Physical Fitness Assessment

1. Physical Fitness Assessment

2. Fitness Evaluation • When assessing physical fitness you must also assess: • Muscle endurance • Flexibility • Cardiovascular Endurance • Body Composition • Special Considerations • Without a baseline measurement, it is impossible to eval the effectiveness of a client’s exercise program

3. Fitness Evaluation • Competitive Fitness: the strength, endurance, and mental well-being required to be competitive in sports activities • General Fitness: the ability to perform daily activities with vitality and energy , to withstand stress without undue fatigue, and to maintain physical health without medical intervention

4. Fitness Evaluation • Athlete’s fitness is typically more physically demanding than those of the general public • High BP is a major condition to watch for when performing a fitness eval

5. Muscular Endurance Evaluations • Repetitions: the completion of designated movement through the entire ROM • Muscle Contraction: the tensioning of the muscle during shortening (concentric), lengthening (eccentric), or no motion (isometric)

6. Muscular Endurance Evaluations • Bent-Leg Sit-Ups • Measure the muscular endurance of the abdominal muscles • Poor abs can contribute to low back pain • Less stress on the back than straight-leg sit-up • Caution clients to not overstrain or hold breath • Record number completed in 1 minute

7. Muscular Endurance Evaluations • Push-Ups • Measures upper body endurance • Allows ATC or SCS to eval muscular endurance in the arms, chest, and trunk • Should be smooth and without jerky movements • Caution clients to not overstrain or hold breath • Record number completed after 1 minute • Trunk: the torso; area of the body on either side of and including, the spine, but excluding the arms and legs

8. Muscular Endurance Evaluations • Modified Push-Ups • Women do not develop their upper body as much as men • Record number completed within 1 minute

9. Muscular Endurance Evaluation • Bench Jump or Step • Used to determine the muscle endurance of the lower extremities • Performed by jumping from ground level to the top of a bench (16 in) and back down again • Record number done in 1 minute

10. Flexibility Evaluation • Flexibility: the ability to stretch a muscle through its full ROM w/o pain or muscle tearing • ROM: the maximum range through which a joint can move • Measure the flexibility of the trunk, bc the rest of the body is in similar condition

11. Flexibility Evaluation • Sit and Reach (Trunk Flexion) • Measures the amount of forward trunk flexion as well as the amount of flexibility in the hamstrings • Hamstrings: the muscles on the posterior aspects of the femur

12. Flexibility Evaluations • Back Bend (Trunk Extension) • Helps the ATC eval the ability fo the abs and spine to extend backward • Clients with back problems should not attempt this test

13. Flexibility Evaluations • Zipper Test • Place one arm over the shoulder and one arm under • Reach towards the opposite hands • Measure the distance between middle fingers

14. Evaluating Cardiovascular Endurance • Resting Heart Rate: the number of times the heart beats in 1 minute when no physical activity is taking place • Recovery Heart Rate: the number of times the heart beats in 1 minute, 60 seconds after completion of 3 or more minutes of exercise

15. Evaluating Cardiovascular Endurance • Optimum muscular activity is possible only when the heart, blood vessels, and lungs are functioning effectively.

16. Evaluating Cardiovascular Endurance • Measuring HR • AKA pulse • Determined by counting the number of heartbeats per minute • Count the number of beats for 30 seconds and multiply by 2 • During exercise count beats for 10 seconds and multiply by 6

17. Evaluating Cardiovascular Endurance • 2 common places on the body used for checking pulse • Radial Artery (wrist) • Carotid Artery (neck) • Never check both carotid arteries at the same time • Client will lose consciousness due to restricted blood flow to the brain • Never check pulse with the thumb

18. Evaluating Cardiovascular Endurance • Determining the Resting Heart Rate • Provides a baseline to compare the client’s physical fitness level • Should be taken while sitting quietly • Never taken during or immediately after activity • Best time: morning after wakening • Take HR 3 days in a row and avg the numbers • Adults: 60-100 bpm (beats per minute) • Conditioned Athletes: 40-60 bpm • If over 100 bpm: poor condition

19. Evaluating Cardiovascular Endurance • Pulse Recovery Step Test • AKA Kasch pulse recovery test • AKA 3-minute step test • measures a persons recovery HR following 3 minutes of exercise • 12 in-high-step • A metronome device should be set at 96 counts per minute • Wait 60 seconds after completion to take HR

20. Body Composition • Lean Body Weight: the weight of a body after the fat weight has been subtracted • Measure the amount of body fat at selected points on the body using a skinfold caliper • Skinfold Caliper: a plier-like instrument used to measure thickness

21. Body Composition • Fat Weight: the weight of a body after the lean body weight has been subtracted; the weight of the adipose tissue of the body • Body Weight x % Body Fat= Fat Weight

22. Body Composition • Lean Body Weight • Body Weight – Fat Weight = Lean Body Weight (LBW)

23. Body Composition • Recommended Ranges of Body Fat • It is difficult • Varies from person to person • Depends on age, gender, hereditary, and lifestyle • A person’s ideal % body fat is the amount of fat at which that person performs and feels best • Athletes: depends on the sport being played

24. Body Composition • Less body fat is not always better • A certain amount of body fat is necessary for proper protection of the internal organs • Essential Body Fat: the minimum amount of body fat necessary for the proper protection of internal organs • Different for males and females • Male EBF: 3% • Female EBF: 12%

25. Body Composition and Athletes • Parallel: extending in the same direction and remaining separated by the same distance along the entire length, never crossing paths • Important for athletes to make sure that their body fat does not fall below the low end of the range recommended for their sport.

26. Body Composition and Athletes • Determining Muscle Gain or Loss • Muscle tissue is a part of the lean body weight • Changes in lean body mass are going to be mainly caused by changes in the amount of muscle tissue

27. Recording • Essential to measuring individual progress in both athletic and nonathletic settings • Progress info can be recorded on a progress record or tracked on a computer • Progress is measured by improvement or in some cases by maintenance

28. Special Consideration • Everyone is different • Always consider the unique physical requirements of the person’s daily activities • Ex: career, lifestyle, physiological • Fitness potential can be influenced by a varied of factors that may be beyond a person’s control or determined by profession.

29. Musculoskeletal Capabilities and Limitations • It is not realistic to hold everyone to the same standards of fitness • Clients will look elsewhere for guidance if there HC providers do not take this into consideration. • Limitations in strength, flexibility, and cardio can result from injuries or congenital conditions • Congenital: a condition present at birth

30. Musculoskeletal Capabilities and Limitations • Soft tissue injuries • Surgeries • Illnesses • Amputations • Neural Damage • Age

31. Other Physical and Medical Conditions • Everyone should have a physical exam performed by a physician to determine if they have any preexisting conditions • Clients with high blood pressure (hypertension) or low blood pressure (hypotension) require special considerations in their physical fitness assessments • Normal BP is 120/80 • Hypertension can exert extreme pressure on blood vessels. • If the pressure gets too high, there is a danger of rupturing vital blood vessels, particularly those of the brain or heart.

32. Other Physical and Medical Conditions • Do not even attempt to assess a client with abnormal blood pressure until the client has a physical exam and begins appropriate intervention • The physician can then recommend an appropriate level of exertion for that individual • Pregnancy is another condition that requires consideration • Because of the location of the fetus, pregnant women should not participate in activities such as sit-ups that put excessive strain on the abs • Push-ups may become impossible as well

33. Other Physical and Medical Conditions • Certain activities may also be contraindicated for pregnant women. • A physician should always determine which activities are appropriate for a given pregnant woman before any testing takes place