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Alannah Neff, former Carrigaline Community School student, showing incredible resilience and cardiovascular endurance in a dramatic recovery to win Senior 1500m All-Ireland gold.

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A true champion might get knocked down ... but they get up again #schoolschampion #schoolsathletics2018 @irishathletics @ianoriordan @FloTrack @ccs_info

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A true champion might get knocked down ... but they get up again #schoolschampion #schoolsathletics2018 @irishathletics @ianoriordan @FloTrack @ccs_info https://t.co/GJOcCd5lYt

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A true champion might get knocked down ... but they get up again #schoolschampion #schoolsathletics2018 @irishathletics @ianoriordan @FloTrack @ccs_info pic.twitter.com/GJOcCd5lYt
— Derrick Neff (@delneff) June 5, 2018

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A true champion might get knocked down ... but they get up again #schoolschampion #schoolsathletics2018 @irishathletics @ianoriordan @FloTrack @ccs_info https://t.co/GJOcCd5lYt

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A true champion might get knocked down ... but they get up again #schoolschampion #schoolsathletics2018 @irishathletics @ianoriordan @FloTrack @ccs_info https://t.co/GJOcCd5lYt

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A true champion might get knocked down ... but they get up again #schoolschampion #schoolsathletics2018 @irishathletics @ianoriordan @FloTrack @ccs_info

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Most assessment carried out in this scheme will be done in a formative manner, using an Assessment for Learning (AfL) approach throughout. The following are integral aspects of the AfL approach (The Northern Ireland Curriculum, 2010).

Learning intentions and success criteria
Each class will begin with a discussion around the learning intentions for the class. Students will be asked what they already know about the learning intentions and allow this prior knowledge, skills and attitudes to guide the direction of the class.

Success criteria for each part of the class are identified and examples of student work are particularly emphasised. For example, if a student is executing the push up correctly I will ask them to demonstrate for their peers, allowing the class to see what success in this area looks like.

Effective feedback/questioning
As much as possible in this scheme I want my feedback to challenge and promote higher order thinking. Instead of simply correcting a movement, I will focus on asking students to revert to the criteria for success and ask them how they think they can improve. I will keep the feedback specific to the students, attempting to give something they have done well before setting them a new target to improve upon next time.

Something that has worked well in the maths classroom and I have yet to implement as much in my PE teaching has been using a mixture of higher and lower order questioning. I have observed that the lower-order questioning tends to engage weaker to students to participate in class discussion, and as a result allowing them to feel like they are contributing to the learning experience. Furthermore, these students then often are the more likely to try answer higher-order questions and feel like more of a part of the learning.

Self-assessment
Each strand of HRPF will have with it a method by which students can assess their own abilities and compare to standardised gender- and age-related normative values.

Muscular endurance: push-up and sit-up test

Muscular strength: wall sit and plank duration

CV endurance: 20m multi-shuttle test (bleep test)

Flexibility: Sit and reach test

Body composition: Body mass index (BMI)

[self-assessment discussed further below]

Peer assessment
Students will be exposed to a number of opportunities to peer assess during this scheme. In line with developing digital fluency in students, each learner will have the chance to assess their peers using laptops/tablets through SloPro or other such performance analysing apps.

With some classes, such as the muscular endurance class, students will perform a think-pair-share type activity, whereby each student will practice a push up on their own. They will then discuss with their peers the criteria for success (looking at quality of movement rather than quantity of reps (Cook et al., 2014)) and use video to analyse their peers and how well they are hitting each criterion. At the end of the task the class will show their videos to the class, promoting a discussion around the criteria for success in a push up.

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Strand 1: Physical activity for health and wellbeing

set SMART improvement goals informed by their health-related and/or performance-related fitness results and advised by norms for their age and sex

apply principles of training within a personalised physical activity programme (minimum duration of six weeks) designed to improve their health-related and/or performance-related fitness, documenting their progress ·       evaluate their engagement and progress in the programme, providing evidence of progress made and identifying ways they can further develop

use a range of measurement techniques to monitor and analyse physical activity levels across a sustained period of time ·       identify a range of strategies to support ongoing participation in health-related physical activity

lead physical activities that young people find enjoyable and can undertake to achieve the minimum physical activity recommendations for health

At the end of this scheme students will have to design a program for 6 weeks as a means of developing one of the five areas of health-related fitness. At the end of the six weeks there will be a retest of all five areas of physical fitness, students participating in one of the five to see how they have improved.

