What, Exactly, is Fitness?
by Lisa Gartland
posted 4-4-09

If you ask ten people to tell you what fitness is, nine of them will talk about their weight. But fitness has very little to do with a person’s weight. Instead, fitness is defined by what a body can DO, not by how it looks.

There are four elements of fitness: endurance, strength, flexibility, and balance/coordination.

Of the four, endurance is most vital to your health. People with high endurance can exercise vigorously for a long time, and recover quickly afterwards. A strong heart and efficient lungs are the key to endurance, and also make you less prone to many chronic diseases. Thankfully, you can improve your endurance. Hiking, running, biking, tennis, soccer, dance and fitness classes are all great activities that work your heart & lungs.

Muscular strength ranks second in its benefits. Strength makes it easier to carry groceries, or hit a long ball. Like the cardiovascular system, muscles are very responsive to exercise. Weight training and basic exercises like push-ups and sit-ups are great for strengthening major muscle groups, while yoga and pilates help zero in on smaller muscles.

As we age, flexibility becomes more of an issue. Joints & muscles get stiffer, making movement more difficult. Exercise helps reverse this trend. Using your muscles regularly can improve flexibility, especially when paired with stretching. Yoga is especially effective for increasing flexibility.

Finally, balance and coordination help you move smoothly & confidently, and can save you from injury. The more regularly you exercise, the better your coordination and balance become. Exercise doesn’t just train your body, it also trains your mind. Movement information is stored in your brain, and the more recent this information is, the better.

The wonderful thing about fitness is how easily it can be improved. Our bodies were made to move, and our endurance, strength, flexibility, and balance respond to this movement. You can definitely increase your fitness with regular exercise.

If you’re concerned about your weight, getting and staying fit will help. You burn extra calories while you exercise, and as your body recovers. And the more muscular you become, the more calories you burn. But even the thinnest of us can benefit from better fitness.

Don’t miss out on fitness, the most effective way to improve your health, ability, mobility and confidence!

Lisa Gartland is the owner of Inside Outside Fitness, a friendly, neighborhood gym at 4444 Piedmont Avenue in Oakland, www.insideoutsidefitness.com.

This article was also printed in the Piedmont Post.

Fitness Tips & Healthy Recipes Archive