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CHAPTER-1 INTRODUCTION
Engineering and Pharmacy are most demanding profession in India. Engineering and Pharmacy are very typical profession that demands an intensive mental load of study to satisfy the high demands placed. So tolerte this pressure they need physical fitness because sound body has a sound mind1. Physical fitness comprises two related concepts: fitness (a state of health and well-being) and specific fitness (a task-oriented definition based on the ability to perform specific aspects of sports or occupations). Physical fitness is generally achieved

through exercises, correct nutrition and enough rest. It is an important part of life. In previous years fitness was commonly defined as the capacity to carry out the days activities without undue fatigue. However, as automation increased leisure time, changes in lifestyles following the industrial revolution rendered this definition

insufficient. Fitness

is based on the attributes an individual has,

meaning what he is born with or has acquired, in other words through

1

Http://Runningandphilosophy.Blogspot.Com/2007/12/Sound-Mind-Sound-Body.Html

retrieve on 12/07/2011

training. Thus, performance is influenced by inherited abilities (genetic) and training status. An individual who is "naturally gifted" will still need proper training to make the most of their talent 2 . Barrow stated that many early civilizations such as Spartan, early Athenian and Roman laid great stress upon physical fitness of their countrymen. Physical training was important of their educational programme. The developed and strong countries like Germany laid great stress to improve the physical fitness of their countrymen. Even after World War I and II American introduced an organize physical training programme for the physical fitness of youth and that continued even today. It was admitted fact that physical fitness is an essential quality of man. A person, who is good in strength, feels superior and tends to be well adjusted. While a person who is poor in strength feels inferior and finds difficulties in social adjustment. A person who does not enjoy healthy living is a burden not only for himself, but for his nation and society as well. Without good health one cannot enjoy the blessing of nature and human life. Physical fitness is ones valuable trait; it cannot be

Bissonnette, Rami, A Factor Analytic Description Physical Fitness in Elementary School Boys, Dissertation Abstract International. 2003, pp. 86-87

purchased but has to be earned through daily routine of well plannned physical activity3. Physical fitness is used as one of the mode - through which the aim of physical education achieved (a complete whole some individual). A man's life is full of physical and a mental stress is a matter of concern for optimum development of an individual. It brings up the optimum health and also helps the society to create a healthy environment to grow to the maximum. It is the pride of nation. A healthy and fit society also fulfils the W.H.O. objective. By means of Physical fitness programmes, performance of games and sports are also improved. Every country is struggling hard for the apex position in games and sports. To achieve this top position every efforts is done. The scientific and systematic ways of training are followed to improve the standards of physical fitness, so that the best result should be achieved. Apart from this, a healthy living also makes a person a healthy citizen. Participation in sports is one of the common traits

H.M Barrow, Man and Movement: Principles of Physical Education. W.S. Saunder and

Co., 1972. pp 56-57

of human character and it starts to develop from the very beginning of childhood. But, with the development of age, some people participate in recreational sports or amateur sports whereas very few individual dedicate themselves to become true sportspersons by regular practice and training which enable them to improve their psychological adjustments towards their goal4. The characteristics of an athlete mainly depend upon physical fitness, having components like muscular strength and endurance, cardio- respiratory endurance, flexibility, speed, power, agility, balance etc. But, these components may vary in sportspersons involving different sports activities Today's world is a mechanical world where human beings have to perform very little physical activities as numbers of appliances which are being operated by electricity have been developed. This is one of the outcomes of development process which took place in the field of science and technology. With these appliances, it has become very easy to accomplish various complex and time consuming functions within few minutes. Although through such appliances,
4

D Nandi The Motor Fitness Factors as prediction of High Jump Abilities Among Middle

School Children. Unpublished Master Degree Thesis, Jiwaji University Gwalior (M.P.) 1990.

human beings have got a lot of relief, but still there are some drawbacks found in this today modern and mechanical world, an important drawback is these appliances adversely affect the health and fitness levels of human beings to a considerable extent5. As known that human beings, belonging to all the class and creeds, have a body, which is made up of various muscles, bones and tissues. Human beings perform various kinds of functions as a result of various organs situated inside the body. It is only when these organs will function properly that human body will be able to perform different kinds of tasks appropriately. If any of the organs will not be able to function properly, then the human body gets caught by various kinds of diseases. An important cause of improper function of various organs is lack of movement of human limbs. As human beings make use of various parts of their body to little extent, as a result of which muscles and tissues existed in their body become inactive. In the condition of inactivity, their possibilities of getting affected by various diseases get increased. These diseases affect the functioning of whole system of the body by which various other kinds of diseases also
5

