Where would the following activity best fit on the physical activity pyramid& heavy weight lifting? Before I get down to that, let me say this, today, many people die of lack of fitness and obesity. However, this shouldn’t be the case. Keeping fit is such an easy idea. The only thing that you must do is to plan and program yourself well.
With proper programming, getting up the fitness scale will help you a lot. You will be able to get more out of your training and possibly achieve the highest level of fitness too. So how can you do that?
I recommend the use of the physical activity pyramid. This pyramid will control your training and enable you to progress in your fitness training so easily.
What is the Physical Activity Pyramid?
Like I may have hinted, the physical activity pyramid is a guide that you can use to plan for a fitness lifestyle easily. The pyramid allows you to choose several fitness activities from all levels that you can work with to boost your fitness needs.
These fitness activities are set in the form of a “ladder” or pyramid from which you can choose what you need in terms of your fitness goals. In other words, this is a visual representation that’ll demonstrate how you can increase your physical activity program to suit your daily workout needs.
This visual representation has a breakdown of the daily activities that are recommended and is set to run from different levels, usually the base and proceeding to much less beneficial activities at the peak of the pyramid. The physical activity pyramid, therefore, explains the total amount of physical activity that you require to lead the most active and healthiest lifestyle.
5 Key Steps of the Physical Activity Pyramid
With that said, here are the five key steps of the physical activity pyramid. These steps will guide you to how the pyramid operates and looks like too. Take a look!
Moderate Physical Activity
Moderate physical activity is basically the first step that you will start from if you plan on using the Physical Activity Pyramid. Moderate physical activity is recommended for daily performance and involves several exercises that are equal to the intensity of brisk walking.
These activities are often referred to as normal daily living activities. They are again called lifestyle activities and will include several options including.
- Yardwork (raking leaves or mowing your lawn)
- Housework (mopping the floor)
- Less vigorous sports (bowling and golf)
If you are going to start on moderate physical activity, it is recommended that you go for 60 minutes of moderate physical activity to vigorous activity every day. This type of activity is ideal for teens and newbies.
Vigorous Aerobics
The next step after the moderate physical activity on the physical activity pyramid is vigorous aerobics. This type of activity includes those workout routines that you can work with for an extended timeline without taking a break and which can increase your heart rate or make you breathe faster.
Such activities are often sweaty and are much more intense than moderate activities. They include the following:
- Jogging
- Aerobic dance
These exercises that are continuous in nature will provide several health benefits and are ideal for building high levels of cardiorespiratory endurance.
Vigorous Sport and Recreation
While vigorous aerobics represents the second step in the physical activity pyramid, vigorous sport and recreation sit at the third step. They will also boost your heart to beat rate to a faster than normal one and again cause you to breathe faster and even sweat more.
This is because such activities will trigger your muscles to use more oxygen and, in turn, make your heart beat faster. The result will be faster breathing to try and meet your body’s demand for more oxygen. Unlike vigorous aerobics, vigorous sport and recreation involve short bursts of activities which are followed by a short burst of rest.
The best activities for these steps include basketball, soccer, football, and tennis, which are done for 20 minutes at least every day in bouts of 10 minutes. These are the activities that’ll build motor skills and again contribute to the healthiest weight management.
Muscle Fitness Exercises
Next in the Physical Activity Pyramid are the muscle fitness exercises. As the name suggests, these types of exercises will help you to build your strength and develop better muscular endurance. They are the workouts that give you more power. The muscle fitness exercises are demanding and will include resistance training that you’ve combined weights or machines and those that you only use your body weight (bodyweight training).
What this means is this, from simple rock climbing to calisthenics and even jumping, the muscle fitness exercises cover it all. In terms of benefits, this type of exercise will produce better performance and improved body appearance. It is in this step you will get:
- Healthier back
- Stronger bones
- Better posture
Because of their highly demanding nature, it is recommended that you perform these sets of exercises two or three days weekly.
Flexibility Exercises
Finally, we’ve got the flexibility exercises as our set of workouts for the Physical Activity Pyramid. Proper flexibility exercises are intended for postural stability, improvement, and balance. They can reduce soreness and, more importantly, prevent injuries.
In doing that, this type of workout routine will reduce the risk of back pain too. They will boost your overall performance around gymnastics and dancing classes. Most importantly, though, these types of workout routines can serve as therapy for people who are recovering from injuries and accidents.
Some of the best flexibility exercises that you can go for include general body stretching and again yoga. And to build on your flexibility, you should take your time and perform flexibility exercises three days a week.
Benefits of the Physical Activity Pyramid
Now that we have seen what the physical activity pyramid entails, it is time that we looked at the benefits of the same. Well, there are many benefits to adopting the pyramid. They include the following.
- It gives you an easy workout timetable to draw inspiration from
- You will get a much more effective workout program to go with
- If you are programming your workout routine, you won’t have to sweat
- For a more focused centered training, the pyramid workout routine is it
- Give you a better workout development and progress
- Eliminates injuries and possibly workout accidents
NOTE: If you want to program your own workout routine, the physical activity pyramid will set you off. Even so, it is important that you work with your physician to determine if this option is best for you.
Heavy Weight Lifting and Physical Activity Pyramid
So, where would the following activity best fit on the physical activity pyramid& heavy weight lifting? From what we have seen, the best place for heavy weight lifting exercise is under muscle fitness exercises.
This is because when it comes to heavy weight lifting, body workout plus the inclusion of machines and weights is involved. Under the same, your body moves which are very important if you are looking for the best results too.
My advice to you is to workout progressively, though. The best way to do that is to follow the physical activity pyramid step by step. Do not jump the gun as this would have some bad effects on you.
What Should You Consider before Training?
The most important thing is to determine your fitness goals. Thereafter, you can choose to break it down and follow a much more comfortable module. Apart from that, you must speak to your physician and get a personal trainer to help you curve the best workout program for your needs.
It is important that you have achievable goals because, without these, your morale can easily die out. Achievable goals are important since they are the first step to a progressive training module.
Can You Train Alone?
Yes. You can train alone. Even so, I recommend having the help of a physical trainer to guide you through. If you don’t need one, you can opt for a training partner. However, it would be best if you choose someone who has the same fitness goals as you. This makes it easy for both of you when you are looking for the best workout program.
Conclusion
So, if you were asking where would the following activity best fit on the physical activity pyramid& heavy weight lifting, then now you’ve got your answer. Even so, when working with the physical activity pyramid, the most important thing is to determine what fitness needs you’ve got first.
Thereafter, you can follow the pyramid through and develop the best fitness results. It is important that you set a bar so that you work towards that too.