HKDSE PE flashcards

32 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.

Health-related fitness components

Cardiorespiratory endurance, muscular strength, muscular endurance, flexibility and body composition. These components relate to good health and reduced disease risk rather than to sports performance.

Skill-related fitness components

Speed, agility, balance, coordination, power and reaction time. These components underpin performance in sport and are sometimes called performance-related or motor fitness components.

FITT principle

A framework for designing training: Frequency of sessions, Intensity of work, Time or duration of each session, and Type of activity. Varying these variables controls training load and adaptation.

Progressive overload

Systematically increasing training demand, for example by raising load, volume or intensity, so the body continues to adapt. Without overload, performance plateaus; excessive overload risks injury and overtraining.

Specificity principle

Training adaptations are specific to the muscles, energy systems, movement patterns and intensities used. A cyclist improves cycling endurance more than running endurance because the training stimulus differs.

Reversibility (detraining)

Fitness gains are lost when training stops or falls below the threshold needed to maintain adaptation. Cardiovascular and strength losses appear within weeks of inactivity.

Karvonen formula

Target heart rate = (HRmax − HRrest) × intensity percentage + HRrest. It uses heart-rate reserve, giving a more individualised training prescription than a simple percentage of maximum heart rate.

Body mass index

BMI = body mass in kilograms divided by height in metres squared. It is a quick screening index for weight status but cannot separate fat mass from muscle or bone mass.

Borg RPE scale

A 6–20 perceived exertion scale where the rating multiplied by ten approximates exercise heart rate. It allows intensity monitoring without equipment and reflects the exerciser's own perception.

ATP-PC energy system

The phosphagen system uses stored ATP and phosphocreatine for very brief maximal efforts, roughly ten seconds or less. It produces ATP fastest but has a very small capacity and fatigues quickly.

Anaerobic glycolysis

Breakdown of glucose to lactate without oxygen, dominant in high-intensity efforts lasting roughly ten seconds to two minutes. It produces ATP faster than aerobic metabolism but with limited capacity.

Aerobic energy system

Oxidative metabolism of carbohydrate and fat with oxygen, occurring in mitochondria. It produces ATP slowly but has a very large capacity, supporting prolonged submaximal exercise.

Oxygen deficit and EPOC

Oxygen deficit is the gap between oxygen demand and supply at exercise onset. Excess post-exercise oxygen consumption (EPOC) is the elevated oxygen uptake after exercise that restores the body to resting state.

Cardiac output equation

Cardiac output equals heart rate multiplied by stroke volume, measured in litres per minute. During exercise both variables rise, though stroke volume plateaus at higher intensities.

Type I muscle fibres

Slow-twitch fibres with high oxidative capacity, many mitochondria and resistance to fatigue. They suit prolonged endurance work and are recruited at low force outputs.

Type II muscle fibres

Fast-twitch fibres with high glycolytic capacity and rapid contraction. Type IIa is intermediate and oxidative-glycolytic; Type IIx is more powerful but fatigues quickly, suited to sprint and power work.

Muscle contraction types

Isotonic contraction changes muscle length with movement (concentric shortening, eccentric lengthening). Isometric contraction generates tension without length change. Eccentric actions can produce high force and muscle soreness.

Motor unit recruitment

A motor unit is one motor neuron and the muscle fibres it innervates. The size principle states smaller, slower units are recruited first, with larger fast units added as force demand increases.

Open versus closed skills

Open skills occur in unpredictable, changing environments where the performer must adapt, such as a football pass. Closed skills occur in stable, predictable settings with a set movement pattern, such as a free throw.

Discrete, serial, continuous skills

Discrete skills have a clear start and finish, such as a tennis serve. Serial skills link several discrete movements in sequence, such as a triple jump. Continuous skills have no obvious endpoints, such as running.

Gross versus fine skills

Gross skills use large muscle groups and whole-body movement, such as jumping or swimming. Fine skills involve precise, small muscle control, such as a dart throw or badminton net shot.

Stages of motor learning

Fitts and Posner describe cognitive (conscious, error-prone), associative (refining, fewer errors) and autonomous (automatic, low attention) stages. Learners need different feedback and practice at each stage.

Intrinsic versus extrinsic feedback

Intrinsic feedback comes from the performer's own senses, such as feel or proprioception. Extrinsic (augmented) feedback is added information from a coach, video or timing device.

Knowledge of results versus performance

Knowledge of results gives information about the outcome of a movement, such as whether a shot scored. Knowledge of performance describes the movement quality, such as body alignment during the shot.

Massed versus distributed practice

Massed practice uses long sessions with little rest between trials. Distributed practice inserts rest between trials or sessions, which generally supports learning of new or complex skills.

Blocked versus random practice

Blocked practice repeats one skill before moving to the next, aiding early performance. Random practice mixes skills in unpredictable order, which often produces better retention and transfer.

Inverted-U hypothesis

Performance rises with arousal up to an optimal point, then declines if arousal continues to increase. The optimal level is generally lower for fine, complex skills than for gross, simple tasks.

Drive theory

Predicts a linear relationship in which performance improves as arousal increases, assuming the dominant response is correct. It best explains simple or well-learned skills rather than complex new ones.

SMART goal setting

Goals should be specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and time-bound. Process goals target technique and strategy, performance goals target personal standards, and outcome goals depend partly on opponents.

Mental imagery

Rehearsing a skill or routine mentally, using internal (first-person) or external (third-person) perspective. It can support skill learning, confidence and arousal control when combined with physical practice.

Progressive relaxation

A technique of deliberately tensing and then releasing muscle groups to reduce somatic anxiety. It lowers arousal and is useful before fine-skill performance where excess tension harms control.

Self-efficacy

Bandura's term for a person's belief in their capability to perform a task. It is influenced by past mastery experiences, vicarious modelling, verbal persuasion and interpretation of physiological states.