Essential Elements of Physical Fitness: Stamina, Flexibility, Strength, Speed

Posted on Dec 4, 2024 in Physical Education

Key Components for Optimal Health and Fitness

To achieve and maintain good health, it’s essential to:

  1. Eat sensibly.
  2. Engage in regular physical activity.
  3. Get regular sleep and rest.
  4. Avoid smoking and excessive alcohol consumption.
  5. Improve your ability to cope with stress.

To attain sufficient fitness for good health, we need to develop the following key components:

Stamina (Aerobic Capacity)

Stamina, or aerobic capacity (endurance), is the ability to work for relatively long periods without excessive fatigue, such as running for 30 minutes. It relies on the body’s ability to supply active muscles with energy and remove waste products during sustained activity. This ability depends on the efficiency of the blood vessels, lungs, and heart. Aerobic capacity is also known as cardiorespiratory endurance.

Maximal Aerobic Capacity (VO2 max): This is the maximum amount of oxygen that can be transported to and used by working muscles. A higher VO2 max indicates a greater capacity for sustained effort and reduced fatigue.

Aerobic Efforts typically last from 2 minutes to 6 hours.

Anaerobic Endurance: This refers to the body’s ability to perform short, high-intensity bursts of activity without sufficient oxygen, leading to an oxygen debt. Anaerobic efforts usually last from 1 second to 2 minutes.

Improving Stamina

  • Engage in regular, continuous exercises involving the whole body.
  • Maintain a heart rate between 60-80% of your maximum heart rate (MHR). MHR can be estimated as 220 minus your age or 226 minus your age.
  • Start with a minimum of 12 minutes of exercise and gradually increase to 40 minutes as fitness improves.

Measurement: Stamina can be measured by assessing the maximum amount of oxygen utilized during maximal exercise, using tests like the course navette or Harvard step test.

Endurance Benefits

  • Increased heart efficiency
  • Increased blood volume, red cells, and hemoglobin
  • Decreased resting blood pressure
  • Enlarged arteries
  • Stronger diaphragm
  • Increased lung capacity (asthma symptoms may be reduced)
  • Reduced body fat
  • Increased energy levels
  • Faster recovery after exercise
  • Reduced risk of heart disease and early death
Training Methods for Stamina
  • Continuous Methods: Running continuously for 15 minutes or more.
  • Discontinuous Methods: Incorporating rest intervals during exercise.

Flexibility

Flexibility, also known as mobility or suppleness, refers to the range of movement around our joints. It is crucial for maintaining health and preventing injuries.

Improving Flexibility

  • Stretch muscles and tendons, extending ligaments and supporting tissues beyond their normal range of movement.
  • Stretch only to a comfortable point, avoiding overstretching.
  • Stretch the prime movers (agonist muscles) and then the antagonistic muscles.
  • Flexibility exercises should be specific to the desired range of motion.
  • Incorporate stretching exercises into all training programs.
  • Flexibility is not dependent on body shape.

Flexibility Benefits

  • Improved performance
  • Decreased injury risk
  • Reduced muscle soreness
  • Improved posture
  • Reduced risk of low back pain
  • Increased blood and nutrient flow to tissues
  • Improved muscle coordination
  • Enhanced enjoyment of physical activities

Measurement: Flexibility can be measured using tests like the “sit and reach” test.

Types of Stretching
  • Static Stretching: Holding a stretch using your own strength.
  • Passive Stretching: A partner applies external force to assist in stretching.
  • Active Stretching: Moving rhythmically and under control to extend the stretch.
  • PNF Stretching: Contracting a muscle before stretching it.

Strength

Strength is the ability to exert force against resistance.

Classifications of Strength

  • Maximal Strength: The greatest force possible in a single maximal contraction.
  • Elastic Strength: The ability to overcome resistance with a fast contraction.
  • Strength Endurance: The ability to exert force repeatedly over time.

Developing Strength

Strength can be developed by increasing:

  • The number of repetitions of an exercise
  • The number of sets of an exercise
  • The intensity of the exercise
  • Reducing recovery time
Methods for Developing Strength
  1. Weight Training (for hypertrophy):
    Training Parameters:
    1. Duration of phase: 3-6 weeks
    2. Load: 70-80% of one-repetition maximum (1RM)
    3. Number of exercises: 6-9
    4. Number of repetitions per set: 6-12
    5. Number of sets: 4-6
    6. Rest intervals: 3-5 minutes
    7. Speed of execution: Medium
  2. Plyometric Exercises: Jumping and bounding exercises, such as wall jumps.
  3. Circuit Training:
    1. Duration of phase: 8-10 weeks
    2. Load: 30-40% of 1RM
    3. Number of stations: 9-15
    4. Number of circuits per session: 2-3
    5. Total time of circuit training session: 20-25 minutes
    6. Rest interval between exercises: 90 seconds
    7. Rest intervals between circuits: 2-3 minutes
    8. Frequency: 2-3 times per week

Speed

Speed is the quickness of movement of a limb and is an integral part of many sports.

Factors Influencing Speed

  • Athlete’s mobility
  • Special strength
  • Strength endurance
  • Technique

Improving Speed

  • Increase strength through progressive weight training and plyometrics.
  • Improve reaction time.
  • Improve the ability to change speed and direction quickly.
  • Improve skills and techniques.
Proper Posture While Running
  • Avoid bending forward at the waist.
  • Push from the balls of your feet, not your toes.
  • Focus your vision on the end of the course.
  • Maintain smooth forward and backward arm swings, avoiding swinging across the body.
  • Men: Hands pump from shoulder height to hips; Women: Hands pump from chest height to hips.
  • Keep elbows at a 90-degree angle.
  • Keep arms, shoulders, and hands relaxed.
  • Avoid head bobbing or twisting.
  • Maintain forward momentum, avoiding side-to-side movement.

Developing Speed

  • Reaction Time and React Speed: Short sprints (5-10 minutes), reaction games.
  • Speed Endurance Training: 3-4 sets of 4x100m sprints.
  • Absolute Speed: 20-30 minutes of running down hills.