Table of ContentsView AllTable of Contents5 Fitness ComponentsImportanceCardiovascular EnduranceMuscular StrengthMuscular EnduranceMobility/FlexibilityBody CompositionBalanced Training Program
Table of ContentsView All
View All
Table of Contents
5 Fitness Components
Importance
Cardiovascular Endurance
Muscular Strength
Muscular Endurance
Mobility/Flexibility
Body Composition
Balanced Training Program
Fitness can be divided into five health-related components, including cardiovascular endurance, muscular strength, muscular endurance, flexibility/mobility, and body composition. Fitness is defined as the condition of being physically fit and healthy, improving your ability to execute daily activities. Being physically active is important for good health.
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The 5 Components of Fitness, Explained
Fitness is a general term that includes multiple health-related components. These include:
A Word From VerywellBefore starting an exercise regimen, those with an underlying health concern or medical condition or those recovering from an acute injury or surgery should consult with a healthcare provider.—MALLORY CHRISTOPHERSON, DC, MEDICAL EXPERT BOARD
A Word From Verywell
Before starting an exercise regimen, those with an underlying health concern or medical condition or those recovering from an acute injury or surgery should consult with a healthcare provider.—MALLORY CHRISTOPHERSON, DC, MEDICAL EXPERT BOARD
Before starting an exercise regimen, those with an underlying health concern or medical condition or those recovering from an acute injury or surgery should consult with a healthcare provider.
—MALLORY CHRISTOPHERSON, DC, MEDICAL EXPERT BOARD
Why Are They Important?
Each component offitness is important for overall health. Together offer have a wide range of benefits for the body and the mind, such as:
Cardiovascular endurance activities strengthen your heart muscle and lungs.This type of exercise improves your ability to use oxygen brought in through the lungs and pump it more efficiently to muscles throughout your body.
Examples of cardiovascular endurance activities—also calledaerobic exercise, include:
Daily activities that increase your heart rate also qualify as aerobic activity. Examples include:
Strengthening exercises can be performed with or without equipment. For example, push-ups, sit-ups, and squats are strengthening exercises that use your body weight as resistance.
Other equipment that can be used for strength training includes:
However, simple objects, such as water jugs and sandbags, can also be used in strengthening exercises.
Weight lifting, or strength training, is the most important component of an exercise regimen for aging adults as it helps mitigate the decline in muscular strength and power, which delays the transition to frailty.
Before engaging in strengthening exercises, it is crucial to learn proper form and biomechanics to avoid injury.
Muscular endurance is the ability of your muscles to perform lots of repetitions of a specific movement. Many of the exercises that improve cardiovascular endurance—cycling, running, and swimming—also improve muscle endurance.
Isometrics is another type of exercise that improves muscular endurance.These exercises involve holding a static position as long as possible—such as performing a plank or holding a squat position. Your muscles are contracting, but your body is not moving.
Isometrics are a great option for individuals with injuries, previous or current, as well as those with limited mobility due to pain or an underlying health condition.
Muscular endurance exercises help you maintain a stable posture during daily activities, which can decrease your risk of falls.
Mobility/flexibility is a component of fitness that is sometimes overlooked. However, this aspect plays an important role in maintaining your range of motion and improving your ability to move when performing daily tasks or participating in other types of exercise.
There are several types of stretching techniques and exercises that improve mobility and flexibility.
Static Stretching
Static stretching is the most familiar type of flexibility exercise that is typically performed. This type of exercise involves bringing a muscle into a position where it is under tension, then holding this position for at least 30 seconds.
Examples of muscles and body parts commonly targeted with static stretches include:
Dynamic (Active) Stretching
Dynamic stretching elongates muscles (stretches them out) while the body is moving. Typically, this type of stretching or mobility exercise isdone before a specific aerobic activity, such as running or playing a sport.
For example, a person might perform walking lunges, taking very large steps prior to sprinting.
Dynamic Exercises
Dynamic exercises are activities that improve flexibility and mobility through movement. Examples include:
Body composition, or how your body is made up, includes fat, muscle, bone, and other structures. Learning about your body composition can give you an idea of your overall health.
Body composition can be measured in various ways, including the following, with some being more accessible to the public than others:
Using the Health-Related Components of Physical Fitness to Design a Training Program
A well-rounded training program includes activities that address all components of fitness.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) provides guidelines for adults who are looking to start an exercise program:
Aerobic vs. Anaerobic Exercise: How to Benefit From Both
Summary
A body composition assessment compares the amount of fat versus lean muscle tissue to help track your overall health. To get the most benefit from an exercise program, include activities that address all five components of fitness.
