Archive for the ‘Cardiovascular’ Category

Eight Helpful Hints for using Pedometers

Saturday, July 18th, 2009

By Matthew Basset

Part 2 of a 4 part series.

After purchasing pedometers you should spend a lot of time learning how to use them yourself.  After you’ve become familiar with this new piece of technology, you should think about teaching cues that will be necessary.

Here are some helpful hints to think about:

  1. Storage. Make sure that you use a storage system for your pedometers.  You can use a pedometer storage chart that can be purchased from a physical education catalog or you can use a tackle box from a local fishing supply store.  The key is to have the storage organized (and even numbered) so that the students know exactly where their pedometer belongs.
  2. Markings. Make sure you have the pedometers marked. This will not only allow for the storage to be organized but it will also allow you to find out who hasn’t turned in their pedometer.  No one will admit to having lost a pedometer or that they forgot to put the pedometer in the storage box.  Knowing that the pedometers have marked numbers on them will allow you to find the missing pedometer and, more importantly, know who was responsible.
  3. Distribution. A teacher must have a way to pass out and collect the pedometers.  This still goes with the storage system but if you have one long line of students waiting for the pedometers you might be wasting valuable time.
  4. Tracking of data. You need to know how you are going to track the data. Will you have a master sheet for yourself?  Will the students write down their scores on their own tracking sheets?  You can save yourself some trouble by not having the data recorded the first few times.
  5. Placement. A teacher must teach the pedometer placement.  A student should wear the pedometer on the waistband or belt above their right knee. Having pedometers secured on their right sides will allow you to see if a pedometer has dropped accidentally.  Some students will need to move their pedometers around the waist to the side to pick up more movement.  These are all things that a few class periods of practice can help students work out.
  6. Responsibility. A student must be taught to be responsible for the pedometer.  This not only includes putting the pedometer away at the end of class but also includes how to use a safety strap with an alligator clip.  These straps are designed to help avoid a pedometer being lost from dropping of the waist.
  7. No touching. Students need to avoid touching the pedometer while in the middle of class.  Most of the students will want to look at their scores.  The pedometers will not gather data while it is open, at least not effectively.  Also, students can use their hands to hit the pedometer and cause the pedometer to count steps when the student is not moving.  Not only should we be teaching about personal responsibility and integrity but a teacher needs to have a rule to not touch or the student will lose the pedometer.  A student should NEVER take the pedometer off of their waist band until the end of class when it is time to return the pedometer to the storage system.
  8. Instructional time. Using the pedometer data can be a very helpful tool for the teacher.  In a typical class period how much do you talk?  This time talking is time that a student isn’t moving.  If you are able to use a pedometer that tracks activity time it can help a teacher determine if they are getting the most out of their students.  After realizing that a majority of my students were not moving for 20 minutes of my class period it was time for me to reflect on how to change my teaching practices.

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Cardiovascular Fitness References

Saturday, February 28th, 2009

Part 4 of a continuing series.

Parts 1 through 3

By John Kruse

Table I

NORMS
FOR MAXIMAL OXYGEN CONSUMPTION (ml/kg/min)
AGE Poor Fair Average Good Superior
4-6 boys 36-40 41-44 45-53 54-58 59+
girls 36-39 40-43 44-52 53-56 57+
7-9 boys 46-49 50-52 53-61 62-64 65+
girls 46-48 49-51 52-58 59-62 63+
10-11 boys 45-48 49-52 53-60 61-63 64+
girls 44-46 47-49 50-55 56-57 58+
12-13 boys 49-51 52-53 45-59 60-61 62+
girls 42-44 45-46 47-52 53-55 56+
14-15 men 51-53 54-56 57-62 63-65 66+
women 36-38 39-42 43-49 50-53 54+
16-17 men 45-48 49-52 53-62 63-66 67+
women 39-41 42-44 45-50 51-52 53+
18-19 men 46-49 50-53 54-63 64-67 68+
women 39-41 42-44 45-51 52-54 55+
20-29 men 46-49 50-44 55-63 64-67 68+
wome 39-41 42-44 45-52 53-55 56+

Source: Mastropaolo et al.
Please note: Norms are based off of data reported by Åstrand.

Table II

Boys
Age VO2max
10 42-52
11 42-52
12 42-52
13 42-52
14 42-52
15 42-52
16 42-52
17 42-52
17+ 42-52
Girls
Age VO2max
10 39-47
11 38-46
12 37-45
13 36-44
14 35-43
15 35-43
16 35-43
17 35-43
17+ 35-43

Source: Modified table from the FITNESSGRAM, ACTIVITYGRAM Test Administration Manual

Criterion reference used by the Fitnessgram and known as the “healthy fitness zone.”