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[one class divided into two columns for clarity]

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The essential elements of digital literacies: Doug Belshaw at TEDxWarwick

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The implications of confident, competent movers in adolescence has a direct effect on long-term participation in sport and physical activity (O'Brien et al., 2018a).

This scheme will predominantly endeavour to develop non-locomotor and locomotor skills. The latter will be targeted primarily through the warm-up and cool down activities of each lesson, which will allow students to practice a range of locomotor movements. Non-locomotor skills will be more explicitly targeted through muscular endurance, strength and flexibility classes.

These movements, such as balancing, twisting, turning pushing and pulling will be worked through in a variety of scenarios such that students will be able to practice them at home and in turn develop them at their own pace.

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Literacy
Each area of HRPF will provide students with the opportunity to become familiar with new words in that area. For example, muscular endurance and strength will involve students learning about the main muscle groups in the body, while CV endurance will allow students to become familiar with key words in relation to different organs and processes of the system.

Learners will have the opportunity to present to the class their findings from various rich tasks/demonstrations, becoming comfortable speaking to and presenting in front of their peers.

Lastly the Active for Life PE book allows for the use of written work during this scheme, furthering the students' literacy development.

Numeracy
For the learning wall of each scheme I will try to include at least one example of data being displayed through a chart, table or graph. Students will be asked to interpret these graphs and recognise how their results from a given activity/test apply to the data shown.

Working with others
This scheme allows students the opportunity to work with their peers during each lesson. During either the testing period or second/third development of each lesson, students will be working as part of a group. They will have the opportunity to present to their class  and peer-assess during various parts of each lesson.

Staying well
The overarching rationale of this scheme is to promote the necessity for students to take control of their own wellbeing and physical fitness. While the physical aspects of wellbeing come to the fore here, the other aspects of wellbeing such as mental and psychosocial are embedded in the lesson content and pedagogical approach.

Being creative
Some lessons will give students the freedom to be creative and to think critically about choices regarding their physical fitness. For example, during the flexibility class, students will have the opportunity to design their own stretching routine given a set of constraints i.e. 3 stretches only, 2 have to be dynamic etc. Haught-Tromp (2016) has shown the benefits of imposing restrictions on creativity, which is an idea I would hope to use when working with this class.

Managing myself
Throughout this scheme students will learn the benefits of being physically fit for a healthy and enjoyable life. At the end of the scheme, students will be able to design their own exercise program to improve a certain aspect of health-related fitness. Essentially, students will have the skills and knowledge to take control of their own physical fitness and understand its benefits not just now but for the future.

Managing information and thinking
As was referenced in numeracy, students will have to interpret results and knowledge about health-related fitness in terms of how it applies to their own lives. I will try to make each strand of HRPF accessible for students so that they can realise its importance in their own lives.

Communication
Students will have to communicate when talking to their peers and to the whole class. This will be done during the demonstration of exercises and activities but also during discussion activities before, during and after some classes.

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Each area of health-related physical fitness has its own distinct yet related benefits.

1. Cardiovascular endurance
Maintaining a good level of cardiovascular fitness through regular moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) reduces risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) (Whitlock et al., 2009; Berringto de Gonzalez, 2010), pulmonary disease (Melo et al., 2014), Type II diabetes (Abdullah, 2010) and more.
2/3. Muscular endurance/muscular strength
While there is often a stigma around youth participation in resistance training and muscular strength/endurance development programs, extensive research shows that the benefits are multi-faceted, extending but not limited to

reduced CVD risk profile

enhanced muscular strength and power

improved motor skill competence

increased resistance to sports-related injuries

improved psychosocial wellbeing (Faigenbaum, 2009)

4. Flexibility
The principal health outcomes hypothesized to be associated with flexibility are prevention of and relief from low-back pain, prevention of musculoskeletal injury, and improved posture (Pate et al., 2012).
5. Body composition
The implications of weight status of long-term health are well documented. Ireland is on course to have one of the highest rates of obesity in Europe by 2030 (HSE, 2018). Combating obesity is a multi-faceted endeavour, and encompasses hereditry, developmental and environmental influences in preventing obesity across generations.

