Fitness Testing
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Fitness Testing Glossary
Below are a list of fitness and fitness testing terms which sometimes get confused, may not always be clear, and may require defining. If you have other words that you don't quite understand or cannot find a definition for, let me know and I can add them to this list.
Aerobic fitness
A measure of how well your blood transports oxygen around the body, and how well your muscles utilize the oxygen.
Aerobic metabolism
The metabolic process that occurs in the cells, by which the body uses oxygen to produce energy.
Aerobic
Meaning with oxygen. Aerobic training is at a lower intensity, with the purpose of stimulating aerobic metabolism to improve.
Aerobic endurance
A term for someone's aerobic fitness capacity - their
ability to do prolonged exercise without fatigue.
Anaerobic
Anaerobic processes occur in the cells of the body without
the presence of oxygen. Anaerobic training is of high
intensity and short duration, with the aim of the efficiency
of the body's anaerobic energy-producing systems.
Anaerobic threshold
The physiological point during exercise at which lactic
acid starts to accumulate in the muscles. It occurs around
the point of the exercise intensity increasing such that
anaerobic processes are becoming more dominant.
Anterior
Anatomical term for the front side.
Basal metabolic rate (BMR)
The lowest rate of body metabolism (rate of energy use)
that can sustain life, measured after a full night's sleep
in a laboratory under optimal conditions of quiet, rest
and relaxation.
Body composition
Has two components: the amount of fat mass (weight) and
the amount of fat-free mass (muscle, bone, skin and organs)
in the body.
Body mass index (BMI)
A number calculated using a persons height and mass, which
gives a indication of total body fat content. See here for more details
bpm, beats per minute
The units of heart rate, the number of heart beats each minute. See also Heart Rate.
Cardiorespiratory
Concerning the heart and respiratory system. Cardiorespiratory or Cardiovasacular endurance is a term used interchangably with aerobic endurance.
Cardiovascular
Concerning the heart and blood vessels.
Dehydration
A decrease in body fluids.
Electrocardiogram (ECG)
A recording of the heart's electrical activity by placing
wires on the anterior chest wall. See ECG Store.
Endurance
The body's ability to exercise with minimal fatigue. Often
used with other terms such as; endurance training, muscular
endurance and cardiorespiratory endurance.
Fat-free mass
The combined mass of the body of everything that is not
fat (e.g. muscle, bone, skin and organs).
Heart rate
A measurement of the work done by the heart, commonly expressed
as the number of beats per minute (bpm). See also bpm and maximum heart rate.
Lactate, Lactic acid
Lactate is a salt formed from lactic acid. Anaerobic exercise produces lactic acid, which quickly forms
lactate in the muscles. because of this, the terms "lactate"
and "lactic acid" are often used interchangeably.
Lactate threshold
The point during increasingly intensive exercise at which
blood lactate (Lactic acid) begins to accumulate above resting levels.
Maximal exercise test
A test performed until volitional exhaustion.
Maximal oxygen uptake (VO2max)
The maximum capacity for oxygen consumption by the body
during maximum exercise. Also known as aerobic power or
maximal oxygen intake/consumption. VO2max is commonly
used as a measure of aerobic fitness. See also VO2.
Maximum heart rate
The highest number of heart beats per minute (bpm) when
exercising maximally. See also bpm.
Norms
Norms (short for normative values) are determined from previous fitness scores of a group and used for comparison. For example, you can use the norms to see how you went in the test, to see if you are better than average compared to football players or some other comparison group. See also Standards.
Oxygen Consumption
Oxygen consumption (VO2) may be defined as ones ability
to extract oxygen from the atmosphere via the respiratory
system and transport it in the blood to the working tissues
(eg. muscles) for the energy production by the oxidation
of carbohydrate and fat. The highest rate at which you
can uptake oxygen is termed the maximal oxygen consumption
(VO2max). Research has shown VO2max to be one of the most
important determinants of aerobic or endurance performance.
Respiratory Exchange Ratio
The ration of the amount of carbon dioxide produced by
the body to the amount of oxygen consumed. At rest it
ranges from 0.6 to 1.0 depending on what fuels the body
is using. During exercise, it may go above 1, and can
be used to measure anaerobic threshold and indicate when
VO2max is reached.
Resting heart rate
The number of heart beats in one minute (bpm) when a person
is at complete rest. A person's resting heart rate decreases
as they become more fit.
Resting metabolic rate (RMR)
The body's metabolic rate (rate of energy use) early in
the morning after an overnight fast and a full eight hours'
sleep. This is different than Basal metabolic rate.
SI
Abbreviation for System Internationale, an international
system of defining units of measurement, based mainly on
the metric system.
Standards
Standards are fitness levels that are required to be achieved, such as setting a standard of level 8 in the beep test in order to make the football team. See also Norms
VO2, VO2max
VO2 is a measure of the oxygen consumption/uptake by the body. It is usually expressed
in the units ml.kg-1.min-1, sometimes in l.min-1. The measured maximum VO2 is called VO2max. See also maximal oxygen uptake.
