What Defines Fitness in Sports? Definitely Not Abs!

By Kabra Altaf

Whenever we hear the word ‘fit’, we think of a person with low body fat (slim) and six-pack abs or a person with the stamina of a wildebeest, the strength of an elephant and the eyesight of an eagle!

But is that what fitness is all about? 

In sports, Cristiano Ronaldo, Khabib Nurmagomedov, Virat Kohli, Mary Kom, Yasuhiro Yamashita, Rohan Bopanna, Prince Fielder, and Jared Lorenzen have all achieved greatness and are termed as greatest athletes. But do they have the same level of fitness and weight?

The answer is no (see the table above)! Have you ever thought why?

If the standards of fitness were just six-pack abs, stamina and strength; would that mean some of these legends are not fit enough? 

Fitness and body weight are usually considered one; good weight (slim) = fitness! However, the reality is completely different. Fitness is actually the ability of a body to be able to perform daily activities without undue fatigue. Body weight does not define fitness but just defines the weight of mass of an organism. 

Body composition is what your body weight is made up of. It includes the weight of water stored in the body, and the weight of your muscles, bones and fats. You need to understand that different factors determine the bone density of a person. Genetics, environment, hormones, nutrition, age, protein intake, medication exercise, and lifestyle are some examples. 

Muscle weight varies from person to person. It depends on gender, body size and diet. The amount of body fat present in someone also varies based on gender, race, exercise, calorie intake, genetics, hormones, etc. Different genders have different body compositions and hence having abs in a short time without any anabolic steroids is challenging. (Anabolic steroids are life-threatening– their misuse can cause long-term side effects. It might look cool to change your body in no time but it is life-threatening)

Similarly, women often find it harder to lose belly fat because of the less testosterone and more estrogen than men.

These facts hence make it clear that body weight does not solely show the fat in the body but various things as a whole determine it.

Now you must be thinking about the question I asked in the beginning about the fitness of all the athletes! Stay here till the end and you will get your questions answered.

Every athlete has a different body composition and different sports need different body types. No body type is ever not fit for a sport. We have numerous sports: outdoor (cricket, baseball, skiing, cycling, rafting) and indoor (combat sports, judo, wrestling, chess, swimming), etc. All these require a different body type. 

For example, if I talk about combat sports, different athletes take part in different weight categories in both genders. There is a 100 KG plus category too, in which athletes with a weight of over 100 KG compete with the same technical and tactical skills as that of an athlete who weighs 50 KG.

There is a difference in speed, and strength in all weight categories but the skill and rules of a sport remain the same. These athletes are not selected based on abs count but on the technical, and sport-specific fitness level. 

Like in swimming, long arms accompanied and wide shoulders aid in balancing your body. Long arms and hands exert more push on the water and long legs eat up the run distance. In the same way, every sport requires a different skill set and body type. Some things are hard to learn and some are easy, for example, a short judo athlete finds it hard to do leg chokes but is good at throwing, thanks to their speed.

Throughout the history of various sports, we have seen players with different weight scales showing different results in fitness tests. Putting on weight or losing a lot of weight has its pros and cons. While the heavy weight gives you more power, the lower weight gives you more speed. Sports like baseball, judo, wrestling, cricket, cycling, sprints, running, etc require speed, athleticism, strength and timing.

All of which can be hindered by heaviness or being underweight. However, some players in the past have found a way to make it work and that is what we call talent, skill and hard work. Making your own path despite the challenges.

It’s time to make it clear to one and all:

The abs should not define fitness. 

Athletes shouldn’t be judged on body type or weight.

Heavyweight people should not be called unfit.

There are always people who do the impossible! A 230 KG athlete playing great baseball, a 4.75-foot cricketer doing wonders, a player playing with a fracture, ACL tear, cancer and whatnot. Athletes can never be defined solely by their appearance but by their will, hard work, talent and dedication. 

It can’t be denied that below-average weight or heavy weight is not healthy but every case has to be treated differently. People must be made aware of the reality, the science behind the weight of a person, the real meaning of fitness and the definition of an athlete. This can only be possible by educating both athletes and sports fans. 

• Kabra Altaf is an eight-time national Judo medalist and an SAI-accredited Judo coach based in Srinagar, Kashmir

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