References:

Åstrand, P.O. Experimental studies of physical working capacity in relation to sex and age. Copenhagen: Enjar Munksgaard, 1952. p. 171.

Brooks, G. A., T. D. Fahey, T.P. White & K.M. Baldwin (2000). Exercise Physiology, Human Bioenergetics and Its Applications (3rd ed.). Mountain View, CA: Mayfield Publishing Company.

Cureton, K.J., M.A. Sloniger, J.P. O’Bannon, D.M. Black, and W.P. McCormack. A generalized equation for prediction of VO2peak from 1-mile run/walk performance. Med. Sci. Sports Exerc. 27:445-51, 1995.

DeVries, H., Physiology of Exercise For Physical Education and Athletics. Dubuque, IA: Wm. C. Brown Publishers, 1986. p. 257.

Mastropaolo, J. A., T.W. Bigelow, M. J. Lyon, and Y. Takei. Training manual for the practice of exercise physiology. Paramont, CA: Academy Printing and Publishing Company, 1977. p. 25.

Rowland, T., G. Kline, D. Goff, L. Martel, and L. Ferrone. One-mile run performance and cardiovascular fitness in children. Arch. Pediatr. Adolesc. Med. 153:845-849.

Shaver, L.G. Maximal aerobic power and anaerobic work capacity prediction from various running performances of untrained college men. J. of Sports Med. Phys. Fitness 15:147-0, 1975.

Cureton, KJ, Warren BL. (1990). Criterion-referenced standard for youth health-related fitness tests: a tutorial. Res Q Exerc Sport 61:7-19.

Blair, SN, Kohl HW, Paffenburger RS, Clark DG, Cooper KH, Gibbons LW. 1989. Physical fitness and all-cause mortality: a prospective study of healthy men and women. JAMA 262:2395-2401.

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Mile Run/Walk Compared to Health Standard

Monday, February 16th, 2009

By John Kruse

Sixth grade standard 3.1:

Compare individual physical fitness results with research-based standards for good health.

The last time I discussed this California content standard, I suggested the use of a Google Gadget on the Internet to calculate Body Mass Index.   This time, I’ll discuss some strategies for having students compare their mile run/walk time with standards for good health.

I’ve found that keeping track of mile run/walk times with a spreadsheet can be very useful. This allows me to print a form letter in Microsoft Word in order to provide the students with their times. The form letter directs the student to my school web-page and also serves as a worksheet for homework.

On the web-page, they find information about the mile run/walk, its use for measuring cardiovascular fitness, a brief explanation of why cardiovascular fitness is important and standards for good health. The rest of the form letter is used to provide students with a number of questions. They are asked to identify if their time is within, above or in need of improvement when compared to the FITNESSGRAM criterion for the “Healthy Fitness Zone.”

A few other questions on the worksheet include the following:

  • How do you feel about your score?
  • Did you do your best, or did you talk to friends, explain your answer?
  • What can you do to either maintain or improve your score?
  • Why is cardiovascular fitness important?

This assignment has proven to be quite effective. It gets student to meet the content standard in relation to cardiovascular fitness since they compare their time to a standard for good health. In addition, I’ve found their answers are usually pretty thoughtful. Like the Body Mass Index assignment, it incorporates technology by forcing the students to use the Internet. It is my hope that the students gain an appreciation for using the Internet as a source of information for health and fitness. Occasionally students try to tell me they do not have access to the Internet at home. I tell them they can use the school library as a source for the Internet. I explain that if they were assigned a report on Abraham Lincoln, they would probably find their way to the library since they are not likely to have enough books on the subject at home. Consequently, using the library as a resource for the Internet, is not an unreasonable expectation.

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Circulatory System Integration

Saturday, January 24th, 2009

By Matthew Bassett

One of my favorite integration lessons, teaching content through movement, is to set up a circulatory system on the blacktop. I use cones to set up the four chambers of the heart and the pulmonary artery and the aorta. I try to color code the different sections as best as I can. The more cones I use the easier it is for the students to stay on the course. I set up the lungs with a large bucket at the top where I place plastic balls inside (oxygen packets). At the bottom I place three smaller buckets and I label them muscles of the arms, legs, and trunk. The students then pick the location where to drop the oxygen off.

Diagram for lesson

Diagram for lesson

When the students arrive my first goal is to explain the heart anatomy and the directions. I draw chalk arrows on the blacktop to explain to the students which direction they should be going. This helps the students from getting lost during the activity. I’ve found two basic ways of completing this activity. First, the students can walk/run through the course but this can become chaotic as students will pass each other, kick cones and run the wrong direction. I usually like to use scooter boards during the activity as it slows down the students and helps with class management.

