Terry was the founding member of Vikeen Fitness in 2020. He is just an ordinary bloke who has discovered the benefits of becoming fitter, and wants to help you accomplish more by using his experience to your advantage.

We all need to move around in daily life. The fitter you are, the easier you can accomplish your daily routine, and the happier you will be.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), physical fitness is defined as:

'The ability to carry out daily tasks with vigor and alertness, without undue fatigue, and with ample energy to enjoy leisure-time pursuits and respond to emergencies.'

Based on this definition, fitness involves everything from getting out of bed in the morning to climbing a tree or mountain.

COMPONENTS OF FITNESS

Cardiorespiratory endurance - This is typically measured by how long or fast a person can perform an activity and how this impacts measurements such as heart rate and oxygen consumption. Aerobic activity, also known as cardio or endurance activity, is the cornerstone of most fitness training programs.

Muscular endurance - Typically measured by how many repetitions of an exercise a person can perform before exhaustion. Common tests involve push-ups and sit ups.

Muscular strength - typically measured by how much weight can be moved in relation to repetitions.

Exercises involving multiple joints and muscle groups such as squats or bench press are often used.

Flexibility - typically measured by how far a muscle group can be stretched or joint can be moved. The most common tests involve the hamstrings and shoulders.

Balance - typically measured by how long a particular position can be held with or without some type of activity being performed. Simple tests such as standing on one leg can be used to assess balance. More advanced tests may involve standing on an unsteady object while trying to catch a ball.

Speed - typically measured by how quickly an individual can move from one point to another. The 40-yard dash is often used to assess speed.

Body composition - this is the amount of fat on the body versus other tissues such as muscle, bones and skin. Measured using a variety of tests and devices. Simple tests using mathematical equations or calipers are common and inexpensive.

Aim to incorporate aerobic fitness, strength training, core exercises, balance training, and flexibility and stretching into your exercise plan

TECH SPEAK

Fitness is the ability to undertake sustained physical exertion without undue breathlessness.

Fitness is associated with a sense of physical and mental well being. The achievement of fitness is possible only by making regular demands on the body to perform physical tasks.

As fitness improves the bulk and strength of the voluntary muscles and the force and pumping efficiency of the heart muscle increase. The respiratory muscles perform more effectively. You will be able to perform more work within the limits of the rate at which oxygen is supplied by the lungs and circulation (aerobic exercise).

Recovery from fatigue is more rapid, a higher degree of muscle tension can be attained, the muscles are able to utilize glucose and fatty acids in the presence of less insulin, and the liver is better able to maintain the supply of glucose to the blood, and hence to the muscles, during strenuous exercise. The energy-producing elements in the muscle cells (the mitochondria) increase in size and number.