How to evaluate your physical fitness

Here’s an eminently practical definition for physical fitness:”the capacity to fulfill daily activities without feeling unusual fatigue, and to keep a reserve for physical activities, sports or for passing free time.

Being physical fit to mow the lawn or for cleaning up, isn’t the same as being fit to move the piano from one place to another or to climb 20 stories worth of stairs.

By Claude Bouchard, exercise physiology specialist, a good physical fitness should keep the following aspects in sight

• organic endurance
• strength and muscular endurance
• posture, especially the waist’s position
• adipose tissue reported to body weight
• the capacity to relax and unwind

I’m adding slim joints and breathing quality to the list.

Evaluate your physical fitness by evaluating your organic endurance

Organic endurance manifests its self thru a good and efficient heart condition, blood flow and breathing, during dynamic muscle effort, done in oxygenating conditions. At age 70 your physical endurance is half of that from age 20.

Physical exercises can maintain this within high parameters. All physical exercises that exercise a large part of muscle mass and contain important movement, contributes to ameliorate physical endurance.

This means that by doing more physical exercises, our body will produce more and more energy, even while resting! After a month of physical exercises meant to ameliorate cardiovascular system function, we’ll discover that during moderate effort we will breath less and deeper; this way air stays more in the lungs between breaths and the body can absorb more oxygen.

Evaluate your physical fitness by evaluating your muscle strength

Muscle strength is evaluated by the capacity of a muscle to work during effort. Ameliorating muscle strength is translated thru increased volume of the used muscles and a greater mobilization during effort

Evaluate your physical fitness by evaluating your muscle endurance

Muscle endurance is raised by the perseverance with which we repeat an exercise which needs a reduced or medium effort. By doing such exercises we notice an amelioration og blood flow at muscle level.

Evaluate your physical fitness by evaluating your body posture

A correct body and waist position helps protect the spine, this “tree of life” around which the skeleton and organs position themselves. Our life habits have a huge impact on our spine. That is why you should strive to have a good body posture.

Evaluate your physical fitness by evaluating your fat-body weight ratio

Fat tobody weight ratio increases as we get older. By exercising regularly we can soften this process, by diminishing fat mass for muscle mass.

Evaluate your physical fitness by evaluating your capacity to relax and unwind the muscles

The capacity to relax and unwind the muscles is just as important for a good physical condition helps us fight more efficiently against physical and psychological tension of every day life.

Evaluate your physical fitness by evaluating your joint slimness

Joint slimness, condition, movement, strength and efficiency. As we age our joints tend to degenerate, influencing arthritis development.

Evaluate your physical fitness by evaluating your breathing quality

Deep natural breathing Is a source of health and energy. Breathing doesn’t only allow muscle relaxation and distention, but blood and lymphatic flow amelioration, assuring a increased oxygen transportation towards the cells and the body’s organs, especially to the brain, which is a big oxygen consumer. Breathing has an essential role in raising all the internal organ’s vitality.