After explaining the layout of the circulatory system I start the kids moving. The goal is for the students to supply enough oxygen for the students to keep their muscles moving. When dropping off the oxygen to the different parts of the body, I have the students complete a fitness task. The students would be asked to perform a triceps push up after they supply oxygen for their arms. I’ve also used this lesson to have the students work on different types of throwing skills (over, under, sidearm).

After a good 10-15 minutes of the activity I usually stop my class and head back to the classroom. I use the time to talk about the heart and fill out a worksheet or paper. This is a great time for me to differentiate my activities for each grade level. Kindergarten students learn about the location of the heart (k.4.4). First graders learn about the heart being a muscle (1.4.4). Second graders describe the relationship between the heart and the lungs (2.4.7). Third graders discuss the role of oxygen as fuel to produce muscle contractions (3.4.6). Fourth graders discuss how the heart quickly returns to its resting rate after exertion (4.4.9). Finally, fifth graders label the heart (science standard 2b) and also talk about the heart rate intensity needed for increasing aerobic capacity (5.4.8).

Teaching content can be accomplished in conjunction with student movement and is only limited by the teacher’s creativity. We can also incorporate lessons that integrate physical education into science standards without much difficulty. My students receive instruction that reinforces their science content through movement. It brings credibility to our profession when students understand that we know more than just throwing a ball. Integration should not stop at science. We should be using math, language arts, and social studies to reinforce physical education content and help students make meaningful connections.

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Measuring Cardiovascular Fitness

Wednesday, January 21st, 2009

Part 3 of a multi-part series.

While the measurement of VO2max is important, its accurate measurement through a laboratory measure is cost prohibitive for physical education. This means that field tests are used to measure cardiovascular function. The field tests used by physical educators are calibrated with laboratory measures for accuracy. While they are not as accurate as laboratory measures, students and teachers can still benefit by using them to measure fitness.

Common field tests used to measure cardiovascular fitness include the mile run/walk, the Progressive Aerobic Cardiovascular Endurance Run (PACER), and the walk test for ages thirteen and older. The mile run/walk is not necessarily the most accurate measure of aerobic capacity. Instead, a multiple regression formula that is more accurate can be used. This formula takes into account various contributing variables to get a more accurate estimate of VO2max. These variables include mile run/walk time, age, gender, and body mass index. The teacher or student can easily collect all of these data. As a result, the teacher can effortlessly calculate VO2max for an entire group of students using a spreadsheet.

Boys & Girls

Differences can be seen in terms of VO2max between boys and girls. The average VO2max for girls at age five is approximately 50 ml/kg/min and steadily declines to about 42 ml/kg/min by age sixteen. For boys however, the average VO2max at age five is 50 ml/kg/min. This average remains the same during the growing years and at age sixteen, the average is still 50 ml/kg/min.

Differences in mile run times can be seen as well. Average mile run times at age five are 15 minutes for five year old girls and steadily get better until they plateau at about age 13 with an average time of 10 minutes. Average mile run times in girls actually get a little slower at about age 16 with times closer to 11 minutes 30 seconds. In boys, however, average mile run times are about 14 minutes for five-year-olds and steadily get better until age 15 or 16 where the average is about 7 minutes.

It was stated earlier that VO2max may be the single most important health related fitness measure according to Brooks et al. However, according to Rowland, mile run times and VO2max may not be the best means of assessing changes in aerobic fitness in youth. Clearly, teachers should be cautious when examining longitudinal changes in VO2max during the growing years. This is why the criterion reference standards used for the Healthy Fitness Zone for VO2max in the Fitnessgram assessment decrease with increasing age while the criterion for boys remain the same.

Norms vs. Criterion Reference Standards

Norm-referenced assessments are designed to compare the performance of an individual with the performance of a normative group. Mastropaolo, et al. has suggested norm-reference standards for VO2max.

The FITNESSGRAM is an example of a criterion-referenced standardized assessment used to measure health related physical fitness. It was developed by a panel of experts using a combination of empirical data, normative data, and judgment as the basis for the standards. For cardiovascular fitness, data pertaining to all-cause mortality rates were used in this decision process.

Improvements in Cardiovascular Fitness

You may be wondering what types of improvement in VO2max you can expect as a physical educator. Rowland reports that in the prebubertal child, improvements of only 5% to 10% can be seen from a standard endurance training program of sufficient duration, intensity and frequency. Rowland also points out that most pediatric studies of VO2max demonstrate increases that are no more than one-third of increases of 30% seen in adults. Rowland suggests that these results may be due to the methods used in the studies or possibly a biological mechanism such as blood volume or cellular aerobic capacity.

