Creating an exercise program can be daunting to some. You may not even know where to start! Luckily, if you have a few health goals in mind, it can be pretty simple when using the FITT principle. FITT is a principle that many fitness and health professionals use when prescribing physical activity. This easy to remember acronym compiles 4 concepts that all exercise programs utilize. Show To get started, it is best to write down 2-3 goals, be specific, try SMART goals. Using your goals, you can use the following categories to design your own basic plan. F.I.T.T. Principle Training Status and Frequency Guidelines Beginner: 2-3 sessions/week Ask yourself: “According to my goals and current fitness level, how often should I exercise?” Intensity– This refers to how hard the work is performed. This can be affected by many different factors such as amount of resistance or weight used, the speed or power exerted, changes in the sets and reps, amount of rest time, etc. Set and repetition ranges Power: 3-6 sets of 1-5 reps Ask yourself: “According to my goal, how (heavy should I lift?, far/fast should I run?, many sets and reps should I complete? etc.)? Time–This refers to the amount of time spent during an exercise session. Depending on the intensity and type of exercise, your exercise sessions should be anywhere between 45min-80min. Ask yourself: “According to my goal, how long should I exercise?” or “How much time do I have to exercise today?” Type –This refers to the kind of exercises performed to help you achieve your goals. Example: If your goal is strength or hypertrophy, then you would do strength-building exercises such as squats, deadlifts, and bench presses (also known as compound lifts: exercises involving 2 or more joints and muscle groups). Ask yourself: “According to my goal, what type of exercise movements or type of running should I do?” Here are the benefits of creating your own program: Your goals – The plan you create is great because it is customized to you and your goals and abilities. If you have additional questions about the F.I.T.T Principle or would like to talk to someone at Home Base about setting your own exercise program, visit www.homebase.org/fitness to get in touch with our Warrior Health & Fitness Team. For most healthy adults, the Department of Health and Human Services recommends these exercise guidelines:
Moderate aerobic exercise includes activities such as brisk walking, biking, swimming and mowing the lawn. Vigorous aerobic exercise includes activities such as running, heavy yard work and aerobic dancing. Strength training can include use of weight machines, your own body weight, heavy bags, resistance tubing or resistance paddles in the water, or activities such as rock climbing. As a general goal, aim for at least 30 minutes of moderate physical activity every day. If you want to lose weight, maintain weight loss or meet specific fitness goals, you may need to exercise more. Reducing sitting time is important, too. The more hours you sit each day, the higher your risk of metabolic problems. Sitting too much can negatively impact your health and longevity, even if you get the recommended amount of daily physical activity. And some research has found that people who've lost weight may be more likely to keep off the lost weight by sitting less during the day. Short on long chunks of time? Even brief bouts of activity offer benefits. For instance, if you can't fit in one 30-minute walk during the day, try a few five-minute walks instead. Any activity is better than none at all. What's most important is making regular physical activity part of your lifestyle. Sign up for free, and stay up to date on research advancements, health tips and current health topics, like COVID-19, plus expertise on managing health. To provide you with the most relevant and helpful information, and understand which information is beneficial, we may combine your email and website usage information with other information we have about you. If you are a Mayo Clinic
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. What type of exercise refers to the number of minutes or hours you spend exercising or how long you exercise?Intensity: refers to the intensity of exercise undertaken or how hard you exercise. Time: refers to the time you spend exercising or how long you exercise for.
How long you exercise refers to what?FITT stands for frequency, which is how often you exercise, intensity, which is how hard you exercise, time, which is how long each session lasts and what time of day you exercise, and type, which is what activities you do.
What is meant by Fitt?FITT (frequency, intensity, time, and type) is one way to remember the general guidelines for what should be included in a fitness plan. Remember, it's important to keep in mind that each family member's fitness goals will be different based on age, sex, current fitness level, and available resources.
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