Welcome to CDC stacks | Physical activity, exercise, and physical fitness: definitions and distinctions for health-related research. - 66195 | Public Health Reports
Stacks Logo
Advanced Search
Select up to three search categories and corresponding keywords using the fields to the right. Refer to the Help section for more detailed instructions.
 
 
Help
Clear All Simple Search
Advanced Search
Physical activity, exercise, and physical fitness: definitions and distinctions for health-related research.
  • Published Date:
    1985 Mar-Apr
  • Source:
    Public Health Rep. 100(2):126-131
  • Language:
    English
Filetype[PDF-2.12 MB]


Details:
  • Personal Authors:
  • Keywords:
  • Pubmed ID:
    3920711
  • Pubmed Central ID:
    PMCnull
  • Description:
    "Physical activity," "exercise," and "physical fitness" are terms that describe different concepts. However, they are often confused with one another, and the terms are sometimes used interchangeably. This paper proposes definitions to distinguish them. Physical activity is defined as any bodily movement produced by skeletal muscles that results in energy expenditure. The energy expenditure can be measured in kilocalories. Physical activity in daily life can be categorized into occupational, sports, conditioning, household, or other activities. Exercise is a subset of physical activity that is planned, structured, and repetitive and has as a final or an intermediate objective the improvement or maintenance of physical fitness. Physical fitness is a set of attributes that are either health- or skill-related. The degree to which people have these attributes can be measured with specific tests. These definitions are offered as an interpretational framework for comparing studies that relate physical activity, exercise, and physical fitness to health.