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What is Cardiovascular Fitness?

Wednesday, January 14th, 2009

Part 2 of a multi-part series.

By John Kruse

Part 1: Cardiovascular Fitness

Cardiovascular fitness is known by many names such as as aerobic fitness, cardiovascular function, aerobic capacity, cardiovascular endurance, maximal oxygen consumption and VO2max. Essentially, it is the body’s ability to use oxygen. A person with excellent cardiovascular fitness can use a higher volume of oxygen that is brought into the body from the air that they breathe. A person who is lacking cardiovascular fitness uses a lower amount of oxygen from the air that they breathe. Oxygen is essential for life and the physical work that we do. This physical work can be activities of daily living, manual labor or physical exercise.

All of our activities, including sleeping require oxygen. This is because our muscles require oxygen to contract. These contracting muscles require more oxygen for higher workloads. In the laboratory, we can measure the amount of oxygen that is required for exercise. This measurement is called VO2. The V stands for volume and the O2 stands for oxygen the dot over the V stands for rate. Fitter individuals require less oxygen for a given workload than less fit people since their bodies are more efficient at using the oxygen that is taken into the body.

Maximal Oxygen Uptake

We measure aerobic fitness and express it in terms of VO2max. At maximal workloads VO2max is the measure of how much oxygen is being used by the body. In other words, it is the maximum amount or volume of oxygen that a person can utilize during maximal exercise. This is expressed as an absolute measure in liters per min (L/min), or as a relative measure in milliliters per kilogram per minute (ml/kg/min).

According to DeVries, VO2max either measures directly or indirectly the following:

  1. cardiovascular function,
  2. respiratory function,
  3. muscular efficiency,
  4. strength,
  5. muscular endurance,
  6. and, obesity (since VO2max is usually expressed in milliliters of O2 per kg of body weight)

Why is Cardiovascular Fitness Important?

According to Brooks et al., cardiovascular fitness is the single most important measure of fitness for physical educators:

…realization that physical work capacity, VO2max, and cardiovascular fitness are interrelated has resulted in a convergence of physical education (athletic performance) and medical (clinical) definitions of fitness. From the physical education—athletics perspective, cardiovascular function determines VO2max, which in turn determines physical work capacity, or fitness. From the medioclincal perspective, fitness involves, minimally, freedom from disease. Because cardiovascular disease is the greatest threat to the health of individuals in contemporary Western society, medical fitness is largely cardiovascular fitness…. In fact, VO2max is so important form both the physical education—athletics and medioclinical perspectives, it has emerged as the single most important criterion of physical fitness.

Coming up: How do you measure VO2max in a physical education environment?

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Cardiovascular Fitness

Wednesday, January 7th, 2009

Part 1 of a multi-part series.

By John Kruse

What expectations do we set for our students in regard to cardiovascular fitness? Is it the ability to list it as one of five components of fitness? Is it to be able to run a certain number of laps to get a grade for the day and somehow gain a lifelong appreciation for physical activity and aerobic fitness? Or, do we expect students to simply know that it has to do their hearts and lungs?

Are the above examples a marginalization of physical education; or, can we expect our students to have a deeper and better understanding of what cardiovascular fitness is and why its important?

The National Board Certification Standards for physical education state that:

Teachers are knowledgeable about the organic, skeletal, and neuromuscular structures of the human body and how these structures contribute to motor performance. Fundamentally, teachers understand and can communicate to students how the human body functions and moves. They understand how principles of biomechanics and exercise physiology relate to a broad range of movement activities…Teachers understand components of health related physical fitness, such as body composition, cardiovascular endurance, flexibility, muscular endurance, and muscular strength.

If we examine the science content for seventh graders in California, we see that they are expected to know the concept of respiration and photosynthesis. They cover the importance of oxygen in converting glucose to energy. They typically learn about human body organ systems with content that includes the skeletal system, the muscular system, food, digestion, circulation, respiration, excretion, the nervous system, the endocrine system and reproduction. They also learn about preventing noninfectious diseases.

This provides the physical educator with a rich opportunity to bring the physical education curriculum and the science curriculum together. In addition, the physical education teacher should recognize that their instructional context and teaching environment provides students with the best possible science laboratory for this content. Is there really any better way to learn the content having to do with respiration and circulation than to relate it to oneself?

The following will give the reader a deeper and more thorough understanding of cardiovascular fitness. Much of the information has been collected from a variety of resources and put into this review for your convenience. The reader should be able to use the information for the design of better lessons, communication of cardiovascular fitness to parents, measurement of cardiovascular fitness of students and exercise prescription planning.

Coming next week: What is the measure of cardiovascular fitness?

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