Physical fitness facts for kids

Physical fitness is generally achieved through exercise. Photo shows Rich Froning Jr. – four-time winner of "Fittest Man on Earth" title.

A woman performs plank exercise for strengthening of muscles

Swimmers perform squats prior to entering the pool in a U.S. military base, 2011

Physical fitness is the ability to be physically active. A person is physically fit if he or she can pass tests designed to measure physical performance. Such tests are necessary for some occupations, such as soldiers and firefighters.

Physical fitness has two components: general fitness (a state of health and well-being) and specific fitness (the ability to perform specific aspects of sports or occupations).

Components of physical fitness

The President's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports — a study group sponsored by the United States Government — declines to offer a simple definition of physical fitness. Instead, it developed the following chart:

Health related components: those factors that are related to how well the systems of your body work.

Body composition is the relative percentage of body fat compared to lean body mass (muscle, bone, water,etc)

Cardiovascular fitness: the ability of the circulatory system (heart and blood vessels) to supply oxygen to working muscles during exercise.

Flexibility: the range of movement possible at various joints.

Accordingly, a general-purpose physical fitness program must address those issues.

Ancient icons of physical fitness

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  Heracles, the greatest hero of Greek mythology. Statue in Napoli.

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  Discus throwing, one of the original Ancient Greek Olympic sports. The statue is located in Copenhagen.

Related pages

Images for kids

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  Playing sports such as lawn tennis is a common way to maintain/improve physical fitness. Image shows international tennis player Barbora Strycova.

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  Ladies performing a common 19th-century fitness routine including climbing the underside of a ladder, balancing and gymnastics.

See also

In Spanish: Fitness para niños