Name: ____________________________ Block: ______ Date: ___/___/___
FITNESS HOMEWORK : Muscular Endurance Workout
What Is Muscular Endurance?
Definition of Muscular Endurance
Muscular endurance is the ability of a muscle or muscle group to do repeated contractions against a less-than-
maximum resistance for a given period of time. This is in contrast to muscular strength, which is the greatest amount
of force that a muscle or muscle group can exert in a single effort.
Many daily activities, including sports and weight training, require muscle endurance. Activities like duration
or distance running, biking, skating, swimming and climbing all require muscular endurance, since the muscle is
under load or tension for extended periods of time.
Ways To Test Muscular Endurance
There are four main methods for measuring and evaluating muscular endurance:
1. Fixed Percentage of Person’s Body Weight Method: This basically takes your body weight and has you
perform a given exercise for the maximum amount of reps at a weight that represents a percentage of your
total body weight. For example, if you weigh 150 lbs., you might perform a leg press at 50% of your total
body weight, or 75 lbs. for as many reps as possible. This is usually used to measure improvement over
time.
2. Fixed Percentage of One Rep Max: This takes a person’s One Rep Max (1RM)– or the maximum amount
of weight that a person can move for a single, full repetition — and then calculates a resistance level for
endurance testing. Typically that will be 70 percent of your one rep max. So if you can bench press 150
lbs., you would use 105 lbs. for endurance test.
3. Absolute Muscle Endurance Test: This is basically the type of measurement that the military or
police/firefighter academy uses to evaluate muscular endurance. It involves having a person move a
fixed load for a certain amount of repetitions during a fixed time period. For example, it might be carrying
a 100 lbs. backpack, 100 yards in a set period of time. This method does not take into account a person’s
own body mass, however.
4. Calisthenics Type Exercises: These are things like push-ups, jumping jacks or pull-ups. This is also a
favorite measure of muscular endurance in the military and police academies, because the test is functional
and measures a person’s muscular endurance in relation to their own body mass, which is critical in
situations like search and rescue and combat.
Assignment – Physical – 30 min. Muscular Endurance workout of your choice.
Activity: ____________________________________________________________
Parent Signature (Required):______________________
I participated with my child: Yes ______ (.5 extra credit) No_________
1) What makes the workout a muscular endurance workout?
2) What are some of the muscular endurance activities that you feel are exciting for you and why?
3) How do you test an exercise to see if it is a muscular endurance activity?
