Physical fitness

“ Physical fitness is vital to a healthy lifestyle. During National Physical Fitness and Sports Month, we highlight the importance of integrating exercise into our daily routines and encourage all our citizens to live more active lives. ”

“ The record breaking achievements in Olympic games, International competition and World Cups were made possible by the effective introduction of the training methods. As the Olympic motto is ever faster, ever higher and ever longer, FITNESS is the key work to it. Achieving the total fitness is the aim of all individuals. Total fitness to four components such as :-
Physical fitnessMental fitnessEmotional fitnessSocial fitness Physical fitness is his or her potential for physical effort toward their specific task as well as toward their general fitness. ”

“ Here, there are five factors which contribute to the development of muscular efficiency i.e power, endurance, volume, speed of contraction and co-ordination. Whenever an athlete faces any accident he/she is reconditioned by this training method first and then specific conditioning.
To develop power to a normal athlete, heavy equipments which give greater resistance may be used. This method may develop power, endurance, speed of contraction and co-ordination. ”

“ Can a man on such a diet, even though it suffices to keep up body-weight and apparently also physiological equilibrium, do work to any extent? Will there be under such condition a proper degree of fitness for physical work of any kind? In order to ascertain this point, the subject was invited to do physical work at the Yale University Gymnasium, and placed under the guidance of the director of the gymnasium, Dr. ”

“ This may consist of exercises that call into play all the muscles of the body, or which are concentrated upon special parts. When general tonic effects are desired, the exercise should be well distributed; but when counteractive or remedial effects are wanted, it must be applied chiefly to the parts that are weak or that have not been called into action by the regular work. Unfortunately, health is sometimes confused with physical strength and exercise is directed toward the stronger parts of the body with the effect of making them still stronger. ”

“ It should aim at the healthy development of the body, as well as of the mind, by the regular development of all the muscles, the quickening of the intelligence and activity, and the formation of the habits of prompt obedience, precision, smartness, and discipline. The exercises should not be for mere display or entertainment, but each should have its particular purpose and value to develop all parts of the body.
“A certain amount of physical exercise once a day or oftener is preferable to even a greater amount, at longer or irregular intervals. ”

“ But even where natural or physical energy is deficient, an energetic manner may be acquired by practice and exercise under judicious direction; just as the muscular powers may be improved, and bodily vigor increased, even in a feeble frame, under a course of training and well-regulated exercise. ”

“ It is by their action in exercise that the muscles are enlarged, hardened, and brought to their greatest state of perfection. And it is only by exercise, and by exercise alone, that they can be maintained at the acme of physical condition.
Now, in the same way that education develops and increases the power of the brain, so exercise has a similar effect on the body. When the muscles are strengthened, the beneficial effect is also participated in by the heart, lungs, and digestive organs, and thus the removal of worn-out material from the body is assisted. ”

“ To these three essentials of physical education—health, harmonious development, economical utilization of muscular force—correspond a series of exercises which can not produce their maximum useful effect without being subjected to regulations of which we proceed to sketch the principal features.
Health may be with equal ease confirmed or destroyed by exercise. It is only necessary to refer to the deplorable condition of the ancient athletes, with whom the enormous mass of the muscles absorbed all the activity of the organism. ”

“ Next comes the question of exercise. Too little attention is paid to this matter, more especially by those engaged in sedentary occupations; yet it is in the highest degree important that the balance between the mental and physical energies should be maintained. To preserve this balance while the mind is active and the body untaxed, artificial exercise must be practiced, for physical strength cannot be promoted without some kind of bodily exercise. ”

“ The table of Proportional Measurements, according to height and weight, will form a good guide for the athlete as to his special muscular development. Banting’s System of Reducing Corpulency, though not exactly intended for training purposes, is not to be despised, containing, as it does, much interesting and reliable information, on the subject of diet especially. To complete the treatise, and in order to prove what can be done by man when in proper physical condition, we add a record of the best athletic performances. ”

“ Exercise as a Counteractive Agent.—In counteracting tendencies to disease and in the maintenance of the functional equilibrium of the body, no agent has yet been discovered of greater importance than physical exercise, when applied systematically and persistently. ”

“ Good chest and lung development, a strong heart, well-developed and firm muscles are the tripod on which rests physical endurance and resistance to disease. And this was just where the entire class was found to be gravely subnormal.
Physical training consists primarily of heart training; in increasing the breathing capacity; in strengthening and developing the heart and other muscles of the body. As [Pg 22] the muscles become stronger the body is held more erect, and this favors, as we have seen, all of its functions. ”

“ The nerves can never be open channels while the body wants either proper nourishment, the stimulus that comes from open air exercise, perfect rest, or true economy of force in running the human machine.
The physical training should be a steady shunning of personal perversions until the nervous system is in a natural state, and the muscles work in direct obedience to the will with the exquisite co-ordination which is natural to them. ”

“ Heavy-weight exercises, consisting in the use of heavy dumb-bells or other apparatus in which the actual physical pull exerted by the body in moving the weights is sufficient to try the muscles to their maximum capacity. This system of exercise should be discouraged; while it may add to the mere lifting strength, it takes from the muscles their flexibility, and from the body its agile and supple activity. ”

“ REST, fresh air, exercise, and nourishment, enough of each in proportion to the work done, are the material essentials to a healthy physique. Indeed, so simple is the whole process of physical care, it would seem absurd to write about it at all. The only excuse for such writing is the constant disobedience to natural laws which has resulted from the useless complexity of our civilization. ”

