Military Review English Edition September-October 2014 | Page 19

PHYSICAL READINESS TRAINING General physical skills Definitions Cardiovascular/ respiratory endurance The ability of body systems to gather, process, and deliver oxygen. Stamina The ability of body systems to process, deliver, store, and utilize energy. Strength The ability of a muscular unit, or combination of muscular units, to apply force. Flexibility The ability to maximize the range of motion at a given joint. Power The ability of a muscular unit, or combination of muscular units, to apply maximum force in minimum time. Speed The ability to minimize the time cycle of a repeated movement. Coordination The ability to combine several distinct movement patterns into a singular distinct movement. Agility The ability to minimize transition time from one movement pattern to another. Balance The ability to control the placement of the body’s center of gravity in relation to its support base. Accuracy The ability to control movement in a given direction or at a given intensity. Skills and definitions reproduced from Greg Glassman and staff, CrossFit Training Guide, 2010. Table. Ten general physical skills as used by Glassman • Type IIa fibers have a much lower level of aerobic endurance but perform well anaerobically and generate higher levels of peak power. Type IIx fibers are activated predominantly for highly explosive, short- duration activities. In addition, training the metabolic pathways that deliver adenosine triphosphate (ATP), which fuels the muscles, is essential for maximizing athletic potential for tasks of different duration: The ATP-phosphocreatine system delivers immediate but short-term (≤ 10 seconds) energy for explosive movements. The glycolytic system delivers energy more slowly but in a more sustained fashion, energizing movements up to two minutes. The oxidative system delivers the slowest but most sustained energy. This system can fuel exercise for hours when trained properly. Glassman has adopted a taxonomy with 10 general fitness domains, based on the work of coaches Jim • • • • MILITARY REVIEW  September-October 2014 Cawley and Bruce Evans, in which physical skills and training adaptation can be defined and measured. These ten skills are shown in the table. In the PRT taxonomy used by FM 7-22, the overlapping components of training are “strength, endurance, and mobility.”9 Qualitative performance factors for mobility are agility, balance, coordination, flexibility, posture, stability, speed, and power. The doctrine further develops the components as muscular strength and muscular endurance; anaerobic endurance and aerobic endurance; and the performance factors of mobility—agility, balance, coordination, flexibility, posture, stability, speed, and power. This taxonomy bears some similarity to Glassman’s, but since the nature of the model is qualitative, rather than quantitative, it provides little practical means for measurement. Glassman’s model facilitates quantifying athletic performance. The idea of modal domains includes types of training most likely to result in desired physical 17