  • Document Type:
    Journal Article
  • Collection(s):
    Public Health Reports
  • Main Document Checksum:
  • Supporting Files:
    No Additional Files
    1. Assessment of physical activity in epidemiologic research: problems and prospects.
      Personal Author:
      LaPorte, R E; Montoye, H J; Caspersen, C J;
      Published:
      1985 Mar-Apr
      Source:
      Public Health Rep. 100(2):131-146
      Description:
      More than 30 different methods have been used to assess physical activity. These methods can be grouped into seven major categories: calorimetry, job classification, survey procedures, physiological markers, behavioral observation, mechanical and ele...
      File Type:
      Filetype[PDF - 3.55 MB]
    2. The determinants of physical activity and exercise.
      Personal Author:
      Dishman, R K; Sallis, J F; Orenstein, D R;
      Published:
      1985 Mar-Apr
      Source:
      Public Health Rep. 100(2):158-171
      Description:
      Evaluation and delivery of physical activity and exercise programs appear impeded by the substantial numbers of Americans who are unwilling or unable to participate regularly in physical activity. As a step toward identifying effective interventions,...
      File Type:
      Filetype[PDF - 3.44 MB]
    3. A descriptive epidemiology of leisure-time physical activity.
      Personal Author:
      Stephens, T; Jacobs, D R; White, C C;
      Published:
      1985 Mar-Apr
      Source:
      Public Health Rep. 100(2):147-158
      Description:
      Eight national surveys conducted in the United States and Canada between 1972 and 1983 are reviewed for evidence of leisure-time physical activity patterns in the population. The authors' major conclusion is that it is difficult to make reliable gene...
      File Type:
      Filetype[PDF - 3.61 MB]
    4. Workshop on Epidemiologic and Public Health Aspects of Physical Activity and Exercise: a summary.
      Personal Author:
      Powell, K E; Paffenbarger, R S;
      Published:
      1985 Mar-Apr
      Source:
      Public Health Rep. 100(2):118-126
      Description:
      The Workshop on Epidemiologic and Public Health Aspects of Physical Activity and Exercise was conducted by the Centers for Disease Control on September 24-25, 1984. Fundamental topics were identified prior to the workshop, and experts were invited to...
      File Type:
      Filetype[PDF - 2.28 MB]
    5. Physical activity research and coronary heart disease.
      Personal Author:
      Friedewald, W T
      Published:
      1985 Mar-Apr
      Source:
      Public Health Rep. 100(2):115-117
      File Type:
      Filetype[PDF - 546.80 KB]
    6. Physical activity, behavioral epidemiology, and public health.
      Personal Author:
      Mason, J O; Powell, K E;
      Published:
      1985 Mar-Apr
      Source:
      Public Health Rep. 100(2):113-115
      File Type:
      Filetype[PDF - 551.32 KB]
    7. Asthmatic students' program materials
      Personal Author:
      Branyon, Kitty F.
      Published:
      Mar 1985
      Source:
      Public Health Rep. 100(2):117
      File Type:
      Filetype[PDF - 182.54 KB]
    8. Public Health Rep
      Published:
      Mar-Apr 1985
      File Type:
      Filetype[PDF - 591.98 KB]
    9. The promotion of physical activity in the United States population: the status of programs in medical, worksite, community, and school settings.
      Personal Author:
      Iverson, D C; Fielding, J E; Crow, R S; Christenson, G M;
      Published:
      1985 Mar-Apr
      Source:
      Public Health Rep. 100(2):212-224
      Description:
      While the medical care encounter is considered an ideal situation in which patients are encouraged to increase their physical activity levels, very little research has been conducted in this setting. In fact, with the exception of the physical activi...
      File Type:
      Filetype[PDF - 3.19 MB]
    10. Physical activity and exercise to achieve health-related physical fitness components.
      Personal Author:
      Haskell, W L; Montoye, H J; Orenstein, D;
      Published:
      1985 Mar-Apr
      Source:
      Public Health Rep. 100(2):202-212
      Description:
      To improve health and fitness effectively through physical activity or exercise, we need to understand how this comes about. For many of these changes, the stimulus has been grossly defined in terms of type, intensity, duration, and frequency of exer...
      File Type:
      Filetype[PDF - 2.71 MB]
    11. Effectiveness of measures to prevent unintentional deaths of infants and children from suffocation and strangulation.
      Personal Author:
      Kraus, J F
      Published:
      1985 Mar-Apr
      Source:
      Public Health Rep. 100(2):231-240
      Description:
      Unintentional deaths from suffocation and strangulation account for about 20 percent of all nontransport-related infant and child fatalities in the United States. In the late 1950s, some preventive countermeasures were introduced to reduce the number...
      File Type:
      Filetype[PDF - 3.30 MB]
    12. Relationships between exercise or physical activity and other health behaviors.
      Personal Author:
      Blair, S N; Jacobs, D R; Powell, K E;
      Published:
      1985 Mar-Apr
      Source:
      Public Health Rep. 100(2):172-180
      Description:
      Physical activity may indirectly influence health behaviors such as overeating, smoking, substance abuse, stress management, risk taking, and others. Substantial evidence indicates that physical activity is positively associated with weight control a...
      File Type:
      Filetype[PDF - 2.08 MB]
    13. The disease-specific benefits and risks of physical activity and exercise.
      Personal Author:
      Siscovick, D S; LaPorte, R E; Newman, J M;
      Published:
      1985 Mar-Apr
      Source:
      Public Health Rep. 100(2):180-188
      Description:
      Physical inactivity has been related to the occurrence of coronary heart disease, hypertension, diabetes mellitus, and osteoporosis. The literature was reviewed to determine what is and what is not known about the efficacy and safety of physical acti...
      File Type:
      Filetype[PDF - 2.34 MB]
    14. The relation of physical activity and exercise to mental health.
      Personal Author:
      Taylor, C B; Sallis, J F; Needle, R;
      Published:
      1985 Mar-Apr
      Source:
      Public Health Rep. 100(2):195-202
      Description:
      Mental disorders are of major public health significance. It has been claimed that vigorous physical activity has positive effects on mental health in both clinical and nonclinical populations. This paper reviews the evidence for this claim and provi...
      File Type:
      Filetype[PDF - 1.89 MB]
    15. Health promotion for older Americans.
      Personal Author:
      Heckler, M M
      Published:
      1985 Mar-Apr
      Source:
      Public Health Rep. 100(2):225-230
      Description:
      As American lifespans increase, there is greater concern for the quality of those longer lives. The Department of Health and Human Services, through its many component agencies, has inaugurated a major initiative to promote health and fitness among o...
      File Type:
      Filetype[PDF - 1.54 MB]
    16. The risks of exercise: a public health view of injuries and hazards.
      Personal Author:
      Koplan, Jeffrey P.; Siscovick, David S.; Goldbaum, Gary M.;
      Published:
      1985 Mar-Apr
      Source:
      Public Health Rep. 100(2):189-195
      Description:
      Relatively little is known about the incidence of the risks facing those who exercise regularly. Clinical reports suggest a variety of musculoskeletal ailments, and several pathophysiologic conditions may result from the various aerobic activities mo...
      File Type:
      Filetype[PDF - 1.50 MB]
    17. Public Health Rep ; v. 100, no. 2 : table of contents
      Published:
      Mar-Apr 1985
      Source:
      Public Health Rep. 100(2)
      File Type:
      Filetype[PDF - 605.39 KB]
    18. Public Health Rep ; v. 100, no. 2 : Masthead
      Published:
      Mar-Apr 1985
      Source:
      Public Health Rep. 100(2)
      File Type:
      Filetype[PDF - 4.54 MB]
You May Also Like:
  1. Workshop on Epidemiologic and Public Health Aspects of Physical Activity and Exercise: a summary.
    Personal Author:
    Powell, K E; Paffenbarger, R S;
    Published:
    1985 Mar-Apr
    Source:
    Public Health Rep. 100(2):118-126
    Description:
    The Workshop on Epidemiologic and Public Health Aspects of Physical Activity and Exercise was conducted by the Centers for Disease Control on September 24-25, 1984. Fundamental topics were identified prior to the workshop, and experts were invited to...
    File Type:
    Filetype[PDF - 2.28 MB]
  2. Public Health Rep
    Published:
    Mar-Apr 1985
    File Type:
    Filetype[PDF - 591.98 KB]
  3. Public Health Rep ; v. 100, no. 2 : table of contents
    Published:
    Mar-Apr 1985
    Source:
    Public Health Rep. 100(2)
    File Type:
    Filetype[PDF - 605.39 KB]
  4. Status of the 1990 physical fitness and exercise objectives--evidence from NHIS 1985.
    Personal Author:
    Caspersen, C J; Christenson, G M; Pollard, R A;
    Published:
    1986 Nov-Dec
    Source:
    Public Health Rep. 101(6):587-592
    Description:
    The 1985 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) Health Promotion and Disease Prevention Questionnaire provides information regarding the status of 4 of the 11 physical fitness and exercise objectives for 1990. A specially developed scoring algorithm...
    File Type:
    Filetype[PDF - 1.53 MB]
  5. A descriptive epidemiology of leisure-time physical activity.
    Personal Author:
    Stephens, T; Jacobs, D R; White, C C;
    Published:
    1985 Mar-Apr
    Source:
    Public Health Rep. 100(2):147-158
    Description:
    Eight national surveys conducted in the United States and Canada between 1972 and 1983 are reviewed for evidence of leisure-time physical activity patterns in the population. The authors' major conclusion is that it is difficult to make reliable gene...
    File Type:
    Filetype[PDF - 3.61 MB]