Furthermore, participating in regular physical activity/exercise and maintaining a good level of health-related physical fitness is synonymous with academic achievement (Dwyer et al., 2001; Trudeau et al., 2008; Crawford et al., 2013). Therefore, empowering students to understand and take control over their physical fitness not only has a positive effect on their health but also on their intellectual ability.

This scheme hopes to expose the class to a number of areas of physical fitness in which they can develop and achieve their goals. A number of publications of late have outlined the overwhelming need for students to live healthier lives. Those who practice healthy lifestyle habits in terms of exercise and nutrition in adolescence have a much higher chance of continuing these habits into adulthood (Malina, 2001; HSE, 2018).

The HSE (2018) show that levels of childhood obesity have stabilised but remain at a critically high level in this country. As of 2017 22% of 9-year-olds in Ireland were either overweight or obese (ESRI, 2018). O'Brien et al. (2018a) showed that the Fundamental Movement Skill (FMS) proficiency of Irish youth is low, something that is concurrent with obesity participation in physical activity and, as a result, has a direct impact on weight status (O'Brien et al., 2018b).

However interventions can be made at any stage of development in children and adolescents (HSE, 2018), and while this scheme is not an intervention per se, it is a method of empowering young people to see the virtue of living healthy lives and the small habitual changes that can be made in order for them to develop in such a manner.

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A number of policy documents facilitate and encourage the teaching of health-related physical fitness to post-primary groups.

Junior Cycle Physical Education Specification (DES, 2018a)
A Framework for Improved Health and Wellbeing 2013-2025 (Healthy Ireland, 2013)
Framework for Junior Cycle (DES, 2015)
Wellbeing Policy Statement and Framework for Practice (DES, 2018b)

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Prior knowledge
Class Brian have a basic knowledge of the effects of exercise on the body. They have limited knowledge on specific reasons for exercise-induced somatic change and of the role of the different muscle groups in the body.
Prior skills
There is a wide variety of skill level in class Brian. Some students are gifted athletically and will thrive in certain areas of the scheme, particularly muscular strength and CV endurance. There are also some of the girls in the class who practice gymnastics and will take well to learning about and working with flexibility.
Prior attitudes
Class Brian have always given the impression of being a highly motivated group that want to be challenged. I have found it difficult to challenge them all sufficiently due to the mixed level of ability in the group but on the whole by setting challenges for the class each week and specific, individual goals they should be able to thrive in this scheme and develop a positive attitude towards health-related physical fitness.

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When researching for this scheme, one thing I wanted for my learners was for them to become independent and take control of their own wellbeing. Carol Dweck (2006) mentions the difference between a growth mindset and a fixed mindset view of intelligence. often in her research. A growth mindset approach will allow students to see their abilities, temperaments and interests are subject to change based on what they are exposed to. Furthermore, by encouraging self-assessment and handing the control over to the students, this allows them to be the pilots of their own knowledge and application of such in terms of the safeguarding of their physical fitness.

One such way of doing this will be the use of SMART goals in my teaching of this scheme. Students will be shown early on how to set goals in line with this framework in terms of improving a certain area of physical fitness.

One criterion which I will focus on is making them measurable. As shown above, all areas have an example of a valid, reliable testing method. This will allow students to track their progress in the form of longitudinal data, whereby their results of each test will be comparable before and after whatever intervention they plan to implement.

By empowering students in this manner, they will be able to take what they learn in this scheme and bring it into the real world, a connection that may not be easy to make in other subject areas. For students of all abilities, of which there are many in this group, being able to take control of their progress is something that will be great value to them in their holistic development throughout their lives.

