4 Components of Fitness

What does fit mean to be fit? At Fit 4 Life, we believe that to be truly fit, your exercise program will develop you in all four components of fitness: aerobic capacity, muscular strength and endurance, flexibility, and body composition. Proper balance of all four components will improve biomechanics, stimulate energy, boost immune systems, reduce risk of injuries, build strength, and above all, make you feel good and make life easier.

Aerobic Capacity

Aerobic capacity, which is also known as cardiorespiratory fitness, refers to the health and function of the heart, lungs and circulatory system. Simply stated, aerobic fitness is the ability of the cardiorespiratory system to deliver an adequate supply of oxygen to exercising muscles. As your aerobic capacity increases, your ability to participate in more intense and longer lasting exercise also increases (e.g., walking, running, swimming and bicycling). It can be argued that aerobic capacity is the most important of the four elements of fitness because of the health benefits it bestows. According to the American College of Sports Medicine, increased aerobic capacity leads to reduced blood pressure, decreased total cholesterol, increased HDL (good) cholesterol, decreased body fat, increased heart function and decreased risk of Type 2 diabetes.

Muscular Strength and Endurance

Muscular strength is the maximum amount of force a muscle or muscle group can generate during a single contraction. Muscular endurance is the number of repeated contractions a muscle or muscle group can perform without tiring. Increasing your strength through various types of resistance training (e.g., weightlifting) leads to increased bone strength, decreased bone loss, decreased muscle loss, increased tendon and ligament strength, increased physical capacity, improved metabolic function (e.g., burn more calories at rest), and decreased risk of injury.

Flexibility

Flexibility is the range of motion within a joint. Increased flexibility provides a variety of benefits such as decreased risk of injury, increased flow of blood and nutrients to joint structures, increased neuromuscular coordination, decreased risk of low back pain, improved posture and reduced muscular tension.

Body Composition

Body composition refers to the relative percentage of body weight that consists of body fat and fat-free mass (everything other than fat such as muscles, organs, blood, bones and water). Generally speaking, the lower your body fat percentage the better because of the diseases linked to excess body fat such as heart disease, diabetes, hypertension, arthritis and sleep disorders.