INSTITUTE OF HUMAN
KINETICS
PHED12n FITNESS EXERCISE COMPONENTS OF
HEALTH-RELATED FITNESS
Fitness : is a condition in which an
individual has sufficient energy to While you may know the many benefits of
avoid fatigue and enjoy life. being physically active — like a reduced risk of
: is the ability to carry out daily chronic disease, improved mental health, and
task without undue fatigue and better quality of life — you may wonder what being
with less energy expenditure. physically fit really means.
Physical fitness is divided into five health The five health-related components of
and six skill-related components. Skill- or physical fitness can be a useful guide to help you
performance-related fitness involves skills that achieve physical fitness and promote good health.
will enhance one's performance in athletic or They describe five areas to focus on in your fitness
sports events. Health-related fitness involves journey to ensure a well-rounded, active lifestyle.
skills that enable one to become and stay The five areas of health-related fitness are:
physically healthy.
Cardiovascular endurance: the ability to perform
COMPONENTS OF exercises at moderate-to-vigorous intensities for a
SKILL-RELATED FITNESS prolonged period of time. Cardiovascular
endurance, or cardio, is important for
There are six skill-related fitness components: strengthening your heart and lungs, which help to
agility, balance, coordination, speed, power, and deliver oxygen and nutrients throughout your
reaction time. Skilled athletes typically excel in all body.
six areas.
Muscular strength: how much force your
Agility is the ability to change and control the muscles can exert or how heavy weights they can
direction and position of the body while lift. Being physically strong helps you move and lift
maintaining a constant, rapid motion. For heavier objects with ease, which can make day-
example, changing directions to hit a tennis ball. to-day tasks much easier.
Balance is the ability to control or stabilize the Muscular endurance: the ability of your muscles
body when a person is standing still or moving. For to sustain exercise for a period of time. Muscular
example, in-line skating. endurance is how long your muscles can endure
Coordination is the ability to use the senses an exercise. It’s important for longer duration
together with body parts during movement. For exercise as it allows you to withstand exercise for
example, dribbling a basketball. Using hands and longer without getting fatigued.
eyes together is called hand-eye coordination. Flexibility: the ability to move muscles and joints
Speed is the ability to move your body or parts of through a full range of motion. Regular stretching
your body swiftly. Many sports rely on speed to can help increase flexibility and may support your
gain advantage over your opponents. For example, performance in sports that require flexibility.
a basketball player making a fast break to perform Being flexible may help you perform daily tasks
a lay- up, a tennis player moving forward to get to easier and maintain better balance, though more
a drop shot, a football player out running the research is needed.
defense to receive a pass. Body composition: your body’s ratio of fat mass
Power is the ability to move the body parts swiftly to fat-free mass like muscle and bone. While
while applying the maximum force of the muscles. every body is different, having too much body fat
Power is a combination of both speed and and not enough muscle can lead to health
muscular strength. For example, fullbacks in problems. Fortunately, the other four components
football muscling their way through other players of fitness can help you achieve a body
and speeding to advance the ball and volleyball composition that is healthy for you.
players getting up to the net and lifting their
bodies high into the air.
Reaction Time is the ability to reach or respond
quickly to what you hear, see, or feel. For
example, an athlete quickly coming off the blocks
early in a swimming or track relay, or stealing a
base in baseball.