On the Stairway to Lifetime Fitness as shown above, students should be at the self-planning stage at the end of this scheme, making the transition to independence and aiming towards lifetime physical activity and in turn physical fitness.

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Physical activity is defined as any bodily movement produced by skeletal muscles that results in energy expenditure (Caspersen, 1985)

Physical activity can be subdivided into catergories based on a number of factors:

Where they occur in the daily routine (e.g. during work, leisure, sleep etc) (Stephens et al, 1985)

Intensity (light, moderate, vigourous, high) (Caspersen et al., 1985; Norton et al., 2010)

Willful/compulsory activity

The last point serves to highlight the difference between physical activity and exercise. According to Taylor (1983), while there are many similarities between physical activity and exercise, there is one crucial difference outlined in the graph above.

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Abdullah, A., Peeters, A., de Courten, M., & Stoelwinder, J. (2010). The magnitude of association between overweight and obesity and the risk of diabetes: A meta-analysis of prospective cohort studies. Diabetes Research and Clinical Practice, 89(3), 309-319

Bradley, J., Keane, F., & Crawford, S. (2013). School sport and academic achievement.Journal of School Health, 83(1), 8-13.

Chambers, F. C., Jones, A., Murphy, O. Sandeford, R. (2019). Design Thinking for Digital Well-being: Theory and Practice for Educators. London: Routledge.

Dweck, C. (2006). Mindset: The new psychology of success. New York.

Dwyer, T., Sallis, J. F., Blizzard, L., Lazarus, R., & Dean, K. (2001). Relation of academic performance to physical activity and fitness in children. Pediatric Exercise Science, 13(3), 225-237.

Faigenbaum, A. D., Kraemer, W. J., Blimkie, C. J. R., Jeffreys, I., Micheli, L. J., Nitka, M., & Rowland, T. W. (2009). Youth resistance training: Updated position statement paper from the national strength and conditioning association. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 23 Suppl 5(5 Suppl), S60-S79.

Floridi, L. (2015) The Online Manifesto: Being human in a hyperconnected era. Oxford: Springer

Glass, D. J. (2005). Skeletal muscle hypertrophy and atrophy signaling pathways. The International J of Biochemistry and Cell Biology.

Haught-Tromp, C. (2016, April 14). The Green Eggs and Ham Hypothesis: How Constraints Facilitate Creativity. Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts.

Mack, G. (2001). Mind gym: An athlete’s guide to inner excellence. New York: McGraw-Hill.

Malina, R. (2010). Physical Activity and Fitness: Pathways From Childhood

to Adulthood. American J of Human Biology, 13. pp162-172.

Melo, C. L., Silva, M. (2014) Obesity and lung function: A systematic review. Einstein.

Norton, K., Norton, L., Sadgrove, D. (2010).  Position statement on physical activity and exercise intensity terminology. Journal of science and medicine in sport.

O'Brien, W. Issartel, J., Belton, S. (2018).  Relationship between Physical Activity, Screen Time and Weight Status among Young Adolescents. Sports, 6(3), 1-11.

Stephens, T., Jacobs, R. (1985).  A Descriptive Epidemiology of Leisure-Time Physical Activity. Public Health Reports, 100, 2, pp147-162.

Taylor, H. L. (1983). Physical activity: Is it still a risk factor? Preventive medicine, 12(1), pp20-24.

The Northern Ireland Curriculum. (2010). Assessment for Learning: A practical guide. Belfast: CCEA.

Trudeau, F., & Shephard, R. J. (2008). Physical education, school physical activity, school sports and academic performance. The International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity, 5(1), 10-10.

Whitlock, G., Lewington, S., Sherliker, P., Clarke, R., Emberson, J., Halsey, J., . . . Prospective Studies Collaboration. (2009). Body-mass index and cause-specific mortality in 900 000 adults: Collaborative analyses of 57 prospective studies. Lancet (London, England), 373(9669), 1083

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To be healthy is often synonymous and operationalised in the context of physical fitness (Malina, 2001). Throughout the literature there are various ways of categorising physical fitness:

Performance-related physical fitness

Health-related physical fitness

Skill-related physical fitness

While initially there was more of a focus on performance-related fitness, the more contemporary focus has been on promoting health-related components of physical fitness (Malina, 2001). That is not to say that other branches of physical fitness contribute towards physical health. O'Brien et al. (2018) showed the positive correlation between fundamental movement skill (FMS) proficiency and weight status, deducing that limited FMS ability limits participation in physical activity and exercise throughout adolescence and into adulthood. However in terms of the general population, focusing on the five components of health-related physical fitness has the most directly observable benefits in terms of long-term physical health.

