ACSMs HealthRelated Physical Fitness Assessment Manual

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ACSMs Health-Related Physical Fitness Assessment
Manual

• Chapter 1

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Physical Fitness Definitions

• The importance of physical fitness is growing.
  Why?
• What is physical fitness?
• the ability to carry out daily tasks with vigor
  and alertness without undue fatigue and ample
  energy to enjoy leisure time pursuits and meet
  unforeseen emergencies.
• the capability of the heart, blood vessels,
  lungs and muscles to perform at optimal
  efficiency.
• a set of attributes that people have or
  achieve that relates to the ability to perform
  physical activity.

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Health-Related Components

• Cardiorespiratory Fitness (aerobic power)
• The ability to perform large muscle, dynamic
  exercise for prolonged periods of time.
• Body Composition
• The relative percentage of fat-free mass to fat
  mass.
• Flexibility-
• The ability to move a joint through its complete
  range of motion.
• Muscular strength-
• Maximal force generated by a specific muscle
  group.
• Muscular endurance-
• The ability for a muscle group to execute
  repeated contractions over a time period
  sufficient to cause fatigue.

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Reason why we assess fitness

• Used as a tool to educate clients about their
  physical status
• Provides information used in individualizing
  exercise programs
• Supplies baseline data used to compare with
  future results
• Assists in the goal setting process
• Provides information used in the risk
  stratification process

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Benefits of Physical activity

• Cardiorespiratory /Cardiovascular
• Increased ability to consume oxygen
• Greater efficiency at sub maximal intensities
• Increased capillary density
• Increased lactate thresholds
• May protect against some forms disease including
• Cardiovascular
• Type II diabetes
• Some forms of cancer
• Increased physical performance
• Decreased anxiety and depression

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Exercise versus Physical Activity

• Exercise planed and structured activity designed
  to increase overall fitness levels
• Physical activity not necessarily designed to
  increased physical fitness (if the intensity is
  high enough, the activity can increase
  health/fitness levels)

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Testing considerations

• Ease of administration
• Calipers vs. Hydrostatic tank
• Data Comparison
• Can the results be compared to the data of a
  similar group?
• Criterion vs. Normative
• Cost issues
• Is this more than the client needs?
• Validity (synonymous with accuracy)
• the test has capacity to measure what it is
  designed to measure
• Reliability
• Getting the same score repeatedly across various
  testing situations

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Criterion Standards

• Criterion Standards Standards set by what is
  desirable based on an external criteria (what
  is considered healthy) Example results include
  Excellent Poor etc.
• Pros
• Less ambiguous
• Closely tied with scores to improve health
• Cons
• A great score could be up for interpretation
  (subjective)
• May not be an appropriate score for the
  individual (type A personality) 

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Normative Data

• Normative Data Based on past performance of a
  group of similar individuals. (Usually age and
  gender) Example results include 90th
  percentile 60th percentile etc.
• Pros
• Most fitness tests are associated with norm
• Less subjective then criterion scores
• Cons
• Normative data might not accurately reflect the
  desired population
• Results reflect what the participants were able
  to do, not what they should do

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Prediction test versus a direct assessment

• Most fitness assessments are prediction tests.
• Examples include
• Calipers
• Submaximal cycle ergometer
•  Other tests directly measure a given fitness
  parameter
• Examples include
• VO2 Max using a metabolic cart
• A-V O2 using a blood draw
• Consider using only the raw score as a base line.