2. WHAT IS MOTOR FITNESS?
Motor fitness is a
term that describes
an athlete’s ability to
perform effectively
during sports or other
physical activity.
Improving this form of
fitness is an indirect
result of training in
any of these
attributes.
3. SIX COMPONENTS OF FITNESS RELATED TO
MOTOR SKILLS
1. Agility
2. Balance
3. Coordination
4. Power
5. Speed
6. Reaction time
4. GLENCOE/MCGRAW-HILL EDUCATION
A motor skill is associated with muscle
activity.
You carry out motor skills when your
brain, nervous system and muscles work
in concert to move parts of your body in
large or small maneuvers.
Motor skills improve with practice and all
six components determine your level of
athletic ability.
A well-rounded athlete works to improve
each of the six equally.
5. AGILITY
It is the capacity to
change course,
controlling the direction
and position of your
body while maintaining
your momentum.
Changing course while
sprinting to hit a tennis
ball is an example of
agility. Sports coach
Brian Mackenzie offers
a simple zig-zag run to
test agility.
6. Measurement: Shuttle run, Zig -zag run test
Significance:
Agility is not only critical in most sports such
as a boxer dodging a punch, a wrestler
finishing a take-down, or a running back
changing on a dime could all be considered
examples of agility. In addition, changing
directions is a common cause of injury, so
proper movement control from high levels of
agility is essential.
7. Zig Zag Test
Equipment required: marker cones, stopwatch, non-slip
surface.
Procedure:
1. Similar to the Shuttle Run test, this test requires the
athlete to run a course in the shortest possible time.
2. A standard zig zag course is with four cones placed on
the corners of a rectangle 10 by 16 feet, with one more
cone placed in the center.
3. If the cones are labelled 1 to 4 around the rectangle
going along the longer side first, and the center cone is
C, the test begins at 1, then to C, 2, 3, C, 4, then back
to 1.
modifications: This test procedure can be modified by
changing the distance between cones, and the number of
circuits performed.
8. SHUTTLE RUN
Purpose: This is a test of speed and agility, which is important in
many sports.
Equipment required: wooden blocks, marker cones, measurement
tape, stopwatch, non-slip surface.
Procedure:
1. This test requires the person to run back and forth between two
parallel lines as fast as possible.
2. Set up two lines of cones 30 feet apart or use line markings, and
place two blocks of wood or a similar object behind one of the
lines.
3. Starting at the line opposite the blocks, on the signal "Ready? Go!"
the participant runs to the other line, picks up a block and returns
to place it behind the starting line, then returns to pick up the
second block, then runs with it back across the line.
9. Scoring: Two or more trials may be performed,
and the quickest time is recorded. Results are
recorded to the nearest tenth of a second.
Variations / modifications: The test procedure
can be varied by changing the number of shuttles
performed, the distance between turns and by
removing the need for the person pick up and
return objects from the turning points.
Advantages: This test can be conducted on large
groups relatively quickly with minimal equipment
required.
10.
11. BALANCE
Balance is the ability to stabilize
your body, whether standing still
or maintaining motion. Ice-
skating, skiing and bicycle riding
are balance exercises.– static
and dynamic.
12. Static balance refers to remaining upright while staying
still, standing on one leg, for example.
Dynamic balance deals with stability in motion.
Test your balance by holding a stationary position as long as you can, without
wobbling, after moving around.
There are two types of balance :
13. Measurement:
Tests can be performed on a balance
beam, or on the ground while holding
various positions. Tests can be dynamic,
or static.
Significance:
Especially as we age, balance becomes
increasingly important to prevent falls,
which can result in serious injury.
Balance is one of the most overlooked
areas of fitness.
14. 1-legged standing balance test.
This is pretty self explanatory. Stand on 1
leg without holding onto anything. Normal
balance is one minute, less than 30 seconds
will need some work.
The 5 times sit to stand test.
Sit in a chair. Whenever ready, stand up and
down 5 complete times as fast as possible.
You have to stand up fully, and sit down with
your butt touching the chair. Persons without
balance problems can do this test in less than
13 seconds.
PERFORMING BALANCE TESTS
15.
16. COORDINATION
Coordination describes
the synchronization of
your senses and your
body parts in a way that
enhances motor skills.
Volleying a table tennis
ball is an example of
hand-eye coordination. A
variety of tests measure
coordination, including
juggling or hitting a ball.
17. Measurement:
There are many different types of coordination,
some of which require different movement
patterns, muscle groups, and body positions such
as juggling, dribbling a ball, or hitting an object.
Significance:
Whether you want to play a musical instrument like
the drums, or just get into your car while balancing
your morning coffee, coordination is involved in
many daily activities.
18. ALTERNATE HAND WALL TOSS TEST
(COORDINATION TEST)
Purpose: to measure hand-
eye coordination
Equipment required: tennis
ball or baseball, smooth and
solid wall, marking tape,
stopwatch (optional)
19. Procedure:
1. A mark is placed a certain distance from the wall (e.g.
2 meters, 3 feet).
2. The person stands behind the line and facing the wall.
3. The ball is thrown from one hand in an underarm
action against the wall, and attempted to be caught
with the opposite hand.
4. The ball is then thrown back against the wall and
caught with the initial hand.
5. The test can continue for a nominated number of
attempts or for a set time period (e.g. 30 seconds).
6. By adding the constraint of a set time period, you also
add the factor of working under pressure.
20. SCORING:
This table lists general ratings for the Wall Toss
Test, based on the score of the number of
successful catches in a 30 second period.
