Introduction to Health and Fitness

Health and Fitness is a very important factor in all physical activities and Martial Arts is no exception. Therefor in this section we will be covering all aspects of physical and mental training. "Before partaking in any physical activity get a full medical check up from your physician"

There are three areas in which you need to train to improve your overall fitness these are:

Cardio Vascular: The training of the heart and lungs so that they can cope with the demands of the body when placed under sustained physical and mental stress, usually this is referred to as your stamina level. The main exercises to develop your heart and lungs are aerobic in nature.

Muscular: The training of the muscles to increase strength and flexibility. This would include resistance training and stretching. Muscles consume four or five times as much energy as they produce making them relatively inefficient unless trained. Any physical activity can be enhanced by good muscular development as well as hindered by poor muscular development.

Mind: A positive mental attitude is very important to any successful training program, as it is important in all aspects of life. Check out our article on Positive Mental Attitude.

Over the coming months we will cover various exercises which will help you develop your overall fitness level.

The human body consists of approximately 640 muscles. There are 3 types of muscle:

Striated or Skeletal: the most numerous type, consisting of parallel bundles of fibers attached to the bones by connective tissue (tendons)

Smooth or Visceral: found in the body walls and cavities such as the stomach and blood vessels.

Cardiac: found only in the heart.