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Components of health-related physical fitness

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Components of health-related physical fitness

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(Caspersen et al., 1985; Malina, 2001)

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Educating students today about the importance of health and HRPF is more important than ever. The HSE (2018) have shown the levels of obesity in Ireland have steadied in terms of growth in the last number of years among youth but the country could still have one one of the highest obesity rates in Europe by 2030. This scheme also aims to develop students' FMS proficiency, something O'Brien et al (2018) have shown has direct correlations to physical activity levels and participation in sport.

All in all, this scheme will hopefully give each student the tools to become more physically fit by motivating them, educating them and highlighting how important the long-term effects of being fit and healthy are.

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In today's world, we, especially our youth, don't seem to have the luxury of living completely offline (Floridi, 2015). Our students have so much to deal with that past generations could never have imagined. They live in a constant hyperconnected state (Floridi, 2015). Therefore the onus is on us in education to prepare students who already live in this world not only to be digitally literate but also digitally fluent.

Digital literacy is knowing how to use ICT and what to do with them, whereas a digitally fluent person can decide when and why to use ICT, recognising the greater impact of digital technology use on a seemingly infinite community (The New Zealand Curriculum, 2016).

Chambers et al. (2019) argue that we are at a point of information saturation, and students are quite overwhelmed by how connected everything is. In dealing with this the tendency can be to have a knee-jerk reaction and ban all use of ICT to allow students to process information. However, Chambers et al. (2019) argue the importance of preparing children and adolescents for this world by helping them become digitally fluent and ultimately digitally well.

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ICT and Digital Wellbeing with Class Brian

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ICT and Digital Wellbeing with Class Brian

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With this Class I will try to expose them as much as possible to ICT. This is somewhat difficult during the scheme as phone use is forbidden across the school. Some classes will use tablets - this will be an effective way of showing technique using the app SloPro. However it will also be a way to highlight for students the importance of data protection. Each laptop is linked to a Google Drive account, where every video is saved. Students will be made aware of how this can be accessed and to be aware of its use.

Furthermore, the use of the app MyFitnessPal will be another way of promoting students taking control of their own health-related physical fitness. This app allows students to find out what is in the food they are eating and how their nutritional intake looks on an average day. While students will not be able to access the app in school, they will be given homework as such to make out meal plans, track their exercise for a weak, ultimately with the goal of being responsible for their health.

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Endurance: Run Farther, Faster, More Easily - Sport Science: Running

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What makes muscles grow? - Jeffrey Siegel

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Muscle hypertrophy is defined as an increase in muscle mass, which in the adult animal comes as a result of an increase in the size, as opposed to the number, of pre-existing skeletal muscle fibers (Glass, 2005).

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Difference between isotonic and isometric movement

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Difference between isotonic and isometric movement

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Both forms of muscle contraction contribute to muscular strength development. However, they are different in that they challenge the muscles in different ways.

Someone who is a powerlifter may perform well in a isotonic exercise, whereas someone who practice Jiu-Jitsu, predominantly using grappling movements, may perform better in a isometric exercise.

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Research paper that outlines the different somatic effects of training for muscular strength versus muscular endurance

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This game allows students to roll the dice to design their own stretching program

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N.B. : Students are asked having presented their programs whether or not they thought it was a good stretching program, based on order of exercises, mixture of dynamic and static stretches and muscles stretched. They are then asked how you would adapt it to make the optimal stretching routine given, and what other variables should be considered in designing programs.

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BMI was once the gold standard in detecting obesity. However such a simple measure cannot account for the various somatic factors that govern overall physical health. Equally, someone who is very physically fit may be deemed obese despite having very low body fat percentages due to the level of muscle in the body.