14 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.American Heart Association.Flexibility exercise (stretching).Hughes DC, Ellefsen S, Baar K.Adaptations to endurance and strength training.Cold Spring Harb Perspect Med. 2018;8(6):a029769. doi:10.1101/cshperspect.a029769National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.Physical activity and your heart.Ruegsegger GN, Booth FW.Health benefits of exercise.Cold Spring Harb Perspect Med. 2018;8(7):a029694. doi:10.1101/cshperspect.a029694National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.Physical activity and your heart: types.Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Medicine.Examples of moderate and vigorous physical activity.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.What counts as physical activity for adults.Phillips SM, Ma JK, Rawson ES.The coming of age of resistance exercise as a primary form of exercise for health.ACSM’s Health and Fitness Journal. 2023;27(6):19-25. doi:10.1249/FIT.0000000000000916Better Health.Resistance training—preventing injury.National Academy of Sports Medicine.Isometric exercises: examples, benefits, and applications.The American Council on Exercise.Types of stretching.Kasper AM, Langan-Evans C, Hudson JF, et al.Come back skinfolds, all is forgiven: a narrative review of the efficacy of common body composition methods in applied sports practice.Nutrients.2021;13(4):1075. doi:10.3390/nu13041075Lemos T, Gallagher D.Current body composition measurement techniques.Curr Opin Endocrinol Diabetes Obes. 2017 Oct;24(5):310-314. doi: 10.1097/MED.0000000000000360Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Physical activity for adults: an overview.
14 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.American Heart Association.Flexibility exercise (stretching).Hughes DC, Ellefsen S, Baar K.Adaptations to endurance and strength training.Cold Spring Harb Perspect Med. 2018;8(6):a029769. doi:10.1101/cshperspect.a029769National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.Physical activity and your heart.Ruegsegger GN, Booth FW.Health benefits of exercise.Cold Spring Harb Perspect Med. 2018;8(7):a029694. doi:10.1101/cshperspect.a029694National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.Physical activity and your heart: types.Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Medicine.Examples of moderate and vigorous physical activity.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.What counts as physical activity for adults.Phillips SM, Ma JK, Rawson ES.The coming of age of resistance exercise as a primary form of exercise for health.ACSM’s Health and Fitness Journal. 2023;27(6):19-25. doi:10.1249/FIT.0000000000000916Better Health.Resistance training—preventing injury.National Academy of Sports Medicine.Isometric exercises: examples, benefits, and applications.The American Council on Exercise.Types of stretching.Kasper AM, Langan-Evans C, Hudson JF, et al.Come back skinfolds, all is forgiven: a narrative review of the efficacy of common body composition methods in applied sports practice.Nutrients.2021;13(4):1075. doi:10.3390/nu13041075Lemos T, Gallagher D.Current body composition measurement techniques.Curr Opin Endocrinol Diabetes Obes. 2017 Oct;24(5):310-314. doi: 10.1097/MED.0000000000000360Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Physical activity for adults: an overview.
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
American Heart Association.Flexibility exercise (stretching).Hughes DC, Ellefsen S, Baar K.Adaptations to endurance and strength training.Cold Spring Harb Perspect Med. 2018;8(6):a029769. doi:10.1101/cshperspect.a029769National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.Physical activity and your heart.Ruegsegger GN, Booth FW.Health benefits of exercise.Cold Spring Harb Perspect Med. 2018;8(7):a029694. doi:10.1101/cshperspect.a029694National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.Physical activity and your heart: types.Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Medicine.Examples of moderate and vigorous physical activity.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.What counts as physical activity for adults.Phillips SM, Ma JK, Rawson ES.The coming of age of resistance exercise as a primary form of exercise for health.ACSM’s Health and Fitness Journal. 2023;27(6):19-25. doi:10.1249/FIT.0000000000000916Better Health.Resistance training—preventing injury.National Academy of Sports Medicine.Isometric exercises: examples, benefits, and applications.The American Council on Exercise.Types of stretching.Kasper AM, Langan-Evans C, Hudson JF, et al.Come back skinfolds, all is forgiven: a narrative review of the efficacy of common body composition methods in applied sports practice.Nutrients.2021;13(4):1075. doi:10.3390/nu13041075Lemos T, Gallagher D.Current body composition measurement techniques.Curr Opin Endocrinol Diabetes Obes. 2017 Oct;24(5):310-314. doi: 10.1097/MED.0000000000000360Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Physical activity for adults: an overview.
American Heart Association.Flexibility exercise (stretching).
Hughes DC, Ellefsen S, Baar K.Adaptations to endurance and strength training.Cold Spring Harb Perspect Med. 2018;8(6):a029769. doi:10.1101/cshperspect.a029769
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.Physical activity and your heart.
Ruegsegger GN, Booth FW.Health benefits of exercise.Cold Spring Harb Perspect Med. 2018;8(7):a029694. doi:10.1101/cshperspect.a029694
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.Physical activity and your heart: types.
Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Medicine.Examples of moderate and vigorous physical activity.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.What counts as physical activity for adults.
Phillips SM, Ma JK, Rawson ES.The coming of age of resistance exercise as a primary form of exercise for health.ACSM’s Health and Fitness Journal. 2023;27(6):19-25. doi:10.1249/FIT.0000000000000916
Better Health.Resistance training—preventing injury.
National Academy of Sports Medicine.Isometric exercises: examples, benefits, and applications.
The American Council on Exercise.Types of stretching.
Kasper AM, Langan-Evans C, Hudson JF, et al.Come back skinfolds, all is forgiven: a narrative review of the efficacy of common body composition methods in applied sports practice.Nutrients.2021;13(4):1075. doi:10.3390/nu13041075
Lemos T, Gallagher D.Current body composition measurement techniques.Curr Opin Endocrinol Diabetes Obes. 2017 Oct;24(5):310-314. doi: 10.1097/MED.0000000000000360
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Physical activity for adults: an overview.
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