Category Archives: Fitness basics

July 14, 2011

Fitness Basics: the FITT principle

By simon

The FITT principle is the basic principle of training and something that works very well, however long you have been exercising for.  FITT is an acronym for Frequency, Intensity, Time and Type. It works on the four basic elements of a training plan, which all need to be planned together in relation to each other.

Training 4 times a week is great, but if it’s too easy, not long enough or the wrong activity then the results will be minimal.  Likewise a solid gym session once a week with nothing in between has limited benefit.

Frequency

In simple terms how often we are training.  This is easily broken down into weekly proportions, and can be anything from once per week for recreational to even twice a day for advanced athletes.

Intensity

This is described as the intensity or difficulty of the workouts, such as how fat you run or how high your heart rate is.  Probably the most important element for those really needing to gain fitness.

Time

The amount of time we spend exercising is important.  30 minutes may be enough for some, whereas a marathoner runner definitely needs to be doing several hours.

Type

The type of training we do is very specific to the results we expect to gain.  Weight training will not improve fitness dramatically for example.

 

Simon Lesser offers Personal Training in Bournemouth specializing in fitness, conditioning and weight loss.  For more information visit simonlesser.co.uk

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June 23, 2011

Fitness Basics: Elements of Fitness

By simon

There are many elements of fitness and when most people mention getting fit, they are usually talking about more than one of these elements.

Being ‘fit’ can mean different things to different people.  It may be simply being able to live everyday life with ease, or it may be climbing a mountain. We need to be clear about which ones are important to us.

Here are the main areas we may be interested in, all of which can be improved through regular training.

Aerobic Fitness

This is what fitness means to most.  This involves activities such as running and cycling and most sports where we move enough to get out of breath.  Essentially this is the efficiency of the heart, lungs and circulatory system delivering oxygen around the body.

Anaerobic Fitness

Sprint training illustrates this element well. Aerobic exercise uses oxygen, anaerobic is working sufficiently harder and would involve short more intense bouts of exercise.

Strength

Our strength is determined by how much weight we can lift.  This can be trained through resistance or weight training and is specific to different areas of the body.

Power

The ability to move quickly from point A to point B.  This would be illustrated by a sprinter coming out of the blocks.

Flexibility

This is the amount of movement at the various joints of the body.  Touching our toes is a classic test of flexibility.

Balance / Co ordination / Motor Skills

Further elements, all specific to the task involving the nervous system which tells the body how to behave.  This may be anything from standing on one leg to an intricate dance routine.

There are further elements within each of these areas, which is where things get interesting. Everything can be finely tuned, and a specific sport or goal will always include a number of the elements above.

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June 13, 2011

Fitness Basics: How we get fit

By simon

The reason we do exercise is to stay fit and healthy, along with our specific fitness goals.  What we do, for how long and how the body recovers will determine how the body responds.

How we get fitter

When we exercise, whatever type or form the aim is to ‘overload’ the body.  This is essentially pushing the body a little bit, into new territory, making it do something it is unaccustomed to.  Over the next day or so the body will respond to this by going through a period of compensation – ie we become fitter!  Simple.

And the next bit..

The trick, at this point is not to rest on our laurels, but to repeat the process, overloading the body again and up to the next level (and so on).

The next thing to look at (see other articles) would be the type of exercise and the intensity.  Our bodies will only get fit specific to the mode of exercise and the intensity or level of exercise is the key.

Simon Lesser works as a Personal Trainer in  Bournemouth and Poole, Dorset.  See more info at www.simonlesser.co.uk.

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June 10, 2011

Fitness Basics : How often to exercise

By simon

As with everything there are differing opinions on what works best.  Here we will try and cover what works with frequency of exercise.

The American College of Sports Medicine recommend 30 minutes 5 times per week.  But how often we need to exercise really depends on the results we are looking for, age and  training experience.  A 20 year old triathlete would certainly be looking to do more than a 65 year old retiree.

When we exercise we overload the body, making it become fitter or stronger in the following hours of recovery.  This time differs, but recovery time is generally considered to be 36 to 48 hours which ties in nicely with the general approach of training 3-4 times per week.

The all important factor is intensity (see other articles).  Harder sessions will overload the body more and require more recovery. Our work and personal lives often dictate exercise frequency as well.  The outine however is fairly clear…

Want serious results?  Train 4 or even 5 times a week!

Struggling for time and energy? Not that serious?  Exercise twice a week is clearly better than none at all and you will realize some results.

Simon Lesser works as a Personal Trainer in  Bournemouth and Poole, Dorset.  See more info at www.simonlesser.co.uk.

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