Introduction to Health-Related Fitness and the Physical Best Program

Overview of Physical Best

The Physical Best program is a comprehensive health-related fitness education initiative developed in 1987 by AAHPERD (now SHAPE America) and NASPE. Its primary goal is to help students understand the importance of lifetime fitness through regular physical activity and to assist them in reaching their personal 'physical best.' The program is designed to supplement, not replace, existing curricula.

• Comprehensive health-related fitness education: Focuses on both knowledge and practical skills for lifelong fitness.

• Assessment and goal setting: Emphasizes the use of assessment tools and personal goal setting to track and improve fitness.

• Parental and community involvement: Encourages engagement beyond the classroom.

Key Terms and Definitions

• Health-related fitness: A measure of a person’s ability to perform physical activities requiring endurance, strength, or flexibility. Components include:

  • Aerobic fitness

  • Muscular strength

  • Muscular endurance

  • Flexibility

  • Body composition

  • Power (recently added)

• Skill-related fitness: Abilities that enhance performance in physical activities, including:

  • Agility

  • Coordination

  • Reaction time

  • Balance

  • Speed

  • Power

• Physical activity: Any bodily movement produced by skeletal muscles that results in energy expenditure.

• Exercise: Planned, structured, and repetitive physical activity aimed at improving or maintaining one or more components of health-related fitness.

Elements of the Physical Best Approach

The Physical Best program is characterized by eight key elements that structure its approach to health-related fitness education:

1. Fitness concepts: Educates students about fitness principles and the role of exercise in disease prevention.

2. Preparing students: Uses multimedia and other resources to help students get ready for assessments.

3. Practicing procedures: Provides multiple opportunities for students to practice assessment protocols, building understanding and confidence.

4. Assessing health-related fitness: Utilizes the six FitnessGram assessments to measure fitness components.

5. Program planning and goal setting: Encourages the use of SMART goals (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound) for personal fitness improvement.

6. Promoting and tracking physical activity: Implements tools and strategies for students to monitor their activity levels.

7. Reassessing student fitness: Periodically evaluates progress to inform future planning.

8. Revising and refining goals: Adjusts goals based on assessment outcomes and personal progress.

Unique Features of Physical Best

• Comprehensive conceptual framework: Integrates knowledge, assessment, goal setting, and motivation strategies.

• Active participation: Activities are designed to maximize student involvement, often using small groups or stations.

• Individualized activities: Allows students to work at their own fitness levels, promoting personal success and self-improvement.

• Tools for lifelong activity: Equips students with the knowledge, skills, and motivation to maintain regular physical activity as a lifestyle choice.

• Health-related physical activity: Provides safe, sequential activities that target health-related fitness components, using up-to-date assessments like FitnessGram.

• Adherence to standards: Designed to help teachers meet national standards for health and physical education (HPE) and dance.

Resources and Certification

• Physical Best Activity Guides: Available for elementary, middle, and high school levels.

• FitnessGram: A widely used fitness assessment tool developed by the Cooper Institute.

• Fitness for Life: Additional resource for health-related fitness education (www.fitnessforlife.org).

• NASPE resources: Support materials for teachers and students.

• Physical Best Certification: Educators can become certified as Physical Best Health-Fitness Specialists.

Example: SMART Goal Setting in Fitness

• Specific: "I want to improve my cardiovascular endurance by running 1 mile without stopping."

• Measurable: "I will track my time and distance each week."

• Achievable: "I will increase my running distance by 0.25 miles each week."

• Relevant: "Improving endurance will help me participate in more physical activities."

• Time-bound: "I will achieve this goal within 8 weeks."

Table: Health-Related vs. Skill-Related Fitness Components

Additional info:

• Physical Best aligns with national standards for health and physical education, supporting both student learning and teacher professional development.

• FitnessGram assessments typically include tests such as the PACER (Progressive Aerobic Cardiovascular Endurance Run), curl-ups, push-ups, sit-and-reach, and body composition measurements.