question_answer

What are the various factors affecting physiological fitness? Explain.

Answer:

The various physiological factors which determine the strength of an individual are stated below:

(i) Size of the muscle: The strength of the muscle largely depends upon the size of the muscle. It is a well-known fact that bigger and larger muscles can produce more force. The force produced by the same size of muscle in males and females is approximately the same but males are found to be stronger because they have larger muscles and bigger muscles in comparison to females. With the help of different methods of strength training such as weight training the size of the muscle can be increased and as a result of that strength is improved. So, the strength is determined by the size of the muscle.

(ii) Body weight: It is also a well-known fact that the individuals who are heavier are stronger than the individuals who are lighter. There is a positive correlation between body weight and strength among international weightlifters. The heavier weightlifters lift the heavier weight. So, body weight also determines the strength of an individual.

(iii) Muscle composition: Each muscle consists of basically two types of muscle fibres i.e., fast twitch fibres (white fibres) and slow twitch fibres (red fibres). The fast twitch fibres are capable to contract faster and therefore, they can produce more force. On the contrary, the slow twitch fibres are not capable to contract faster but they are capable to contract for a longer duration. The muscles which have more percentage of fast twitch fibres, can produce more strength. The percentage of fast twitch fibres and slow twitch fibre is genetically determined and cannot be changed through training. So it can be said that the percentage of these fibres determines the strength.

(iv) Intensity of the nerve impulse: A muscle is composed of a number of motor unit. The total force of the muscle depends on the number of contracting motor units. Whenever, a stronger nerve impulse from central nervous system excite more number of motor units, the muscle will contract more strongly or it can said that the muscle will produce more force or strength. So, the intensity of the nerve impulse also determines the amount of strength.