Types Of Fitness Training

A healthy lifestyle is unimaginable without exercise. Fitness is aimed at improving the well-being and physical condition of a person in the age of sedentary work and physical inactivity. However, it is easy for a beginner to get confused in the variety of training programs. In today's article, we will analyze what types of fitness are, what they are aimed at, and also how to choose physical activity.

Classification of training according to the principle of impact

This classification is based on the pathways of ATP resynthesis (energy production) by the body during exercise. ATP resynthesis can occur in two ways: with the participation of oxygen (aerobic) or without it (anaerobic).

Aerobic training is low-intensity training that consumes a lot of oxygen. They are useful for the prevention of diseases of the cardiovascular and lymphatic systems, increase endurance, and effectively burn fat reserves.

Anaerobic training is intense training with maximum muscle tension. Pass without the participation of oxygen, which increases the "oxygen debt" after training. (*Oxygen debt is the increased consumption of oxygen by the body after anaerobic training.) Due to the increased consumption of oxygen, as well as the accelerated utilization of metabolic products, the body accelerates metabolism and intensively burns calories for about 48 hours after the end of training.

Ideally, you need to combine both types of loads for a comprehensive effect on the body.

Types of fitness training

A variety of fitness training options allow you to choose activities that are suitable for everyone, taking into account health status, goal, training experience and personal preferences.

Soft functional training - these exercises do not require additional equipment in the form of simulators, enough of your own body weight. If necessary, various equipment is introduced: rubber expanders, rollers, rings, balls.

• Pilates is a low-intensity aerobic workout aimed at strengthening the deep muscles of the body, stretching the spine, improving posture, and developing joint and ligament flexibility. The author is Joseph Pilates, who developed this system for rehabilitation after injuries in the early twentieth century. Due to its effectiveness, today this program is popular and in demand all over the globe.
• Yoga is an ancient practice that includes not only physical exercises, but also breathing and mental practices. This is a whole philosophy that harmonizes the body and spirit. Thanks to yoga, you can restore emotional balance, develop concentration skills, slow down, calm the psyche, improve sleep quality, strengthen the body and develop flexibility. There are different types of yoga: kundalini, hatha, ashtanga, flow, aerial yoga and others.
• Callanetics includes static exercises that load several muscle groups at the same time, which improves blood circulation, speeds up metabolism, and burns body fat. The program was developed in the 60s of the last century by American Callan Pinckney.
• Bodyflex is a breathing exercise that combines static muscle tension and stretching exercises. Greer Childers, an American housewife, developed this system. Bodyflex can be used by obese people, the elderly and beginners in sports, as it is one of the easiest types of fitness.
• Stretching is a workout aimed at stretching the muscles, developing the flexibility of the joints and ligaments, as well as relaxing. During the training, static and dynamic exercises are used in combination with deep relaxing breathing, since it is impossible to stretch a tense muscle fiber.

Aerobics - gymnastic exercises for all muscle groups to rhythmic music. Due to the intensity, such training allows you to burn a large number of calories, so it is effective for losing weight. All aerobic trainings perfectly develop the endurance of the cardiovascular and respiratory systems.

