B. Active Living / C. Movement Competence · Active Living and Movement: Train Smart, Respond Well, Play with Purpose

Two Kinds of Fitness: Health-Related and Skill-Related Components

B2 A1.6About 45 minutes

Learning goals

I can name and describe the health-related and skill-related components of fitness.
I can explain the difference between the two kinds of fitness.
I can choose activities that build each component.
I can explain how to use the training principles to improve both kinds of fitness.

Words to know

health-related fitness
The parts of fitness that keep your body healthy: cardiorespiratory endurance, muscular strength, muscular endurance and flexibility.

skill-related fitness
The parts of fitness that help you perform skills well: agility, balance, coordination, power, reaction time and speed.

agility
Changing direction quickly while keeping control.

power
Using strength quickly, like in a jump or a throw.

reaction time
How quickly you respond to something you see, hear or feel.

coordination
Getting different body parts (and your eyes) to work together smoothly.

individual differences
The training principle that every person responds to training in their own way and at their own speed.

Remember from Grade 7

In Grade 7 you applied the training principles (specificity, overload, progression, rest and recovery, reversibility) and FITT (Frequency, Intensity, Time, Type), and you learned the many factors that affect fitness.

This year you'll sort fitness into two kinds, and use the same principles to improve both.

Hook: the marathon runner and the goalie

Picture a marathon runner and a hockey goalie. Both are very fit. But the runner can keep going for hours, while the goalie can drop, push off and snap a glove up in a split second.

They are fit in different ways. That's because there are two kinds of fitness: one that keeps your body healthy, and one that helps you perform skills.

The two kinds of fitness and their components.

Component	What it means	Home or park activity
Cardiorespiratory endurance	Heart and lungs deliver oxygen so you can keep moving a long time	Brisk walking, jogging, cycling, skipping, swimming
Muscular strength	The most force a muscle can make in one effort	Harder, slower exercises: step-ups with a backpack, slow push-ups
Muscular endurance	Muscles keep working many times without tiring	Many repetitions: wall sits, planks, squats, push-ups
Flexibility	Joints move through their full range	Held stretches after activity, yoga
Agility	Change direction quickly with control	Zigzag runs around shoes, side shuffles, dodging games
Balance	Stay steady, still or moving	Stand on one foot, walk a line, yoga poses
Coordination	Body parts work together	Skipping, juggling scarves, dribbling
Power	Strength used quickly	Standing long jump, two-hand chest pass with a soft ball
Reaction time	Respond quickly to a signal	Ruler-drop catch, partner "go" starts
Speed	Move from one place to another quickly	Short sprints with full rest

Health-related components (first four) support health for life. Skill-related components (last six) help you perform in games, sports, dance and outdoor activities.

Strength is the most force a muscle can make in one effort (one tall bar). Endurance is how many times a muscle can keep working at a lighter load before it tires (many shorter bars).

Why both matter

Health-related fitness lowers the risk of many health problems and helps you do daily tasks with energy, like carrying groceries, shovelling snow or climbing stairs. It matters for everyone, for life.
Skill-related fitness helps you succeed and have fun in activities. Partly it depends on practice, and partly on things you can't change, like your body's natural speed.

Most activities use both. Basketball needs cardiorespiratory endurance (to keep running) and agility, coordination, power and reaction time.

Using the training principles for both kinds

Specificity: train the component you want. Jogging builds endurance, but not much agility. For agility, practise changing direction.
Overload and progression: for health-related fitness, slowly add time, repetitions or difficulty. For skill-related fitness, make the drill a bit harder or more game-like (a narrower zigzag, a faster signal, a moving target).
Rest and recovery: do speed, power and agility work when you are fresh (right after the warm-up), with full rest between efforts so you can move with quality. Tired practice builds sloppy habits.
Reversibility: both kinds fade if you stop.
Individual differences: everyone improves at a different speed. Compare yourself with your own past results.

Quality over quantity

For skill-related drills, 5 excellent repetitions beat 20 sloppy ones. Stop a drill when your form gets worse. Land jumps softly, with bent knees, and never do jumping drills on concrete or ice.

Worked example

Let's analyse an activity

Which fitness components does cross-country skiing use most? Which does badminton use most?

Cross-country skiing: you glide for a long time, so cardiorespiratory endurance and muscular endurance (arms and legs) are key. You also need balance on narrow skis and coordination of arms and legs.
Badminton: rallies are short and fast, so agility (lunging and changing direction), reaction time (responding to a smash), speed, coordination (hand and eye) and power (smashes and jumps) matter most. Over a long match, cardiorespiratory endurance helps too.
Compare: skiing leans toward health-related components; badminton leans toward skill-related components. Both use some of each.

