If asked, "what does fitness mean to you?", The variety of answers received would be quite large to say the least.
This is because fitness is specific (since the importance of being specific in fitness) to each individual and can not effectively be grouped into categories.
You've got your powerlifters, marathon runners, bodybuilders, etc. but even within each of those groups lies concepts and methods specific to each person working towards their own "idea" of what fitness means to them.
The easiest way to narrow down what specific fitness concept you are related to is to simply step back and ask yourself, "What do I really want to achieve or how would I like to use the results of my efforts?".
For example, do you really want to get better at playing soccer? Do you think to yourself, "I know if I had more stupina I could easily keep up with the other team." Just by thinking of that very simple idea you have almost instantly narrowed down what type of fitness is specific to you. You most likely should be focusing on cardio to become lean and build more stamina.
Now I understand it is not always this straightforward, many times people want to have their cake and eat it too. For example, sometimes the person in the soccer example example above wants to build the stamina but does not want to lose the muscle? What does he or she do?
The good thing about this situation is that there is always an option that is, again, fitness specific to cater to each individual; it just takes some time and patience to get into this habit.
Out of curiosity, I took a survey of 50 random college students (male and female) to find out what fitness meant to them.
Of all the males surveyed (34 males) 73.5% of them said fitness or being fit was being "ripped". Now is this true for all guys? Obviously not, because the other 26.5% had a different idea of what fitness was all about.
Same rule applied with the 16 girls surveyed on in the opposite direction. 94% determined their level of specific fitness was being lean and slender. While only 6% had thoughts otherwise.
The important thing to remember here is the fact that this was a survey of only 50 college students. When the sample size is larger you can only imagine the variety of answers you would receive.
My point is this, whether you are physically active already or thinking about becoming physically active now or in the future, always make sure you are aiming towards a fitness goal that is specific to you and your needs.
If you would like to read more about this idea of "Specific Fitness", feel free to drop by http://specificfitness.blogspot.com where I will be posting new information, recipes, workout routines, and more. Comments and questions always welcome!
