PhD, Associate Professor V.S. Astafyev¹
I.V. Rudyakova¹
PhD, Associate Professor V.V. Borisov^1
1Transbaikal State University, Chita
²St. Petersburg Humanitarian University of Trade Unions, St. Petersburg

Keywords: fitness technology, physical education, motor competency, physical activity, health, load.

Background. University years fall on one of the most sensitive developmental periods when the physiological systems, psychological status, priorities and values rapidly change in the new environments and individual preferences, habits and lifestyles are formed and consolidated to lay a foundation for health agenda and further progress in many aspects. The national statistics report, however, concerning health regress for the university years, particularly at the unsporting university disciplines, with the physical inactivity being considered among the main reasons for the health disorders. It should be emphasized that presently the academic physical education system is largely ineffective as verified by the reported regress in the physical fitness, functionality and academic performance. The academic physical education policies and practices are still poorly customizable to the actual students’ interests in and needs for specific physical activity; and this is the reason why many students are disappointed by the physical education service quality and tend to miss the physical education classes for whatever reasons. The disinterest in the physical education service is manifested in the absenteeism, dissatisfaction with own trainings, fatigue and, as a result, regress in physical fitness, health standards and lifestyles on the whole. The national academic community should offer the needs-sensitive physical education service models, particularly for the non-sporting university disciplines, to make the service modern, effective and designed with a special priority to the future job-specific physical qualities and skills of the trainees, who ideally shall develop healthy lifestyles with habitual physical education and sports activities for success. Such academic physical education service is recommended giving a special priority to the gymnastics elements in the physical trainings.

Objective of the study was to develop, on a sound theoretical and practical basis, and test benefits of a new motor competency formation model with gymnastics physical training elements for the academic physical education system.

Methods and structure of the study. We used the following study methods: analysis of the relevant theoretical and practical literature; questionnaire survey to find the students’ motivations; academic progress tests; medical/ biological functionality tests; pre- versus post-experimental tests; and a standard mathematical statistics toolkit for the test data processing. Benefits of the new motor competency formation model with gymnastics physical training elements were tested at the second stage of the study in 2010-16, with the relevant theoretical and practical provisions for the motor competency progress in the physical education service for unsporting student groups. Sampled for the experiment were 33 students split up into Experimental Group (EG, n=17) and Reference Group (RG, n=15).

Results and discussion. Health benefits of the fitness technology classes are known to be the highest when the physical activity is reasonably versatile, with the combined physical workloads engaging every main muscle group. It is no less important that such combined versatile practices are more entertaining, emotional and interesting for the students. As far as the modern health aerobics tools are concerned, not all of them may be effectively combined for the above purposes. We believe that the efforts to attain the best possible health benefits shall take advantage of such aerobics tools that help optimize the academic physical activity by the relatively easy exercises with a special priority to the movement amplitudes. These benefits are offered by some step-aerobics, fitball-aerobics and stretching practices. With this idea in mind, we developed, on the relevant theoretical and practical basis, the motor competency formation model with the gymnastics physical training elements for the academic physical education service to non-sporting groups.

The health aerobics classes were designed in the economic energy supply zone of 60-85% of the maximal oxygen consumption, with 90min trainings 3 times a week. The health-centered trainings were designed to reasonably alternate the cardio-respiratory endurance, strength and strength endurance intensive practices in the core part of the session followed by the flexibility trainings in the final part. The warm-up part of each session was dominated by the step aerobics practices; followed by the cardio-respiratory endurance intensive step aerobics, strength- and strength-endurance-intensive fitball aerobics in the core part; and the flexibility-improvement stretching in the final part.

We prudently combined the low-, moderate- and high-intensity step aerobics practices, with the combinations including the movement groups classified by the movement directions (upward or downward); lead leg; with/ without longitudinal torque movements; support/ aerial movements etc. Each combination included 32 or 64 elementary counted moves with the leg change at the end, on the last move – to run the workout in a non-stop manner with the both legs equally active.

The strength- and strength-endurance complexes were designed to train the main muscle groups by a variety of static, dynamic and combined static-dynamic exercises with fitballs. Modern fitball-aerobics offers highly versatile physical training tools with gymnastics elements of special benefits for the physical fitness and functionality. These practices may be provisionally classified into the trunk- and upper/ lower-limb-specific exercises. It should be mentioned that the strength exercises should be strictly controlled and customized on an individual basis. The stretching practices were applied to work out the working muscles, ligaments and tendons of the trunk and limbs to secure progress in flexibility, joint mobility, plasticity and movement grace.

Conclusion. The pre- versus post-experimental functionality and physical fitness tests showed benefits of the new motor competency formation model with gymnastics physical training elements for the academic physical education system – as verified by the significant progress of the EG versus RG in the tests.

References

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Corresponding author: miss.rudyakova@mail.ru

Abstract

Among the array of means of physical education of students, it is fitness technologies with gymnastic orientation that are the most affordable and effective. It should be noted that students’ attitude to various health-improvement fitness technologies is characterized by positive motivation; the interest in them is growing significantly due to the modification of exercises and routines, the possibility to change their intensity and orientation.

Objective of the study was to theoretically substantiate the educational model for implementation of the program-methodical support for the formation of motor competency in students, including the comprehensive use of several fitness technologies with gymnastic orientation: step aerobics, fitball aerobics, stretching. This combination is necessary to ensure the uniform distribution of physical loads on the main muscle groups, as well as increase the emotionality in the training process and promote interest in it.

The educational experiment revealed a positive dynamics in the indicators of physical and functional fitness of the female students participating in the experiment, which characterizes the level of formation of motor competency.