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HOME CONTENT PREPARATION ANALYSIS DESIGN APPENDICES GLOSSARY
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SECTION I - PREPARATION
LESSON 1 - FITNESS IN US LESSON 2 - EXERCISE SCIENCE LESSON 3 - FITNESS POTENTIALS
LESSON 4 - FITNESS ACTIVITIES LESSON 5 - FITNESS TRAINING
Fitness Training: Desirable Levels of Total Fitness
Objectives
Upon completion of Lesson 5, you should be able to perform the following task:
v List the six steps used to plan a total fitness training program.
v Demonstrate
knowledge of the principles of fitness training, by selecting three flexibility
exercises that can be used in a fitness training program; then, identify how the
three criteria of the FIT model to plan an each exercise regimen for improving
flexibility.
v Demonstrate
knowledge of the principles of fitness training, by selecting three cardio
respiratory endurance exercises that
can be used in a fitness training program; then, identify the three criteria of
the FIT model
to plan an each exercise regimen for improving
cardiorespiratory endurance.
v
v
This lesson focuses on the concepts and principles of training needed to design fitness training programs that improve four components of fitness: cardio respiratory endurance, strength, flexibility, and skill. When the five steps for planning a complete fitness training program are used in conjunction with the FIT model and three phases of a training, the principles of readiness, adaptation, specificity, and progressive overload; and cycles of periodization desirable outcomes can easily be accomplished.
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Five Steps for Developing A Fitness Program
A complete fitness training program requires five essential steps to plan, develop, implement, and evaluate the activities needed to achieve the desired goals for each component of fitness. They are as follow:
Step 1 Health Screening (See PAR-Q Form)
This step must always be considered to be an essential part of planning.
Informed
Consent Form (See Informed Consent Form)
Each person
must assume responsibility for his or her risk of injury while training. When
working with others, this step should never be omitted.
Step 2 Fitness Assessment (See Text Book)
Step 3 Goal Setting (Long-Term and Short-Term)
A long-term
goal may be represented by a season, 1-year, 2-years, or longer. A
short-term goal may be represented by weekly, or 8-week cycles,
pre-season training,
post-season training, another short period of training. It is a
good idea to list the
activities and exercises that will be used in training each
component of fitness in this
step. The list may change later, so it is not intended to be a
definitive list of things that
will be used.
Step 5 Program Design
The best way to complete this step is with a table. A table may
be designed to include a
column for each element of a training program to facilitate
inclusion and instructions
that are easy to follow. The principles of fitness training and
the FIT Model should be
easily identified in the design of the table that is used.
Step 6 Program Implementation and Evaluation
This step
determines how much success an athlete will achieve. Consistent practice with
dedication and commitment to realistic and objective goals are
prerequisites for success,
which is gradual progress toward the goals that have been
identified.
Knowledge of the each component of fitness is required to develop a complete fitness training program (Lessons 6 - 13). However, specific achievements, regarding fitness, can only be made, when knowledge of the components of fitness is applied to the six steps for developing a complete fitness training program, cycles of periodization , and the three phases of a training.
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The Principles: Readiness, Adaptation, Specificity, and Progressive Overload
Today, because of great emphasis attached to total fitness for participation in sports, the all important principle is "The athlete or sport participant who is 100% fit or closest to it performs well or best.." The methods used to achieve this supreme fitness, in whatever sport chosen, must be based on the level of fitness that a person finds himself or herself at any given point in time. The principle of readiness refers to the concept that the level of performance that a person has achieved is the beginning point for their fitness-training program.. Even if a person has successfully trained for years, each day represents a beginning point for their fitness-training program. Their prime goal may be to reach the 80 - 90% level of performance, a lower level, or at some other point between where they are when they begin their training and where they would like to be after training a given period of time. It may be desirable not to change one's level of fitness at all. What a person wants to accomplish is up to them, but where they find themselves is where they must begin.
If the beginning training level for improving cardio respiratory endurance is 65%, which can be determined by one of several popular methods of calculating training heart rates, a training program may be initiated at the 65% level of intensity for three to five days per week. After a cycle of three to five weeks or longer, improvement in the level of cardio respiratory endurance may be identified by testing. Testing for the level of performance before and after a training cycle of two or more weeks determines progress toward a higher level of fitness. Contrary to this approach the beginning level of training for improving cardio respiratory endurance could be started at a higher level than the beginning test indicates it should be started. This approach is not recommended, as it is problematical. Anyone who is subjected to training at a level that is more intense than the level they are capable of performing will experience the effects of over training and placed at risk of injury. The ideal practice is to train at a level of readiness and gradually increase frequency, intensity, or duration.
The principle of adaptation is based on the ideas that body functions are influenced by physical activity and that when activities are continued for long periods of time the body adjusts to maintain its ability to continue functioning or overcome its inability to function. As the functions of the body improve, higher and higher levels of activity may be experienced. The ability to walk 1-mile in 15 minutes with a pulse rate of 145 beats per minute (bpm) can be improved over time. One way to do so may be to walk, jog, or run 1-mile at the appropriate level of intensity three to five days per week and for several weeks. Additionally, if there is a gradual reduction in the time needed to cover 1-mile during this training cycle, the effect of training will be greater. Such a person can expect to travel 1-mile in less than 15 minutes with a pulse rate that is less than 145 bpm (starting pulse rate); and they can expect to achieve this goal sooner than they would if there was not a gradual increase in the intensity. Adaptations occur in proportion to the frequency of activity, level of intensity, and amount or duration of activity.
