Endurance, Flexibility and Strength

To keep your body healthy, Canada's Physical Activity Guide to Healthy Active Living (PDF) recommends focusing on three different things:

• Endurance
• Flexibility
• Strength
  

Endurance
Endurance activities are continuous and involve large muscle groups. They increase your heart rate, breathing rate and body temperature. These changes in your heart, lungs and circulatory system help your body function more efficiently.

Regular endurance activities can lead to:

• Better health
• Weight control
• More energy
• Relaxation and reduced stress
• Improved self-esteem
• Improved fitness
• Improved posture and balance
• Stronger muscles and bones

Examples of endurance activities include:

• Walking
• Golfing
• Garden work (raking, digging)
• Housecleaning (vacuuming, washing floors)
• Cycling
• Skating
• Swimming
• Racquet sports
• Dancing

Try for at least 30 minutes to get the full benefits. If that’s too much, do 10-minute bouts, 3 times throughout the day. As your fitness level increases and the activity becomes easier, gradually add more time each session until you reach 60 minutes of physical activity every day.

Endurance Activity Guidelines:

1. Begin with light activities. Once you have been active for more than 3 weeks, change one component of the FITT principle – frequency, intensity, time and type. See the FITT table below for examples of how you can work you way up gradually, over time.
   
2. Enjoy what you’re doing.
   
3. Plan for disruptions. Sometimes a change in your health status, an injury, weather conditions, a cancelled class or other disruptions can get you off track. Plan strategies and alternative activities that you can do should a roadblock arise. For more ideas, see the tip sheet Getting Started .
   
4. If you experience pain, stop the activity and consult your doctor or health practitioner.

FITT	Just Starting Out	Active Sometimes	Regular Routine
F requency	Daily	4-7 days	4-7 days
I ntensity (%max heart rate)	Light 55-64	Moderate 65-74	Moderate-Vigorous 75-90**
T ime (minutes)	60+	30-60	30-60
T ype (examples) (continuous, involves large muscle groups)	Light walking Gardening Tai Chi	Brisk walking Swimming Biking	Jogging Aerobics Basketball

**Note: high intensity activities (75-90%) cannot be sustained for long periods of time.

Flexibility
Flexibility refers to how far and how easily you can move your joints. Activities that help keep your muscles relaxed and your joints mobile help maintain flexibility. Try to include daily bending, stretching and reaching to move your joints through their full range of motion. A functional range of motion in all joints allows you to manage daily activities without discomfort and strain.

Regular flexibility activities can lead to:

• Better functioning in everyday tasks
• More independent living
• Improved posture
• Reduced muscle stiffness and soreness
• Less stress and tension
• Less risk of injury

Examples of flexibility activities include:

• Daily chores around the house (putting away groceries, dusting, sweeping)
• Yard work (raking, digging, moving garden waste)
• Stretching routines before and after physical activity
• Yoga, Pilates, T'ai Chi
• Stretch and strength classes

Stretching Guidelines:

• Stretch after endurance and strength activities, when your muscles are warm. If you’re doing a stretching program only, warm up first by going for a short walk.
• Slowly and smoothly stretch to the point just before you feel discomfort or pain and hold your stretch for 10 - 20 seconds. Breathe normally. No bouncing.
• Try to stay relaxed. You should not feel any pain or strain. If you do feel pain, you’ve stretched too far.
  Repeat each stretch 2 - 3 times.
• Breathe normally. No breath holding.
• If you experience tingling, numbness or dizziness, stop stretching immediately.

Here’s how to apply the FITT principle to flexibility activities:
Frequency
F = Daily

Intensity
I = Take stretch to just before the point of pain and hold

Time
T = 10-20 seconds per stretch, 2-3 times, 15-30 minutes total

Type
T = Hold each stretch – no bouncing
i.e. Self-guided program – yoga, pilates or stretching class

Strength
Adequate muscle strength allows you to deal with the demands of daily living without undue stress and helps protect your joints and muscles from injury. For example, strong core muscles (abdominal and back muscles) help support your back when you’re lifting and reduce the risk of back injuries.

Strong muscles can lead to:

• Improved mobility and enhanced quality of life
• Ability to perform daily and occupational activities easily
• Better posture
• Reduced risk of developing osteoporosis
• Decreased blood pressure
• Reduced cholesterol

Examples of some strength activities are:

• Heavy yard work (cutting and piling wood)
• Raking and carrying leaves
• Lifting and carrying groceries
• Climbing stairs
• Sit-ups and push-ups
• Carrying backpacks: pack light, pack it right - 15% of your body weight
• Weight/strength training programs

When starting a new strength training program, ask yourself if you want to go to a community centre or fitness club or do a home-based program. It’s important to choose something you enjoy and can safely complete on a regular basis. Here are some guidelines to help you get started.

Strength Training Guidelines:

If you’ve never done strength training, consider consulting a trained professional (i.e., CSEP-Professional Fitness Lifestyle Consultant, CSEP-Certified Personal Trainer, CSC, BCAK or other certified health professionals). See links below.

When starting a new program ensure you:

• Warm up at the beginning of each session.
• Choose exercises that are appropriate for your program and your long-term goal. Do 6 - 8 exercises working all your major muscle groups (lower body, upper body, trunk) and both sides of your body (front and back).
• Learn the proper settings and loads for each piece of equipment or exercise movement.
• Learn the proper lifting techniques or movement patterns. Lift and move in a controlled manner. Take 3 seconds to lift and 3 seconds to lower weights.
• Begin with a weight or resistance you can lift 8 - 15 times. If you can’t lift a weight more than 8 times, it’s too heavy; if you can lift it more than 15 times, it’s too light.
• Breathe regularly during each exercise – no breath holding. Breathe out when you’re exerting.
• Take adequate rest between each exercise (1 - 2 minutes) and repeat.
• Avoid exercises that hurt or feel wrong. Some may make you a bit sore at first but they should never cause pain.
• Drink water before, during and after your strength program.
• Stretch out your muscles when you’re done.

Here’s an example of how you can apply the FITT principle to strength activities:
Frequency
F = 2-4 days per week (rest one day between sessions)

Intensity
I = Weight that you can lift 8-15 times

Time
T = 20-30 seconds , completing 2-4 sets, 6-8 exercises

Type
T = Use body weight, tubing or gym equipment

 

Links:

Canada's Physical Activity Guide to Healthy Active Living (PDF)

Canadian Society for Exercise Physiology

BC Recreation and Parks Association

BC Association of Kinesiologists

BC Chiropractic Association