158 Chapter 8: Exercise Programming individuals. When our level of fitness is unbalanced, the result is decreased athletic potential and increased risk of injury. To prevent this unbalance, individuals should strive to identify and aggressively train the component(s) of fitness that needs work, while maintaining the component(s) in which they are already proficient. This can be done by meeting, but not exceeding, the minimum weekly requirements for the component(s) in which they are proficient and exceeding the minimum weekly requirements for the component(s) in which they are lacking. Often, individuals prefer to only train the component(s) of fitness that they enjoy and/or are good at instead of the component(s) of fitness that need the most work. These individuals will likely always have an unbalanced level of fitness as the legs of their fitness stool are never able to achieve the same length. Figure 8.1 depicts both a balanced and an unbalanced plan level of fitness. Figure 8.1. Well-Balanced (Left) vs. Unbalanced (Right) Foundation of Fitness Fitness Testing So how do you know which component(s) of fitness you are proficient in and which one(s) you are lacking? One of the most effective ways of assessing your level of fitness is to perform periodic fitness testing. A fitness test is a series of exercises designed to assess specific components of fitness (e.g., aerobic capacity, muscular strength, flexibility). In addition to identifying physiological strengths and weaknesses, periodic fitness testing can be used to track performance over time, assign training parameters (e.g., % of 1RM, MHR) and evaluate the effectiveness of an exercise program (Haff & Triplett, 2016). A sample fitness test that can be used to assess endurance, strength and mobility is provided in Table 8.3. Grading criteria for the deep squat is provided in Table 8.4.
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