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Reasons For Fitness Testing

This document discusses fitness testing for athletes. It explains that fitness testing is important to determine if an athlete's training program is effective, to motivate athletes by tracking improvements, and to identify strengths and weaknesses. The document outlines various methods for testing components of fitness, including tests for strength, cardiovascular endurance, flexibility, speed, muscular endurance, agility, coordination, reaction time, balance, and power. It stresses the importance of tests being valid in what they measure and reliable in producing consistent results.

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185 views6 pages

Reasons For Fitness Testing

This document discusses fitness testing for athletes. It explains that fitness testing is important to determine if an athlete's training program is effective, to motivate athletes by tracking improvements, and to identify strengths and weaknesses. The document outlines various methods for testing components of fitness, including tests for strength, cardiovascular endurance, flexibility, speed, muscular endurance, agility, coordination, reaction time, balance, and power. It stresses the importance of tests being valid in what they measure and reliable in producing consistent results.

Uploaded by

Kasam A
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Fitness Testing

It is important to test an athletes fitness to help you determine if


their training program is working and to know what goals to set next!
Test before the start of a program and at regular intervals to see
their improvements. This will also help keep them motivated.

Reasons for fitness testing


There are numerous reasons to test an individuals fitness levels:

 to show a starting level of fitness


 to motivate or set goals
 to vary an existing training programme
 to monitor improvement
 compare to national averages
 identify strengths or weaknesses
 to re-evaluate needs in training
 Limitations to fitness testing
Despite all good intentions, fitness testing is quite hard to gain 100%
realistic results. This could be due to:

 tests are not sports specific


 uncompetitive nature of some tests
 reliability issues with tests
 performer lacking in motivation
 not carried out in correct conditions eg same facilities, same
time of day etc.
Measuring components of fitness
Before any period of testing, it is important to remember the
following:

 What equipment is needed to set up a fair test?


 What rules and procedures need to be followed?
 How will you score the tests and which measurements will you
use?
 Which conclusions will you make from the results

Methods of fitness testing


Testing health-related components of fitness
Strength - Hand grip dynamometer
 Grip with dominant hand
 Apply maximum force while arm is straight in front of the body
 Repeat three times while non-participant records the maximum
force reading
Strength – One rep max test
 Select the body part that is to be tested and use the weight
lifting technique for that body part – for example quadriceps a
leg extension, pectorals – bench press
 Lift a weight that is more than the training weight
 Rest for 5 – 10 minutes then select a heavier weight
 Repeat the process until a weight is selected that can only be
lifted successfully for one rep
 Usually measured in kilograms
Cardiovascular endurance - Multi-stage fitness test
 Mark out a 20 m course
 Participants must arrive at end line on the beep or wait for the
beep before running back
 Participants must run until total exhaustion prevents
completion of two to three shuttles
Cardiovascular endurance – Twelve minute Cooper run or swim
 Measure the specific distance around a pitch or track (could be
distance in the swimming pool)
 Participants run or swim as far as possible in the twelve
minutes
 The exact distance covered is recorded and compared to
normative scores
Flexibility - Sit and reach test
 Remove shoes and position sit and reach box against the wall
 Keep knees completely locked and reach forward with one
hand on top of the other
 Stretch and hold position for two seconds while non-participant
records score
Speed - 30 metre sprint test
 Mark out a 30 metre distance on an even, firm surface
 Participant takes a rolling start so that they are running at full
speed as they hit the start line
 Ensure accurate timing by using two timers
 Muscular endurance - 60 second press-up test
 On a cushioned surface the participant performs as many full
press-ups as possible in 60 seconds
 Elbows moving from the locked, straight position to 90 degrees
of flexion
 Non-participant counts the completed actions and judges that
all actions are full
Muscular endurance - 60 second sit-up bleep test
 On a cushioned surface the participant performs as many full
sit ups as they are able to in time to set beeps over 5 minute
period
 Lying on the back, elbows bent and hands by the ears, knees
bent, the participant moves from a lying position to sitting up
with their elbows touching their knees and then returns to the
ground
 Non-participant holds the participants feet on the ground,
counts the completed actions and judges that all actions are full
 Measured in complete number of sit-ups performed

Testing skill-related components of fitness


Agility - Illinois agility test
 Mark out the course to the exact measurements required
 Participant starts in a face-down lying position at the start line
 Ensure accuracy of timing with two timers at the finish line
Coordination – Alternate hand wall toss test
 Participant stands exactly two metres from a smooth-surfaced
wall
 Participant throws the ball with one hand and catches with the
other and repeats
 Non-participant counts number of successful catches in 30
seconds
Reaction time - Ruler drop test
 Hold a 30 cm ruler above the open hand of the participant
 The 0 cm mark must be directly between the thumb and index
finger
 Non-participant drops the ruler with no warning and
participant catches
 The score is taken from where the top of the thumb hits the
ruler after three tests provides an average
Balance - Standing stork test
 Participant places their hand on hips and one foot on inside
knee of the opposite leg
 Participant raises their heel and holds the balance for as long as
possible
 The score is taken as the total time the participant held the
balance successfully
Power - Vertical jump test
 Participant stands sideways onto wall and measures height
with an up-stretched arm
 Participant jumps as high as possible and marks wall at peak of
the jump on three occasions
 The average distance between the standing and jumping height
is taken as the score

Validity and reliability


With all of these tests it is essential to judge both the validity and
reliability of the process. Validity refers to the test measuring what is
claimed to measure. It is difficult to justify whether the handgrip
dynamometer test measures whole body strength rather than just
arm strength. Likewise, the multi-stage fitness test is a more
appropriate test for distance runners compared to swimmers or
cyclists.
Reliability requires that the test should produce similar results each
time the test is taken unless there has been a significant change in
the fitness level of the participant. It is essential that fitness tests be
completed with the scientific rigour found in experimental practices,
especially with regard to the accuracy of timing and measurement.

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