• Step aerobics is one of the basic types of fitness programs. This is a specialized workout using a step platform. Performed to music without rest breaks, high-intensity, perfectly burns subcutaneous fat and trains the vestibular apparatus. The author of the technique is Jean Miller, a fitness instructor who developed it quite by accident: after a knee injury, she had to strengthen the muscles of the front of the thigh and did this by stepping onto her porch step. By diversifying her steps, adding rhythmic hand movements and music, she got a new type of fitness training that is popular to this day.
• Aqua aerobics is an aerobic workout in water accompanied by rhythmic music. Its advantage is water resistance, in which even the simplest exercises become more difficult. This workout has no contraindications, suitable for people with injuries of the musculoskeletal system.
• Shaping is a fitness training system developed by Russian athletes - bodybuilder Igor Prokhortsev and gymnast Ekaterina Sergeeva. It is understood that the correct sequence of exercise will help stimulate the catabolism (destruction) of body fat stores and anabolism of muscle tissue. Exercises are performed without weights, in a high-intensity mode and with a large number of repetitions.
• Fitball and Bosu are aerobic workouts on unstable platforms (big balls, Bosu platform), which perfectly develop coordination of movements and strengthen the deep stabilizing muscles of the body.
• TRX - training on special equipment - a suspension system of TRX loops that are attached to the ceiling. Promotes the development of all muscles, using stability, mobility, strength and flexibility.
• Dance aerobics - various areas of choreographic art have passed to the masses due to the positive impact on the emotional background, the development of musicality, flexibility. For girls, the ability to dance gives self-confidence, and aerobic orientation allows you to burn a large number of calories during training. Popular dance styles are Pole Dance (pole dancing), Strip Dance (strip plastic), Twerk (twerk), Jazz Funk (jazz funk), Belly Dance (belly dance), Zumba (Latin American dances) and others.
• Martial arts - or rather, aerobics with elements of martial arts. Not only a great opportunity to develop endurance, strengthen the heart and lose extra pounds, but also a way to learn fighting techniques from boxing, karate, taekwondo, muay thai. One of the most popular workouts is tai-bo.
• Cycle is a type of fitness program on exercise bikes. During the lesson, you need to pedal and repeat after the instructor various movements with your hands and body, while constantly changing speed. This simulates cross-country driving.
• Jumping is a specific workout based on jumping on a mini trampoline. Very intense, allows you to burn a large number of calories, but requires some preparation and has a number of contraindications: obesity, thrombosis, severe diabetes, mental disorders, oncology, diseases of the musculoskeletal system - arthritis, protrusions and herniated discs.
• Kangoo jumps - training in special shoes like roller skates, but instead of wheels, plates are installed that push the person away from the surface. It trains the vestibular apparatus, relieves pain caused by physical inactivity, however, it has many contraindications due to its specificity. For example, for people with joint diseases, this type of fitness can do more harm than good, as well as for people with hypertension, duodenal ulcer and stomach ulcers, and nervous disorders.

Strength and functional training is anaerobic training aimed at developing muscle strength and muscle hypertrophy (growth). All of these workouts involve some form of fitness and are not suitable for beginners.

• CrossFit is a training system based on a combination of exercises for strength, endurance, and flexibility. These are a variety of functional movements that need to be performed at high intensity at various intervals. From the inventory, barbells, dumbbells, horizontal bars, pedestals, balls, ropes, expanders, tires are used. Cardiovascular and respiratory endurance, muscle strength, flexibility, speed, coordination, agility are trained.
• Workout - the word is formed from two English words and is translated as "street training". It is carried out on street sports grounds using horizontal bars, bars, hand walkers, Swedish walls.
• Bodybuilding (bodybuilding) is training to build muscle mass while maintaining the quality and aesthetics of the body. You can achieve results only by observing three main principles: specialized nutrition, weight training and proper recovery after exercise. Training takes place in the gyms. Competitions have been held in this type of fitness since 1960.
• Powerlifting is a power sport, which consists in overcoming the maximum possible burden by the athlete. It is otherwise called “power triathlon”, since three strength exercises are used as competitive disciplines: squats with a barbell, bench press and barbell row.

It is important to understand that you need to choose the type of fitness training based not only on your own preferences, but also on the state of health and fitness.

