The importance of exercise in a person’s health is often overlooked; however, it is necessary to maintain a healthy body. Exercise can reduce the risk of heart attack, manage weight, lower cholesterol levels, blood pressure, the risk of type 2 diabetes, falls, and allow for a person to have stronger bones, muscles, and joints. Physical activity can make a person feel better by providing them with more energy, a better mood, relaxation, and better sleep. Many studies have shown that being active can help depression and distract people from their daily worries. Because fitness is so important to a person’s quality of life, people should know how to properly stay active. Fitness is not defined by how healthy a person looks but instead by how well a person can perform the five components to physical fitness. A person’s cardiovascular endurance, muscular strength, muscular endurance, flexibility, and body composition can determine how in shape a person is.

How well a person can perform in physical tests that assess cardiovascular endurance, muscular strength, muscular endurance, flexibility, and body composition can determine their health. Cardiovascular endurance is the ability of the heart and lungs to provide oxygen and fuel to the body during an extended workout. The heart, lungs, and blood vessels work together to bring blood to organs and muscles of the body during a workout. As the amount of activity increases, it is harder for the body to provide the necessary amount of blood and nutrients to the muscles and organs needed for a workout. Some examples of cardiovascular activity are walking, running, biking, or playing a sport for a prolonged period of time or more than ninety seconds. A person can measure their cardiovascular endurance fitness level by rating themselves on how well they perform activities that involve cardiovascular endurance. The MCA PE Fitness Test rates a student’s cardiovascular endurance by running the mile. Secondly, muscular strength is another example of one of the five components of physical fitness. Muscular strength is the amount of force a muscle can produce. It is also known as the maximum amount of force generated by a muscle group. Examples of this are bench press, leg press, and bicep curls. My school uses the pushup test to test muscular strength. By a person’s performance on the pushup test, they can test their level of muscular strength. Third, muscular endurance is another component of fitness. It is the ability of the muscles in our body to perform physical activities continuously without fatiguing. Some examples are cycling, step machines, and elliptical machines. On can test their muscular endurance by seeing their performance on the fitness test. My school uses the sit up test to determine a student’s muscular endurance. Fourth, flexibility is another one of the five components of fitness. Flexibility is the ability of each joint to move through the available range of motion for a specific joint. Having good flexibility can decrease the chance of getting injuries throughout life. Some examples are yoga, basic stretching, and swimming. The ability to perform certain flexible movements like a lunge is a example of a way someone can test their flexibility. My school tests flexibility by a student’s performance on the sit and reach test. Fifth, the last component of the five is body composition. It is defined as the amount of fat mass compared to lean muscle mass, water, bones, and organs. Muscles take up less space in out body than fat. How a person looks is dependent on body composition. However, each individual has their own goals on what their body should look like, and therefore, the individual’s fitness goals can differ. A person’s body composition can be measured using underwater weighing, skinfold readings, and bioelectrical impedance. Because of the size and high price of the equipment needed to measure body composition, my school does not have the ability to measure it. However, based on how a student performs in the other four components of the fitness test, body composition can be assumed. If a person wants to test their body composition, they can pay for it to be professionally done. Overall, a person’s cardiovascular endurance, muscular strength, muscular endurance, flexibility, and body composition can determine how in shape a person is.

Personally, I am an active person and enjoy fitness. My cardiovascular endurance, which refers to my body’s ability to efficiently and effectively breath in oxygen and bring it to my body’s tissues through the heart, lungs, arteries, vessels, and veins, is strong because I commit to regular exercise that challenges my heart everyday. On the days I do not have volleyball practice, I enjoy taking jogs in the park to improve and strengthen my heart and muscles. Because I have to work out for volleyball, my muscular endurance is also strong. I have developed a fatigue resistance because on weekends, I have to play many intense games in a row at a tournament. I also do planks, crunches, situps, and pushups at practice on weekdays which are other ways to improve muscle endurance. However, because muscle endurance is specific to the set of muscles a person works, my shoulder and back muscles are weak because I do not work on them. If I work on strengthening my back by lifting weights, my muscle endurance will continue to improve. I also need to improve my muscle strength. I am trained to continue a good level of work over a long period of time because of volleyball games, but if I improve my strength, I will perform better. I can do this by lifting weights and focusing on strengthening one body part at a time. I enjoy stretching to prevent serious injuries, so I am somewhat flexible. It is very important to any athlete to be flexible so that their tight muscles are not prone to injuries. My body composition is continuing to improve while the other four components of fitness become better. Because I exercise often, I am losing body fat and gaining muscle. I have missed being active while having a concussion but I hope to rejoin sports soon in order to stay healthy and work on the five components of fitness.