises which you know very little about. Click any part of the human muscular anatomy and learn how you can improve your muscle strength and endurance with resistance training exercises.

Sets and Reps
Learn how manipulating the way you perform resistance training exercises can effect the way you change your body and improve your fitness.

Weight Training Volume
If you want to maximize the time which you workout you should understand the basic concept of training volume as it is also very important to determining whether your work on muscular strength or endurance two very important components of physical fitness.

Weight Training Splits
Not everyone has all day to devote to physical fitness. Weight training splits help you balance your effective weight training program with the rest of your life.

Workout Routines
Learn how to put everything together and create a specific workout routine which will help you achieve your specific fitness goals.

Exercise Videos
If you already understand all the aspects of creating and implementing effective workout programs you can view over 300 of the best resistance training exercises. Choose your body part of piece of equipment.

3. Cardiovascular Endurance

Cardio Exercise
Learn why just doing cardio is not enough. In order to improve your fitness it is necessary to know how to increase the difficulty and monitor your cardio exercise so you can progress to the next level.

Cardio Workouts
If you want to improve your cardiovascular endurance to the max you may want to try more intense interval workouts. You can mix a variety of cardiovascular endurance activities to create a very tough workout at home or in the gym.

Cardio Machines
If you choose to improve your cardiovascular endurance with a cardio machine there are many different options. Is there one cardio machine which stands above the best? Learn all the ins and outs of cardio machines.

4. Flexibility

Posture Problems
You may think you know what posture is but there is far more you should understand about the relationships and balance of your muscles and joints.

Upper Body Stretches
Learn the most important stretches you can do for your upper body to combat posture problems as well as improving your overall fitness.

Lower Body Stretches
If you want to be able to efficiently perform cardiovascular exercise as well as weight training exercises for you legs you should really perform lower body stretches to stay flexible and physically fit.

Self-Myofascial Release
Increase flexibility, decrease tension and soreness, and correct postural problems with Self-Myofascial Release / SMR. SMR is a stretching technique in which an implement such as a foam roller is used to apply pressure to tight muscles to trigger a relaxation response.

Cumulative Injury Cycle
If you’re like many exercisers, you may have a problem area that repeatedly gives you issues.  These annoying repetitive injuries are coined the Cumulative Injury Cycle.  Learn all about CIC here.

5. Body Composition

Weight Loss
Weight loss is a very misunderstood aspect of body composition. You can use weight loss to improve your fitness but it can also negatively effect your fitness levels.

Fat Loss
If you are looking to improve your body composition, fat loss is the only way in which you can lose weight safely and keep it off. Learn exactly how to do so and improve your physical fitness.

About Body Fat
If you know about your body fat you can learn about body fat measurement to estimate your body fat percentage which will allow you to monitor the fitness component of body composition while you train.

Muscle Building
There are no secrets to muscle building only facts and fiction. Building muscle can help you increase your strength and endurance if you follow the most basic principles of weight training.

What are the Benefits of Physical Fitness?

How do you Value Your Physical Fitness?

If you have been working a desk job for the last 20 years, fitness may mean simply being able to walking up the stairs without getting out of breath.

Maybe you have kids and you want to be able to play with them when they grow up?

Besides reducing the chances of injury and illness, being physically fit means you have the power to do what you want to do.

A fit individual can try new activities without the fear of becoming injured.

A Quick List of the Major Benefits of Physical Fitness

• Reduce chance of heart attack and stroke
• Reduce chance of developing hypertension (high blood pressure)
• Reduced chance of back pain
• Reduced chance of developing osteoporosis
• Reduce the chances of developing adult onset diabetes
• Healthy body composition, reduced chance of being overweight
• Healthy mental state
• Being able to efficiently manage stress
• Better sleep
• More energy
• Great balance & coordination

Why Should Physical Fitness be Important to You

Your Health Matters. Check out this article to learn why you should be accountable to eating healthy.  You may not appreciate your health while you are well but being sick can ruin every aspect of your daily life. Stay physically fit and you will be able to spend time how you want and have the piece of mind that you can deal with anything that life throws at you.

Sifted though all the Physical Fitness Information and Still Can’t find the Answers to your Questions?

Ask The Personal Trainer
If you have any unanswered questions about not only being physically fit but personal fitness training, personal trainer certifications, college courses, etc., check out the AskTheTrainer Q&A archive to see if your question has already been answered.

See Also:

• Three Components of Physical Fitness

About Michael Behnken

Mike Behnken is a personal trainer who holds multiple NASM certifications and a MS in Exercise Science. Mike loves fitness, travel, and photography among many other interests.