Positive changes in all four components of fitness (cardio respiratory endurance, strength, flexibility, and skill) may be caused by regular exercise. Some exercises are more effective for improving strength than cardio respiratory endurance and visa versa. For instance, when a given exercise or activity is used to improve a component of fitness and it is more effective in making improvements with the particular component in question than other components, the exercise is believed to be specific to the choice. Thus, the principle of specificity refers to the need to select an exercise according to the fitness outcome desired. If an improvement in cardio respiratory endurance is the targeted result, then exercises that are known to produce improvements in the way the body processes oxygen should be selected. If an improvement in flexibility is desired, exercises that are best suited for developing strength should not be the focus of a training session and vice versa. Resistance exercises improve strength, stretching improves flexibility, and both, stretching and resistance exercises may be utilized to improve body fat composition.
Another important principle of training is the principle of overload. This principle refers to the practice of providing greater stress or demand on the body than it is usually accustomed to handling. The amount of stress involved with either of the components of fitness, including the cardio respiratory system, which involves placing stress on the heart muscle, can be increased gradually over time without the risk of injury.
To avoid risk of injury, it is necessary to honor the target zone for training intensity. The target zone for training is formed by the lowest intensity needed to bring about improvement in a particular component of fitness and the highest intensity of training, the point above which the risk of injury or over training outweighs further benefits to a component of fitness. The idea is that once the body adapts to the stress placed on it the physical challenge of interest is gradually increased.
Intensity can be varied by increasing the amount of time spent exercising or the level of participation assumed. For optimal health, the minimum recommended duration of exercise per week is 150 minutes. Longer periods of exercise produce greater health and fitness benefits. The minimum frequency recommended by federal health officials for improving fitness also apply to improving sport performance. The intensity of an exercise utilized varies with the type of exercise and with personal goals. Therefore, to improve cardiovascular fitness, you need to increase your heart rate to a target zone (the level that produces benefits); to develop muscular strength and endurance, you need to increase the amount of weight you lift or the resistance you work against and the number of times you repeat the exercise; and to enhance flexibility, you must stretch your muscles beyond their normal length. If you don't exercise regularly and gradually increase the intensity of your workout (overload), you cannot expect to see improvements in fitness.
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Fitness Goals and Periodization
Periodization is the process of varying a training program at regular time intervals to bring about optimal gains in physical performance. The reason for periodization training is simple. Your muscles can respond to an intensity of exercise for a limited time before they adapt. When the muscle adapts its development slows down and you may experience a plateau (period of no improvement) in four to six weeks.
The goal of periodizing an exercise program is to optimize training during short (e.g., weeks, months) as well as long periods of time (e.g., years, a life time, or an athletic career). Also, by using periodization, a competitive athlete is able to control his or her training in order to peak their physical performance at a particular point in time, such as for a major competition. Periodization is used to maximize results in a minimal amount of time, to minimize plateaus, and to achieve steady gains.
There are many training variables that can be manipulated to optimize the exercise program. Some of them are as follow: 1) the number of sets per exercise, 2) the number of repetitions per set, 3) the types of exercises, 4) the number of exercises per training session, 5) the rest periods between sets or exercises, 6) the resistance used for a set of exercises, 7) type and tempo of muscle action used in an exercise (e.g., eccentric, concentric, isometric), and 8) the number of training sessions per day and per week. Any of these variables may be used to fulfill the requirements of the principles of fitness and the FIT Model used for training.
How Periodization Works: Macrocycles, Mesocycles, and Microcycles
With the periodization training method, a year of training may be divided into major periods called macrocycles, which last about three to four months. The macrocycles may be further divided into mesocycle, which typically last three to four weeks, and microcycles, which are typically one week. Thus, three to four microcycles make up one mesocycle, and three to four mesocycles make up one macrocycle.
During a three-week mesocycle, when the body is overloaded by an increase in training volume or intensity, the first two microcycles contain stimulating loads . Fatigue accumulates from the heavy training loads. These two microcycles are followed by a short detraining, or restoration, microcycle. During this cycle, which is typically one week long, the level of fatigue decreases, preparing the body to handle the upcoming new exercise stress.
Since the body's adaptations to exercise occur during rest, rest is a very important element of the overall training program, . When individuals step off of a treadmill or walk out of the gym after a strength-training workout, they are weaker, not stronger. How much weaker depends on the severity of the exercise stress. If there is not enough rest between workouts or mesocycles, fatigue will accumulate and no further improvements in fitness will take place (plateau). The greatest adaptation to a stimulus occurs when muscles are recovered from previous training. Therefore, a restoration microcycle should precede an increase in either exercise intensity or volume (amount of work or load).
If a four-week mesocycle is used, the third microcycle can be used as a "crash" microcycle, in which the body is overloaded to a greater degree than the two previous cycles. Then the fourth cycle becomes the restoration cycle. Also, as physical fitness improves, each new mesocycle should involve greater average training loads than the cycle just completed. During the restoration (rest) cycle, which is the final week of each mesocycle, the volume and intensity are decreased to eliminate the fatigue that has accumulated during the previous weeks of training.
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Endurance is the ability of being able to maintain a high quality of work in the face of fatigue. All athletic skills and events require endurance to some extent, however, the energy requirements of extremely brief skills (such as a single punch, for example) are normally met with ease.
Anaerobic endurance refers to short term endurance capacity which relies mainly on anaerobic energy pathways. Aerobic endurance, on the other hand, refers to longer-term activities which rely primarily on the oxidative energy pathway.
There is no definitive border between anaerobic and aerobic activity, and in fact, all activities are fueled by both pathways. So when we refer to something being "aerobic" or "anaerobic," we are referring to the pathway that is the primary contributor of energy for that activity. Normally, short, intensive activities lasting less than say, 90 seconds, might be though of as "anaerobic," while longer, less intensive work is though of as "aerobic." Also, longer activities which are intermittent (i.e., boxing, football, etc.) are also thought of as "anaerobic," since they consist of repeated high-intensity bouts of activity.
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Summary
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References