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What BMI doesn't tell you about your health

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Video highlighting FITT principles of training program design

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Video highlighting FITT principles of training program design

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Frequency

Intensity

Time

Type

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If you are wondering how to structure your exercise and track your progress, you may want to look into the FITT principle. Below, we explain what it is and how to use it to reach your fitness goals.

FIIT Principle

The FIIT principle is a straightforward guideline for revising and improving any workout plan. FIIT stands for frequency, intensity, time, and type of exercise. You need to think about these four elements to create workouts that fit your goals and fitness level.

For instance, working out 3 to 5 days a week with a mixture of low, medium, and high-intensity exercise for 30 to 60 minutes per session, and performing cardio and strength training. Working out these details and progressing them over time helps create an effective program.

The first thing to set up with your workout plan is frequency- how often you will exercise. Frequency often depends on various factors, including the type of workout you're doing, how hard you're working, your fitness level, and your exercise goals.

In general, the exercise guidelines set out by the American College of Sports Medicine give you a place to start when figuring out how often to work out for both cardio and strength training.

Cardio Workouts

Cardio workouts are usually scheduled more often. Depending on your goal, guidelines recommend moderate cardio exercise five or more days a week or intense cardio three days a week to improve your health. By allowing you to easily adjust the exercise intensity level, these top-rated treadmills provide excellent and convenient cardio workouts.

If you want to lose weight, you may want to work up to more frequent workouts, up to six or more days a week. Just remember that more is not always better, and recovery time is essential.

Strength Training

The recommended frequency for strength training is two to three non-consecutive days a week. You should have at least one to two days between sessions.

Your frequency, however, will often depend on the type of training sessions you perform as well as your goals. You want to work each muscle group at least two times a week if your goal is to build bigger muscles, for example. If you do a split routine, like upper body one day and lower body the next, your workouts can be more frequent than total body workouts.

Intensity has to do with how hard you work during exercise. How you increase or decrease intensity depends on the type of workout you're doing.

Cardio Workouts

For cardio, you will usually monitor workout intensity by heart rate, perceived exertion, the talk test, a heart rate monitor, or a combination of those measures.

The general recommendation is to work at a moderate intensity for steady-state workouts. Interval training is done at a higher intensity for a shorter period. It's a good idea to have a mixture of low, medium, and high-intensity cardio exercises, so you stimulate different energy systems and avoid overtraining.

Strength Training

Monitoring the intensity of strength training involves a different set of parameters. Your intensity comprises the amount of weight you lift, and the number of reps and sets you do. The intensity can change based on your goals.

If you are a beginner looking to build muscle, stability, and endurance, use a lighter weight and do fewer sets with high repetitions: two or three sets of 12 to 20 reps.

If your goal is to grow muscle, do more sets with a moderate amount of repetitions (for instance, four sets of 10 to 12 reps each). You can build muscle with a wide range of repetitions and weights, but volume (total number of repetitions), is often higher than for other goals.

If you want to build strength, use heavy weights to do more sets with fewer reps (five sets of three reps each, for example).

The next element of your workout plan is how long you exercise during each session. There isn't one set rule for how long you should exercise, and it will typically depend on your fitness level and the type of workout you're doing.

Cardio Workouts

The exercise guidelines suggest 30 to 60 minutes of cardio, but the duration of your workout will depend on your fitness level and what type of exercise you're doing.

If you're a beginner, you might start with a 15- to 20-minute workout. If you have some experience and are doing steady-state cardio, such as going for a run or using a cardio machine, you might exercise for 30 to 60 minutes. If you're doing interval training and working at very high intensity, your workout will be shorter, around 10 to 15 minutes for all-out effort-based interval training.

Having a variety of workouts of different intensities and durations will give you a solid, balanced cardio program.

Strength Training

How long you lift weights will also depend on the type of workout you're doing and your schedule. For example, a total body workout could take over an hour, whereas a split routine could take less time because you're working fewer muscle groups in one session.

The type of exercise you do is the last part of the FIIT principle. It is easy to manipulate to avoid overuse injuries or weight loss plateaus.