“ Ordinarily, a few minutes of exercise each day, supplemented with some walking and deep breathing will suffice. About five minutes of vigorous exercise night and morning are generally enough to keep a person in good physical condition, if he is prudent otherwise.
Many strive to build up a great musculature. This is a mistake, unless the intention is to become an exhibit for the sake of earning one's living. Big muscles do not spell health, efficiency and endurance. Even a dyspeptic may be able to build big muscles. ”

“ It is splendid if you can belong to a gymnasium or to a physical culture class, but ten to fifteen minutes' systematic daily exercise practiced with vim, and each set followed by deep breathing, will do more good than a gymnasium spasmodically attended. Brisk walking with a long stride isn't so bad; in fact, if taken with a very long stride it will twist 'most every organ you have in your body.
There are hundreds of exercises you can take. ”

“ And yet, to those who know what judicious, daily physical exercise has done, and can do, for a delicate body, there is no more doubt but that this later strength, and even sturdiness, can be acquired, than that the algebra or geometry, which at first seems impenetrable, can be gradually mastered. The rules which bring success in each are in many ways the same. Give the muscles of the hand and forearm, for instance, as vigorous and steady use for the school-year as these studies bring to the brain; and the physical grasp will as surely and steadily improve as does the mental. ”

“ When the muscles are exercised the vital, organs are energized and the activity of the entire functional system greatly increased-all clearly indicating that in taking physical exercise the internal organs are aroused and stimulated.
Gigantic strength is not especially needed. It is not necessary for one to strive to eclipse the feats of famous strong men. Unusual muscular development is of no great value in this age, but a normal degree of
strength is absolutely necessary in the struggle for health and vitality. ”

“ The manner in which the organic functions are performed not only determine the health of the body, but the temperament and character as well. There is a conservation of energy in the fashioning of the will—only part of the energy is expended in the outward effort, while the rest goes to lay the foundation of a future will, so that exercise builds up faculty and conduct character. ”

“ A large proportion of the nerve cells have for their function the production of motion, and these are called into play only through muscular activity. Then, as already suggested, physical exercise counteracts the unpleasant effects of mental work. Hard study causes an excess of blood to be sent to the brain and a diminished amount [pg 329] to the arms and to the legs. Physical exercise redistributes the blood and equalizes the circulation. Light exercise should, therefore, follow hard study. ”

“ Physical exercise, by accelerating the circulation of the blood, stimulates the activity of all those internal organs whose functions conjointly constitute the phenomenon of life, and counteracts innumerable functional disorders, any one of which is sure to react on the nervous system and the organ of the soul. ”

“ Exercises of endurance do not require supreme efforts, but they do accelerate the action of the heart and lungs, and the aggregate of work done is very much greater than in exercises of strength, but the exercise must be sufficiently active to provide for the free circulation of lymph, which is carried on mainly through the massage of muscular contraction. ”

“ And even if those of exceptional vitality can neglect their physical requirements without suffering, the man of limited energy, who is trying to build vitality, certainly cannot afford to do so.
We ought to take a reasonable amount of exercise at intervals, regular or otherwise, in order to keep fully alive. It is not a case of exercise for the sake of muscular strength alone, but for the sake of health and life. ”

“ As our tenure of life at best is short, it is our duty to strive to live as free as possible from bodily ills. It is, therefore, of paramount importance to rightly exercise every part of the body, and this without undue effort or injurious strain.
Strictly speaking, physical exercise refers to the functional activity of each and every tissue, and properly includes the regulation of the functions and movements of the entire body. The word exercise, however, is used usually in a narrower sense as applied to those movements that are effected by the contraction of the voluntary muscles. ”

“ Surely every man in this great Republic of ours wants to be healthy, strong, and efficient, but how is he to obtain and maintain this threefold blessing? It has been stated that scientific physical exercise, preferably taken in group association, will accomplish it. ”

“ The value of exercise consists not in developing large muscles nor in accomplishing athletic feats, but in attaining physical poise, symmetry of form, and the harmonious adjustment of the various parts of the body, as well as in furthering the proper activity of cell-tissues and organs and the elimination of waste products. ”

“ Further perusal of the text, however, will show that they admit that this depends chiefly upon the physical condition, and they advise the practice of exercises, in order to make people physically fit first. This is, of course, true, since it is difficult for most people to be of a good disposition and smile and laugh when the body is not in fit condition. ”

“ Hence arises the necessity of students of elocution practising physical exercises adapted to promote general muscular vigor, as a means of attaining energy in speaking; the power of any class of muscles being dependent on the vigor of the whole system. ”

“ Effect of Brain Fatigue on Body Fatigue, and vice versa; Marks for Physical Efficiency; Advantages Derived from Athletic Sports; Ethical Value of Sports for Women; Forms of Athletic Games Best Suited to Women.
Physical training is the key to all beauty of form and face as well as grace of motion. Beauty without health is inconceivable. ”

“ Amount and Kind of Exercise.—The amount of exercise required varies greatly with different individuals, and definite recommendations cannot be made. For each individual also the amount should vary with the physical condition and the other demands made upon the energy. One in health should exercise sufficiently to keep the muscles firm to the touch and the body in a vigorous condition. ”

“ Exercises for the Development of Special Muscles.—Few persons, even among those who have given considerable attention to physical culture and have spent much time in a gymnasium, could, if asked, tell what special forms of exercise were best calculated to fill out a hollow shoulder or flat chest, or strengthen weak loins or back. ”