Fitness and Training Principles
What you must know
This domain covers the components of fitness, how they are tested, and the principles used to design safe, effective training.
Health-related components: cardiovascular endurance, muscular strength, muscular endurance, flexibility and body composition. Skill-related components: speed, agility, balance, coordination, power and reaction time. Be able to match a component to a sport: a sprinter needs speed and power; a netball player needs agility and coordination.
Know the standard tests: the multi-stage fitness test (cardiovascular endurance), sit-and-reach (flexibility), grip dynamometer (strength), sit-up test (muscular endurance), 30-metre sprint (speed) and Illinois agility run (agility).
The principles of training are essential. SPORT: Specificity, Progressive overload, Reversibility, Tedium (variety). FITT: Frequency, Intensity, Time, Type. Also know individual differences, rest and recovery, and the warm-up/cool-down rationale. Understand the aerobic (with oxygen, steady, fat-burning) and anaerobic (without oxygen, short, explosive, lactic acid) energy pathways.
Traps to watch
Examiners often ask which principle explains a scenario. If a runner adds 5 km per week, that is progressive overload, not specificity. If a swimmer trains by running, that breaks specificity. Do not confuse reversibility (loss of fitness when training stops) with rest (planned recovery).
Worked example
A footballer wants to improve stamina. Using FITT: Frequency 3 sessions per week; Intensity 70–80% of maximum heart rate; Time 30 minutes per session; Type continuous running or interval circuits. Applying progressive overload, add 5 minutes every two weeks, and apply reversibility by keeping the habit consistent during holidays.