J. Harry, Evaluation of AAHPER Youth Fitness Test. Journal of Sports Medicine and Physical Fitness,2000.

get inflicted to the body. They have been come into being and various young people are found to be affected by various serious problems like asthma and cancer6. As different kinds of socio and economic conditions prevail in different nations, thus studies conducted in different parts of the world will reveal different results, because of which reference to various studies conducted by pioneer physical educators in various international journals published in United States of America has been made, as it is one of the most developed nation of the world where majority of people are conscious of concept of physical fitness and make use of various means by which they can keep themselves fit. Although there is an increase in the consciousness of concept of physical fitness in our country and in other under developed nations also, but as it such nations, a large number of people still have to make a lot of efforts to earn their bread and butter because of which they cannot make use of various facilities provided by government and non-government organizations. It is

K.A. Pfeiffer and M Dowda Dishman, Cardiorespiratory Fitness in Girls-Change from Middle to High School. Journal of American College of Sports Medicine. Vol. 39, No. 12, 2007,pp. 223-2241.

because of this reason that programs introduced in America have been taken into account7. Health, vitality, and long life are desirable goals for everyone, but they are not achieved without effort. Because many of the habits of modern life do more to diminish health then to increase it, fitness has to be worked at. If you are resolved to take a positive attitude toward your health and well-being, and to prevent problems rather than simply treating them as and when they occur, then physical fitness must be an essential part of your life. Being fit has many advantages, from helping you to control your weight to giving you a better night sleep. There is impressive evidence that people who exercise frequently, and in the correct way, are less prone to heart attacks, strokes and other life threatening conditions, and live longer than people whose existence is sedentary. You cannot, however, build up a store of fitness that will last for life. You need to exercise regularly all your life, and should exercise more, not less, as you get older. The
7

Hebbel Neck Marcel, The Concept of Health Related to Physical Fitness. International Journal of Physical Education, Vol xxi. 1984,pp 18-19.

type of exercise that is most effective in improving fitness is aerobic exercise. The word aerobic means with oxygen" and all aerobic exercise uses oxygen. The oxygen reaches the body by being breathed in through the lungs and distributed to working muscles via the blood, which is pumped around the circulation by the heart8. Ancient Greece which is considered to be the cradle of civilization gave new dimensions to the application of motorfitness in sorting activities and recreation. Sports and recreation activity in form of dance and cultural activity provided the fun and also served as a means of preparing for adult life. Sports activities were taken from daily lifes activities and became a recognized to improve strength, speed and other motor qualities necessary to defend their nation for survival. Fittest is the survival and survival is the fittest was the slogan of those days.With the growing civilization of Greeks, great philosophers like Aristotle also advocated the relationship of fitness with mind and soul. He was of the opinion that body owns the temple of soul and to reach to the harmony of body and spirit, the body must be

Http://En.Wikipedia.Org/Wiki/Health retrieve on 19/08/2011

physically fit. Liberal Athenians as well as rigid Spartan gave great importance to physical fitness of their people. The revival of Modern Olympics in the year 1896 has brought a great revolution among the sports participants to establish their supremacy in the world. Physical fitness was considered to be the basic requirement to achieve excellence at national and international level. At the end of twentieth century, sports assumed cultural magnitude and complexity hither to unseen, unimagined and brought about enormously improved results for both the individual and country at large9. People define physical fitness in different ways. This is because people have different body types, different fitness goals, different health goals, and have different daily demands on their body. General fitness: This concept of physical fitness encompasses just about every person. It defines your overall health, well-being, and state of mind. Specific Fitness: This is a more defined concept of physical fitness and it relates to a persons ability to train their body to
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www.Unm.Edu/~I Kravitz/Article % 20 Folder/Aqua. Html retrieve on 28/09/2011

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perform specific tasks, such as a sport or military duty at an above average level10. Sports Medicine defines physical fitness as a set of attributes that people have, or achieve, that relates to the ability to perform physical activity. This guide was written in recognition that both the quality and quantity of physical activity recommended to the individuals using this guide is consistent with current physical activity recommendations for the general public. The fitness components of cardio-respiratory endurance, muscular strength and endurance, flexibility, and body

composition are all inherent within this generalized exercise prescription. This program specifies the intensity, duration, and frequency of training and it is the interaction of these three variables that results in improved health and physical fitness. Body Composition: This refers to the percentage of fat, bone, water, and muscle we have in our body. It is how we look. Cardiovascular Endurance: This is the bodys Ability to supply oxygen and blood to its muscles for long periods of time during
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Daryl Siedentop Introduction to Physical Education, Fitness and Sports, Mcgraw Hill 6th Edition, pp 427 Mcgraw Hill Publishers, New York, USA. 2007.