Rating: Score (in 30 seconds)
Excellent > 35
Good 30 – 34
Average 20- 29
Fair 15 – 19
Poor < 14
21. Variations / modifications:
1. There are numerous variation that can be
made to the procedures of this test
depending on the desired outcomes: the
size, weight and shape of the object, the
distance from the wall, the number of
attempts or time period can all be varied.
2. The procedure should be recorded with
the results and kept consistent for future
testing of the same subjects.
22. SPEED
Speed is the facility to
move your body
swiftly. Speed is
usually associated
with running, but other
exercises, like
throwing or kicking a
ball, depend on
moving your arms or
legs rapidly. Some
athletic coaches
measure speed with a
40-yard dash.
23. Measurement: There are many different
types of speed, which including running,
swimming, and speed of hand, or foot
movement.
Significance: Some sports are based purely
on speed, and most sports require speed.
Speed is also helpful in everyday life,
especially when you leave your wallet in a
cab and need to run after it.
24. SPRINT OR SPRINT TEST
Purpose: The purpose of this test is to
determine acceleration, maximum
running speed and speed endurance,
depending on the distance run.
sprinting start
Equipment required: measuring tape
or marked track, stopwatch or timing
gates, cone markers.
25. Procedure:
1. The test involves running a single maximum sprint over
a set distance, with time recorded.
2. After a standardized warm up, the test is conducted over
a certain distance, such as 10, 20, 40 and/or 50 meters
or yards, depending on the sport and what you are trying
to measure.
3. The starting position should be standardized, starting
from a stationary position with a foot behind the starting
line, with no rocking movements.
4. If you have the equipment (e.g. timing gates), you can
measure the time to run each split distances (e.g. 5, 10,
20m) during the same run, and then acceleration and
peak velocity can also be determined.
(It is usual to give the athletes an adequate warm-up and
practice first, and some encouragement to continue running
hard past the finish line.)
26. Results:
1. You can use a measure of the time for the
first 10 meters or yards from a stationary
start as a score for acceleration, and the time
to run between 30-60 meters for a flying
sprint speed, or maximum running speed.
2. This score can also be presented as a
running velocity (distance / time).
3. For sprint tests conducted over 100 meters
or yards or so, comparing the time for the
final 40 compared to the first 40 can be used
as a speed endurance score.
27. Reliability:
Reliability is greatly improved if timing
gates are used. Also weather conditions
and running surface can affect the
results, and these conditions should be
recorded with the results. If possible,
set up the track with a crosswind to
minimize the effect of wind.
28. POWER
Power is a combination
of speed and muscular
force. A football
linebacker uses power to
blast through a line of
men. A gymnast uses
power during a
performance on the rings
and uneven bars.
Measure your power by
throwing a heavy object
or lifting weights.
29. Measurement:
1. Many different tests can be employed to test power,
which can also be split into various movement patterns.
(For example, testing power could be done by using
exercises like hang cleans, or push press, the height of a
vertical jump, or the amount of time it takes to sprint up a
staircase. The components of power are strength and
speed.)
Significance:
The ability to move a body quickly through space is very
important in all sports, and is also required in daily living
such as getting out of a chair, which requires not just
strength, but power.
30. VERTICAL JUMP TEST
Vertical jump equipment required: measuring tape or
marked wall, chalk for marking wall (or Vertec or jump mat).
Procedure (see also variations below):
1. The athlete stands side on to a wall and reaches up with the hand
closest to the wall.
2. Keeping the feet flat on the ground, the point of the fingertips is
marked or recorded. This is called the standing reach height.
3. The athlete then stands away from the wall, and leaps vertically as
high as possible using both arms and legs to assist in projecting the
body upwards.
4. The jumping technique can or cannot use a countermovement (see
vertical jump technique). Attempt to touch the wall at the highest
point of the jump. The difference in distance between the standing
reach height and the jump height is the score.
5. The best of three attempts is recorded.
31. Variations:
1. Jump height can also be measured using a
jump mat which measures the displacement
of the hips.
2. To be accurate, you must ensure the feet
land back on the mat with legs nearly fully
extended.
3. Vertical jump height can also be measured
using a timing mat. The vertical jump test is
usually performed with a counter movement,
where there is bending of the knees
immediately prior to the jump.
4. The test can also be performed as a squat
jump, starting from the position of knees
being bent.
32. Variations are to perform the test with no
arm movement (one hand on hip, the other
raised above the head) to isolate the leg
muscles and reduce the effect of variations
in coordination of the arm movements. The
test can also be performed off one leg, with
a step into the jump, or with a run-up off two
feet or one foot, depending on the relevance
to the sport involved.
33. Scoring:
1. The jump height is usually recorded as a
distance score.
Advantages: this test is simple and quick to
perform.
Disadvantages: technique plays a part in
maximizing your score, as the subject must time
the jump so that the wall is marked at the peak of
the jump.
34. REACTION TIME
Reaction time measures how
swiftly you interpret and then
react to expected and
unexpected events happening
around you.
(An example of reaction time to
an expected event is the interim
between hearing the starter’s
pistol and beginning to run. Your
reaction time to unexpected
events, such as a bicycle crash
just ahead of you in a race,
relies on how quickly you can
make sense of the event and
come to a decision about how to
react to it.)
35. REACTION TIME TEST
1. This test measures the time taken for you to press the stop button
after the background color changes.
2. You can select the color of the background will change to.
3. Click the start button, and the background will change within 20
seconds.
4. Click the stop button as quickly as possible after the background
color changes (release the mouse button quickly, as time stops
when you release the button, not when you press down)
5. Your time taken will be displayed.
6. Try it a few times (beware, it can get addictive!) and then enter
your results, and see how you compared to others who have tried
this previously.
Now you are ready to try the Reaction Test Timer