Anatomy, physiology and exercise response
What the examiner expects
This domain tests basic anatomy, the acute response to exercise and simple energy-system and adaptation ideas. Questions often ask you to name muscles and joints, order the energy systems, or predict what happens to heart rate, breathing and blood flow during activity.
Anatomy essentials
The skeletal system supports the body, protects organs and provides levers for movement. Major muscle groups to know include quadriceps, hamstrings, gluteals, gastrocnemius, soleus, abdominals, erector spinae, pectorals, latissimus dorsi, deltoids, biceps and triceps. Joint types include hinge (elbow, knee), ball-and-socket (shoulder, hip), pivot (neck), saddle (thumb) and gliding (wrist bones). Skeletal muscle is voluntary and striated; cardiac muscle is involuntary and striated; smooth muscle is involuntary and non-striated.
Exercise response and energy
During exercise, heart rate, stroke volume and cardiac output rise; breathing rate and depth increase; blood is redirected from the gut and kidneys to working muscles; body temperature rises and sweating begins. The ATP-PC system supplies very short, explosive efforts (about 0–10 seconds), anaerobic glycolysis dominates high-intensity efforts up to about two minutes, and the aerobic system dominates longer work. Chronic training can increase muscle size, capillaries, mitochondria and bone density, lower resting heart rate and improve recovery.
Worked example
A learner runs 200 m in about 28 seconds, then later jogs 5 km. Reasoning: the 200 m is high intensity and short, so ATP-PC and anaerobic glycolysis dominate; the 5 km is longer and aerobic. The 200 m produces a sharp rise in heart rate and ventilation, with an oxygen debt afterwards. The 5 km relies on steady aerobic ATP production and fat/carbohydrate oxidation. Naming the dominant system and the acute responses earns the marks.
Traps that cost marks
Do not call the 200 m 'aerobic'. Do not confuse cardiac and skeletal muscle. Do not say heart rate returns to resting instantly. Do not claim one energy system works alone; they overlap.