Cardio Workouts

Cardio is easy to change since any activity that gets your heart rate up counts. Running, walking, cycling, dancing, swimming, and the elliptical trainer are some of the wide variety of activities you can choose. Having more than one go-to cardio activity is the best way to reduce boredom and increase variability.

Strength Training

Strength training workouts can also offer variety. They include any exercise where you're using some type of resistance (bands, dumbbells, machines, etc.) to work your muscles. Bodyweight exercises can also be considered a form of strength training.

You can easily change the strength workouts you do, from total body training to adding things like supersets or pyramid training, to liven things up. Incorporating new exercises for each body part is another way to vary the type of workouts you do.

You may wish to spend a few weeks working on functional strength-based movements, then move to hypertrophy or strength-based programming. Each of these modalities includes various alternative types of strength-based exercises to try.

How to Use FIIT

The FIIT principle outlines how to manipulate your program to get in shape and get better results. It also helps you figure out how to change your workouts to avoid boredom, overuse injuries, and plateaus.

For example, walking three times a week for 30 minutes at a moderate pace might be a great place for a beginner to start out with a workout program. After a few weeks, however, your body adapts to these workouts. As a result, you notice that you burn fewer calories, that you get bored, or your weight management efforts stall. It's at this point you want to manipulate one or more of the FIIT principles. For example, you might:

Change frequency by adding another day of walking

Change intensity by walking faster or adding some hills or running intervals

Change time by walking for a longer time each workout day

Change the type of workout by swapping one or more of your walks for swimming or cycling

Even just changing one of these elements can make a big difference in your workout and in how your body responds to exercise. It's important to change things up on a regular basis to keep your body healthy and your mind engaged.

FIIT and Injury Prevention

One of the best things about using FIIT is that it allows you to monitor the length and intensity of your workouts. When you are working out too frequently or not getting enough rest, you run the risk of overuse injuries, burnout, and muscle strains.

What's more, the FIIT principle encourages you to add variety to your workouts. When you do this, you allow your body to rest and recover. Plus, you are not working the same muscle groups over and over again, which in the end will produce better results.

If you notice that you are starting to have less energy, experience more aches and pains, or are feeling fatigued, you may want to make some changes to your exercise regimen. And if your symptoms persist, be sure to consult with a healthcare provider. They can help you pinpoint the root cause of your symptoms.

A Word From Verywell

The FIIT principle is a well-established way of modifying and adapting exercise programming to fit your unique goals, lifestyle, preferences, and progress. You can change and adapt each of the factors to suit these needs. Incorporating changes to frequency, intensity, time, and type of exercise helps to stave off boredom while also providing a framework for continued progress.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which are the main components of fitness?

The main components of fitness are cardiovascular training, resistance training, and mobility, stretching, and recovery work. Each are important for a healthy, functional body and lifestyle.

Is a 1-hour workout enough to achieve your fitness goals?

If you have one hour per workout day to train, this is usually plenty, depending on what your goals are and how many days per week you are training.

One-hour workouts three to four times per week with a mixture of cardiovascular and strength training can be effective, depending on your effort, workout structure, and other aspects of your lifestyle. Even 10 minutes of exercise each day can make a huge difference to your health.

How do you use the FIIT principle if you are a beginner?

Using the FIIT principle if you are a beginner to exercise does not have to be complicated. Simply review each of the four aspects and decide on what to start with. For example, how many days of the week can you commit to? What type of exercise do you want to try? After a month or so, you can revisit the FIIT guidelines and choose one or two to modify.

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How Can I Use the FIIT Principle for Effective Workouts?

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The FITT principle of exercise provides a structure for how to exercise and progress. Learn what it is and how to use it to achieve your fitness goals.

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From this presentation we can see the importance of setting action based, rather than outcome goals (Mack, 2001)

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Video highlights the effects of acute and chronic physical activity participation on physical and mental wellbeing.

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How playing sports benefits your body ... and your brain - Leah Lagos and Jaspal Ricky Singh

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Why am I teaching this scheme to Class Brian?
[original clip made using Powtoon]