HSC Health and Movement Science cheat sheet

Health is defined as a resource for everyday life, not merely the absence of disease; it emphasises social and personal resources plus physical capacity.

Measures of epidemiology: incidence = new cases ÷ population at risk per time period; prevalence = all existing cases ÷ total population at a point or period.

Mortality rate = deaths in a period ÷ population × 100 000; infant mortality rate uses deaths of children under 1 year ÷ live births × 1000.

Life expectancy at birth is the average years a newborn would live if current age-specific death rates persisted unchanged.

Social determinants of health include socioeconomic status, education, employment, housing, social support and access to health services.

Ottawa Charter action areas: build healthy public policy, create supportive environments, strengthen community action, develop personal skills, reorient health services.

Health promotion differs from disease prevention: promotion targets whole populations and determinants, prevention targets at-risk groups and specific conditions.

Medicare funds universal access to public hospital treatment and subsidised medical services; the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme subsidises medicines.

Risk and protective factors operate across individual, family, community and societal levels; interventions are more effective when multiple levels are addressed.

Skeletal functions: support, protection, movement, mineral storage (calcium, phosphorus) and blood cell production in red marrow.

Joint types by structure: fibrous (immovable), cartilaginous (slightly movable), synovial (freely movable); synovial subtypes include hinge, ball-and-socket, pivot, saddle, gliding and condyloid.

Muscle contraction types: isotonic (concentric shortens, eccentric lengthens) changes length; isometric generates tension with no length change.

Agonist produces the movement, antagonist opposes it, stabiliser fixes the origin, and synergist assists the agonist.

Sliding filament theory: myosin heads bind actin, the power stroke pulls actin filaments toward the sarcomere centre; sarcomeres shorten while filament length is unchanged.

Muscle fibre types: slow-twitch (type I) are fatigue-resistant and aerobic; fast-twitch (type II) generate greater force and fatigue faster.

Newton's laws applied to motion: inertia (law 1), force = mass × acceleration (law 2), equal and opposite reaction (law 3).

Biomechanical principles: stability increases with a larger base of support, lower centre of gravity and centre of gravity positioned over the base.

Levers: first class (fulcrum between load and effort), second class (load between fulcrum and effort), third class (effort between fulcrum and load; most common in the body).

Physical activity guidelines for adolescents: at least 60 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous activity daily, including vigorous and bone/muscle-strengthening activity on at least 3 days per week.

Sedentary behaviour is a distinct risk factor: prolonged sitting and screen time raise risk independently of whether activity guidelines are met.

Physical activity reduces risk of cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, some cancers, obesity and depression, and supports bone density and mental health.

Social benefits of movement include teamwork, communication, social connectedness and reduced isolation; psychological benefits include self-esteem and stress reduction.

Barriers to participation include cost, time, access, transport, safety, cultural norms, body image concerns and low self-efficacy.

Health promotion strategies for movement: mass media campaigns, school programs, built-environment change, subsidised access and community club partnerships.

Measuring activity: self-report diaries and questionnaires are cheap but subjective; accelerometers and pedometers give objective data on frequency, intensity and duration.

Injury prevention principles: warm-up, progressive overload, appropriate technique, adequate recovery, correct equipment and hydration.

FITT principle: Frequency, Intensity, Time, Type - the four variables used to design and progress an activity program.

Aerobic training improves cardiorespiratory endurance; resistance training improves strength and power; flexibility training improves range of motion.

Intensity can be monitored by heart rate (percentage of maximum, estimated as 220 minus age), RPE scales and talk test.

Progressive overload, specificity, reversibility and individuality are core training principles; detraining reverses gains within weeks.

Fitness components: cardiorespiratory endurance, muscular strength, muscular endurance, flexibility and body composition; skill components include speed, agility, coordination, balance, power and reaction time.

Nutrition for activity: carbohydrate is the primary fuel for moderate-to-high intensity exercise; protein supports repair; fluid replacement limits dehydration.

Energy balance: weight change occurs when energy intake differs from energy expenditure; 1 kg of body fat represents roughly 37 000 kJ.

Health-related screening before exercise includes PAR-Q-style questionnaires, medical history and risk-factor assessment.