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the Council, physical fitness includes flexibility and agility, bone in- tegrity (strength), body composition (fat versus muscle), health of the heart, muscle strength, balance, coordination, and more. Most people struggle in at least one form of fitness as defined by the Council, which doesn’t necessarily mean that they’re not physically fit. Fitness is something that can be improved, and it varies depending on a person’s health. Someone who has been injured and has to lie in bed for a few months is probably not very fit anymore, even if he was fit before the injury. He can become physically fit again by exercising after he recovers. Going to the gym, running or hiking outside, or tak- ing an exercise class are all ways to improve fitness over time. Any sort of physical activity repeated over time can contribute to fitness. Some people take physical fitness even farther. Not only do they find everyday activities easy, they also can do extreme forms of exer- cise. They run marathons or half marathons, they swim for miles, or they play extreme sports. While these people are fit, they have gone beyond the levels of physical fitness necessary for normal life activities. Fitness isn’t necessarily all physical, either. Mental and emotional fitness are also central keys to living a healthy life overall. Healthy thinking patterns and behaviors are an important part of living a good life. Not being emotionally and mentally healthy may end up affecting physical fitness too, and vice versa. An active person who ends up get- ting in a serious skiing accident and injures himself might end up feeling depressed because he can’t be active for a while. On the other hand, a person who has an unhealthy relationship with food and tries to lose too much weight will end up losing strength and weakening her body. STRETCHING MUSCLES Increasing flexibility actually just means stretching out your muscles in a gentle and safe way. As you stretch your muscles over time, they’ll be able to work with your joints to move your body in a wider range of motion. Flexibility exercises actually lengthen muscles. Of course, if you tried to lengthen them all at once and push your muscles past what they’re

What Are Flexibility and Agility?

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