The Five Components of Fitness; Which one are you Neglecting?
The five components of fitness are: Muscular Strength, Muscular Endurance, Cardiovascular Endurance, Flexibility, Body Composition. Which one are you neglecting?
As a baseline muscular strength and muscular endurance needs can be met with two or three days of weight training & bodyweight movements utilizing a variety of muscles and making sure to balance your training so one area does not get more attention then another area. Cardiovascular endurance can vary slightly from person to person depending on the needs and demands of the individuals life. For most 150 minutes of moderate activity combined with 45-60 minutes of higher intensity cardiovascular activity per week will create the adaptations you are looking to achieve. Body composition comes down to diet and genetics. It is as simple as that. For some people you will be able to maintain a low body composition or body fat with a moderate diet and for others you will need to keep a very strict diet with the occasional treat.
When just starting out it is important to remember that trying to do all of this at one time and doing too much early on will only lead to injury, overtraining & potentially even burnout or frustration. That is why we always recommend teaming up with a fitness professional at least for a little while in the beginning to make sure you are doing things correctly and optimizing your results.
Formal Fitness Training has been in the fitness industry now for going on ten years and there is one component of fitness which is most often neglected and also the trickiest of all the components of fitness in our “unbiased” opinion. That is flexibility. What is flexibility? People confused flexibility with just the ability to touch your toes, but that is just the starting point. Flexibility, mobility, muscular function and pliability, along with the ability for the fascia and joints and tendons to move smoothly while performing activities all encompass flexibility. For that FFT believes the flexibility is the most important component of fitness because without it cardiovascular endurance, muscular strength & muscular endurance will all suffer and lets face it without the ability to exercise properly there is a good chance that your waistline/body composition will suffer as well.
Do you agree?
So how often do you stretch? When was the last time you foam rolled? Do you casually warm-up and cool down when you take a run, hit the trails for a bike ride or workout at the gym or home?
These questions will allow you to determine what side of the fence you are on. (Giving attention to flexibility or not worried about it)
The younger you are, the more you can get away with in terms of flexibility but the best habits are going to be the good habits you start young and continue into your older years. The same is also true for those who are older; it is never too late to help your body function better, feel better & improve your ability to tackle daily activities.
Formal Fitness Training has a class Tuesday nights at 6-630pm on Zoom where we focus on reducing muscular tightness while improving muscle function, mobility & flexibility. This is done through foam rolling, myo-fascial self techniques, tiger tail & stretching. If you don’t know what some of those things are we would be glad to teach you!
*Mention this blog for a free pass to attend a class!
In closing; don’t neglect any component of fitness because they all work together to keep your body looking and feeling it’s best. Keep moving forward and keep making progress!
Onward and Upward Always!
~Mike
Michael Hartman
My mission is to give personal training participants a safe and effective workout designed specifically for their goals. Dealing with many sports injuries over the years taught me how to come back stronger every time. The competition is with yourself... Strive to bring out your best self and get better every day!
