Sears Free Spirit C 249 30533 1, Owner'S Manual

23

TRAINING GUIDELINES 

Exercise is one of the most important factors in the overall health of an individual. Listed among its benefits 

are: 

Increased capacity for physical work (strength endurance) 

Increased cardiovascular (heart and arteries/veins) and respiratory efficiency 

Decreased risk of coronary heart disease 

Changes in body metabolism, e.g. losing weight 

Delaying the physiological effects of age 

Physiological effects, e.g. reduction in stress, increase in self-confidence, etc. 

Basic Components of Physical Fitness 

There are four all encompassing components of physical fitness and we need to briefly define each and 

clarify its role. 

Strength

 is the capacity of a muscle to exert a force against resistance. Strength contributes to power and 

speed and is of great importance to a majority of sports people. 

Muscular Endurance

 is the capacity to exert a force repeatedly over a period of time, e.g. it is the capacity 

of your legs to carry you 10 Km without stopping. 

Flexibility

 is the range of motion about a joint. Improving flexibility involves the stretching of muscles and 

tendons to maintain or increase suppleness, and provides increased resistance to muscle injury or soreness. 

Cardio-Respiratory Endurance

 is the most essential component of physical fitness. It is the efficient 

functioning of the heart and lungs. 
 

Aerobic Fitness

The largest amount of oxygen that you can use per minute during exercise is called your 

maximum

oxygen 

uptake 

(MVo2). This is often referred to as your 

aerobic capacity. 

The effort that you can exert over a prolonged period of time is limited by your ability to deliver oxygen to 

the working muscles. Regular vigorous exercise produces a training effect that can increase your aerobic 

capacity by as much as 20 to 30%. An increased MVO2 indicates an increased ability of the heart to pump 

blood, of the lungs to ventilate oxygen and of the muscles to take up oxygen. 

Anaerobic Training 

This means “without oxygen” and is the output of energy when the oxygen supply is insufficient to meet the 

body’s long term energy demands. (For example, 100 meter sprint). 

The Training Threshold 

This is the minimum level of exercise which is required to produce significant improvements in any physical fitness parameter. 

Progression

As your become fitter, a higher intensity of exercise is required to create an overload and therefore provide 
continued improvement 
 

Overload

This is where you exercise at a level above that which can be carried out comfortably. The intensity, 

duration and frequency of exercise should be above the training threshold and should be gradually increased 

as the body adapts to the increasing demands. As your fitness level improves, the training threshold should 

be raised.  Working through your program and gradually increasing the overload factor is important.