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physical activity. Building strength in the heart and lungs are vital to a bodies overall health. Flexibility: This is the range of movement the muscles, tendons, and ligaments have during periods of physical activity or stretching Muscular Endurance: This is refers to the length of time your muscles can perform an activity or exercise without fatigue. Strength: - the extent to which muscles can exert force by contracting against resistance (e.g. holding or restraining an object or person) Muscular Strength: This is the maximum amount of weight your muscle(s) can lift in a single movement. Agility - the ability to perform a series of explosive power movements in rapid succession in opposing Zag running movements11. directions e.g. Zig

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Allen W. Jackson; James R. Morrow, Jr. D.W. Hill and Rod K. Dishman Physical Activity for Health and Fitness pp: 368 USA. 2004.

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Flexibility - the ability to achieve an extended range of motion without being impeded by excess tissue, i.e. fat or muscle (e.g. executing a leg split) Local Muscle Endurance - a single muscle's ability to perform sustained work (e.g. rowing) Cardiovascular Endurance - the heart's ability to deliver blood to working muscles and their ability to use it (e.g. running long distances) Strength Endurance - a muscle's ability to perform a maximum contraction time after time (e.g. continuous explosive rebounding through an entire basketball game) Co-ordination - the ability to integrate the above listed components so that effective movements are achieved.

STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

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The purpose of study was to compare physical fitness among Pharmacy and Engineering students.

OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY

The objective of the study was to find out physical fitness level of Pharmacy and Engineering students and compare its various components.

HYPOTHESIS
It was hypothized that there will not be any significant difference among Pharmacyand Engineering students in their physical fitness level.

DELIMITATIONS
1. The study was delimited 40 undergraduate students (20 Pharmacy and 20 Engineering) of Institute of Professional Studies, Gwalior (M.P.) 2. American Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance (AAHPERD) fitness test was applied.

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3. This study was delimited male students aged between 18-25 years.

LIMITATIONS
1. No motivational technique was used to achieve the best score. 2. It was not feasible to conduct all the fitness test due to some unavoidable reasons. Therefore only one test will be conducted.

DEFINITION AND EXPLANATION OF TERMS Physical Fitness

Physical fitness allows us to perform daily activities and face physical and emotional stress during moments of increased intensity. If you are physically fit you have good physical health and mental health. Being physically fit helps people to perform exercise well in all circumstances despite of age. Physical fitness trainers often describe Fitness is the capability to carry out day to

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day functions energetically and vigilantly by keeping extra energy to do other leisure-time activities and emergency needs. Fitness is based on the attributes an individual has,

meaning what he is born with or has acquired, in other words through training. Thus, performance is influenced by inherited abilities (genetic) and training status. An individual who is "naturally gifted" will still need proper training to make the most of their talent12. Physical fitness comprises two related concepts: general fitness (a state of health and well-being) and specific fitness (a task-oriented definition based on the ability to perform specific aspects of sports or occupations). Physical fitness is generally achieved through exercise, correct nutrition and enough rest. It is an important part of life. In previous years, fitness was commonly defined as the capacity to carry out the days activities without undue fatigue. These days, physical fitness is considered a measure of the bodys

12

Bijay Krishn Ray, Comparison of Physical Fitness of Tribal and Urban Students in Tripura Unpublished Master Degree Thesis, Jiwaji University, Gwalior (M.P.), 1979.

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ability to function efficiently and effectively in work and leisure activities13.

SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

1. This study will be helpful to develop suitable conditioning programme for the Pharmacy and Engineering students to develop physical fitness based on their required to perform daily task efficiently. 2. This is helpful to know the fitness level of Pharmacy and Engineering students. 3. This study will be helpful in promoting general physical fitness among individuals. 4. This study will help the researchers, coaches, physical educators and students of Pharmacyand Engineeringto understand the values and importance of physical fitness which do affect on the personality. 5. This study will help to coaches and trainers to categorize the students on the basis of their physical fitness.

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Manorma Mehta, Comparison of Physical Fitness Tribal and non-tribal School Girls of Indore Division. Unpublished Master Degree Thesis, Jiwaji University, Gwalior (M.P.), 1981.

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6. This study will also provides guidelines to categorize the students on the basis of their fitness level. 7. This study will help student of Pharmacy and Engineering to shape up their personality for campus.