Introduction
General physical fitness in any sport is very important but sport specific fitness is vital. For any sportsman or woman to perform at his or her genetically capped best, they need to develop the two major, improvable aspects in sports performance: Fitness training and Sports specific skills. Fitness becomes an increasingly important facet of training as the athlete ages, as ‘natural fitness’ declines with age.
The tests
The test parameters are the same as used by our national team owing from the fact that they have a high Validity (the degree to which a test or test item measures what it is supposed to measure)and Reliability (a measure of the degree of consistency or repeatability of a test) .The tests all use specific criteria so that tests can be compared and monitored in the same individual and / or inter-individually. |
Why do fitness testing?Fitness testing is used in the Assessment of Athletic Talent and secondly in the Identification of Physical Abilities in Need of Improvement. Testing is done through the implementation of a challenge. These challenges are formulated to examine specific aspects of ones’ overall athletic ability. Athletic ability will be the determining factor when you consider two athletes with equal natural talent in a specific sport.
Who can be tested?Any athlete that is looking to gauge the effectiveness of his or her workout routine. There is no use in comparing yourself to people weaker than you as this breeds complacency. By grading your own abilities against that of your peers, you will be inspired to train harder and more focused. You now possess a tool to highlight the areas of your training that needs the most attention. |
What can the tests be used for?
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