Outdoor workouts double the benefits

Physical activity in the fresh air contributes to the healing of the whole organism due to the saturation of each cell with oxygen. During training, we breathe more actively, and the quality of the inhaled air is of great importance, so in good weather it is better to choose outdoor activities, especially since there are a lot of options:

• Running is the most common type of street workout. Despite the huge benefits for the cardiovascular and respiratory systems, running is not suitable for many people due to technical difficulties (proper breathing, foot placement, etc.) and contraindications (overweight, age, diseases of the joints, spine, heart) . You should not start running on your own, it is better to take a few lessons from a professional trainer;
• Nordic walking is the safest form of fitness that is suitable for everyone! This sport not only improves blood circulation throughout the body, but also develops joint mobility, burns almost as many calories as jogging, and actively ventilates the lungs, which serves as a prevention of respiratory diseases. Scandinavian, or Nordic, walking is included in many rehabilitation programs, suitable for the elderly;
• cycling is very good for the cardiovascular system due to the normalization of blood pressure. Unlike running and aerobics, there is no shock load on the joints and spine when cycling;
• active games - beach volleyball, tennis, basketball - develop dexterity, speed of movement, concentration, and also contribute to the creation of a favorable emotional background through teamwork;
• skiing, skating - the usual street workouts are not available in winter, but it becomes possible to try other, more specific and no less useful sports. These exercises not only train endurance and coordination of movements, but also help to harden the body and strengthen the immune system.

It is most useful to do it in parks and squares, far from the roadway and industries that poison the air with various emissions.

How to choose the right physical activity

When choosing physical activity, it is necessary to consider:

• physical indicators - body type, distribution of muscle and adipose tissue;
• level of physical fitness;
• the state of the body's resources - stress, iron deficiency, protein deficiency, insulin resistance;
• goals (weight loss, muscle gain, weight maintenance).

Before choosing fitness training, it is recommended to undergo a diagnosis:

1. Determine BMI - body mass index.

BMI \u003d weight, kg / height², m

For people with a reduced BMI, strength training is recommended to gain muscle mass, and for people with a BMI above 25, aerobic training is recommended to reduce body weight (the higher the BMI, the lower the training intensity).

How to get to a healthy weight without strict diets and exhausting workouts? A team of nutritionists and health-coaches at MIES prepared a practical three-day show-conference "Biochemistry of Slimness".

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2. Determine the body type - asthenic, normosthenic, hypersthenic. For an asthenic, strength training is suitable, for a hypersthenic, aerobic fat-burning training, and for a normosthenic, a combination of them.

3. Caliperometry - evaluates the content of internal and subcutaneous fat by measuring the thickness of the fat fold in several areas of the body.

4. Bioimpedancemetry - a method for measuring body composition, basal metabolic rate, active cell mass. This is the most accurate and modern research method available in fitness clubs, private beauty and medical clinics. The cost varies from 1500 to 3000 rubles. Residents of Moscow can undergo this examination free of charge at the “Health Corners” of Mosgorzdrav, located in the offices of the MFC “My Documents”.

5. Functional tests for the level of physical fitness - they are necessary to select the optimal physical activity, taking into account the condition of the muscle and connective tissue, since some types of exercise will be contraindicated in case of problems with the musculoskeletal system.

Functional Tests

1. Test with 10 squats to determine exercise tolerance:

• step 1 - measure the pulse for a minute while standing in a calm state;
• step 2 - do 10 squats in 20 seconds;
• step 3 - measure the pulse for 1 minute;
• step 4 is to determine the difference between the resting and post-load heart rate.

2. The Stange test (on inspiration) and the Genchi test (on exhalation) are functional respiratory tests that allow you to assess the body's oxygen supply.

How to conduct:

• before measuring, make 3 normal cycles of inhalation / exhalation, approximately 3/4 of the depth of a full breath;
• then, if the Stange test is performed, the breath is held on inhalation, if the Genchi test is on a full exhalation;
• using a stopwatch, the breath holding time is calculated;
• the table below determines the level of oxygen supply to the body.

The better the body is provided with oxygen, the more difficult workouts you can choose. If the supply is poor, it is recommended to start with low-intensity cardio training, such as walking, as well as soft fitness training, such as Pilates, yoga, or stretching.

A professional trainer will help you choose the right physical activity for you, and a sports nutritionist can create a nutrition program and, if necessary, a nutraceutical scheme to support the body during training.