Skiing: mostly cardiorespiratory endurance, muscular endurance, balance, coordination. Badminton: mostly agility, reaction time, speed, coordination, power.

Worked example

Let's apply the principles to an agility goal

Sofia plays soccer and wants better agility. She has 15 minutes, three days a week. Apply the training principles.

Specificity: choose drills that change direction like soccer does: zigzag runs around shoes, shuffle-and-sprint, and dribbling through markers.
Timing and rest: do the drills right after the warm-up, with about 30 to 60 seconds of rest between runs so each one is quick and controlled.
Progression: week 1 markers 2 m apart; week 2 add a ball; week 3 a partner points the direction to turn (adds reaction time).
Rest and recovery: not on back-to-back days; do easier activity in between.
Individual differences: she times herself and compares only with her own earlier times.

A specific, progressive agility plan done when fresh, with rest days, measured against her own results.

Hands-on activity

Ten-component circuit

You need: 6 markers (shoes, cones or plastic cups), a soft ball, a ruler, a skipping rope, a timer, and a clear space indoors or on grass.

Warm up (6 to 8 minutes): brisk walk or jog, arm circles, leg swings, hip circles, walking lunges, side shuffles, and 3 easy accelerations.

Do each station for about 40 seconds with 20 seconds to move and rest. Write which component each one builds.

Skipping or jogging on the spot.
Wall sit (back flat on a wall, knees about 90°).
Push-ups (on knees or against a wall is fine).
Zigzag run around 6 markers placed about 2 m apart.
Stand on one foot with eyes on a fixed point; switch feet halfway.
Throw a soft ball against a wall and catch it, alternating hands.
Standing long jumps on grass: 3 jumps with full rest, landing softly.
Ruler drop: a partner drops a ruler between your thumb and finger; catch it as fast as you can.
Three 10 m sprints with walking back as rest.
Cool-down stretches: hold each for 20 to 30 seconds.

Reflect: Which components felt strongest? Which would you like to improve?

Safety: Use a non-slip surface. Jumps only on grass or a mat, never on concrete or ice. Keep a clear space around the zigzag. Stop if anything hurts.

Just for fun

Riddle: I'm the only fitness component you can test with a ruler and a friend who's a little too good at sneaky drops. What am I?

Answer: Reaction time!

Your turn

Name the four health-related components of fitness.

Name the six skill-related components of fitness.

Which component: (a) catching a dropped ruler quickly; (b) holding a plank for 60 seconds; (c) a standing long jump; (d) touching your toes.

Explain the difference between muscular strength and muscular endurance.

Why should agility and speed drills come right after the warm-up, not at the end of a workout?

Name two activities that build cardiorespiratory endurance in winter.

Which training principle says everyone improves at a different speed?

More practice: warm-up

Is balance health-related or skill-related?

Is flexibility health-related or skill-related?

What is agility?

Give one activity that builds coordination.

Which component does a fast sprint mostly use?

More practice: on your own

A volleyball player jumps to spike. Which two components are used most?

Kai jogs 30 minutes every day and wonders why his badminton footwork isn't improving. Which principle explains this?

Describe a progression for a reaction-time drill over three weeks.

Explain why health-related fitness matters even for someone who doesn't play sports.

Name the component used most in each: (a) a goalie stopping a quick shot; (b) a dancer holding an arabesque; (c) carrying a heavy canoe on a short portage.

Challenge

Choose any sport or activity you enjoy. Rank the three components it needs most and explain each choice.

Design a 2-week plan to improve power for a standing long jump, three days a week. Use at least three training principles and include safety.

Can someone have excellent health-related fitness but weak skill-related fitness? Give an example and explain.

Check your understanding

Quiz

Which is a health-related component of fitness?

Which is a skill-related component?

A standing long jump mostly tests:

When should you do speed and agility drills?

Which training principle says jogging won't do much for your agility?

What is muscular strength?

For parents and teachers

Big idea: In Grade 8, students distinguish health-related fitness components (cardiorespiratory endurance, muscular strength, muscular endurance, flexibility) from skill-related components (agility, balance, coordination, power, reaction time, speed), and explain how training principles improve both.

How to help at home:

Watch a sport together and name the components athletes are using.
Be the partner for the ruler-drop and reaction drills.
Help set up a safe circuit space (non-slip surface, jumps on grass only).

Common difficulties:

Mixing up strength and endurance. Strength = one big effort; endurance = many repetitions.
Doing skill drills when exhausted. Remind your child to do them when fresh.
Comparing with others. Skill-related fitness depends partly on things we can't change; focus on personal improvement.

Social-emotional learning: Analysing activities and designing plans builds critical and creative thinking (A1.6).