WHAT ALL-AROUND FITNESS MEANS

WHAT ALL-AROUND FITNESS MEANS

In our world, a lot of people take up all types of exercise, with different goals in their minds. Some try to look good, others try to improve their performance, many aim for a healthier lifestyle. Actually, all these things are the same and different at the same time (!!!)

The way you train shows a lot not only about what you are trying to achieve, but also about what your personality represents. Therefore, it is important for you to figure out what kind of person you are, and adapt your training to yourself.

In this blog I will try to help you achieve a better you through training, nutrition and other tips that will help you transform your body, feel better about yourself, have a healthier lifestyle, and become a better person through hard work(outs) and dedication.

First of all, let's define the term "all-around fitness". When people hear the word "fitness", the first thing that comes to their mind depends (again) on what their experiences of fitness are. Some people think of fitness as strength, others as endurance, while some others might think of it as speed or explosiveness. In some cases, fitness is perceived as flexibility. However, the term "fitness" does not solely describe one of the above features. On the contrary, it is the combination of all of them or at least of the largest part of them.

The five components of fitness are: 1) muscular strength, 2) cardiorespiratory endurance, 3) muscular endurance, 4) flexibility and 5) body composition. A person who wants to be called "fit" should possess all five components or at least 4 of them.

1) Muscular strength is the amount of force a muscle can produce with a single maximal effort. To make it simpler, it is the maximal weight that a certain muscle can lift only once (e.g. how much weight you can lift on bicep curls, which means the weight your biceps can lift).

2) Cardiorespiratory endurance is the ability of the heart and lungs to absorb, transport, and utilize oxygen over an extended period of physical exertion. In other words, it is your ability to perform a certain exercise for a specific amount of time without getting tired or having to catch your breath.

3) Muscular endurance is the ability of a muscle or group of muscles to sustain repeated contractions against a resistance for an extended period of time. That is the repetitions of a movement you can perform without feeling like your muscle cannot lift the weight anymore.

4) Flexibility is  the capacity of a joint or muscle to move through its full range of motion. Can you reach your toes without bending your knees? That is a sample of flexibility.

5) Body Composition is a term used to describe the different components that together make up a person's body weight. Muscles, bones and organs (metabolically active tissues) are considered "lean" tissue, while adipose (fat) tissue is not (and this brings us to the wholy grail of exercise nowadays, the loss of fat!!)

So, here it is. You now know what it means to be fit! All that is left is to find out the way to achieve it. Just stick around and you will be able to in no time..! Boost your performance, your appearance and your life, be an all-around-fitness person!