The cardiovascular and respiratory systems work together to bring the things that our bodies rely on, like oxygen and nutrients, and removes the byproduct, like carbon dioxide and waste. The lungs assists in the exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide in the blood while the heart assists in the movement of it. Cardiorespiratory fitness describes the capacity of the heart and lungs to work during varying activity levels. Extensive research has shown that engaging in engaging in moderate-intensity physical activity for an accumulation of 150 minutes per week, improves cardiorespiratory fitness. Several ways to determine improvements is through the use of assessments, which are offered based on your preparticiaption physical activity screening.

Muscles enable all movements of the body. Voluntary movement, like walking and lifting, is performed by skeletal muscle, while involuntary movements, like those occurring in the cardiovascular and respiratory systems, are performed by cardiac and smooth muscles. For simplification, skeletal muscles are the focus of muscular strength, which is defined as the amount of force produced. ACSM guidelines recommend that muscular training of dynamic or static exercises of be performed 2-3 times per week. A resistance portion of exercise, whether it is dynamic or static, is an important part to total body wellness. Click on the following link to read more on assessing and improving muscular strength.

While muscular strength is how much force a skeletal muscle can produce, muscular endurance refers to repeated force over a period of time. One explosive and powerful contraction of muscle versus repeated powerful contractions is the difference between muscular strength and muscular endurance. Muscle endurance is essential to performing continuous movements. ACSM guidelines recommend that muscular training be performed 2-3 times per week. A resistance portion of exercise, whether it is dynamic or static, is an important part to total body wellness.

Body composition and body mass index (BMI) are terms often used interchangeably when referring to body weight. They are measurements but differ in what is measured. Body composition describes the percentage of fat mass compared to non-fat mass, like muscle, water, and bone. BMI is a classification system that measures weight relative to height. A limitation to the BMI is that individuals can be classified as underweight, normal weight, overweight, or obese without assessing total body fat percentage of weight. BMI is a useful tool for identifying individuals at risk of obesity-related health problems and methods like bioelectrical impedance, skin-fold measurements, hydrostatic weighing and other laboratory methods are good for measuring body composition.

Flexibility refers to the range of motion (ROM) of any given movable joint regardless of involvement of skeletal muscle. Static flexibility is the full ROM without movement while applying an external force, like placing the bottom of your foot against a wall and leaning towards it to lengthen the calf muscle. Dynamic flexibility is the full ROM of a joint achieved during movement. Dynamic stretches are performed by skeletal muscles, regardless of external force, and are most useful for warming up while static stretches are recommended for cooling down post-workout.