10 chapter i - information and library network...
TRANSCRIPT
CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background of the Study
The high growth of population is proportionately raising individuals with multiple
disabilities. The main attribute being higher rates of survival is pre mature birth.
Although today’s advanced techniques of medical science are trying to reduce other
attributes, yet majority of the children is left with one or more disabilities.
Health is the foundation to life that makes it possible to do all the things you want
to do. We need to learn how to listen to the whispers of the soul and not become a
victim in life, feeling life has passed us by and that it is too late to do something. This is
the cause of waste of such a lot of creativity within us all. Health in itself was not very
interesting but it is an absolute essential element in being able to do what one wants to
do.
Health is the means of all the most sublime aspirations and achievements of
mankind. In fact, health means not only to have strong body or lack of disease but one
should have balanced mind, controlled senses, and integrated ego to have perfect
evolution of all important faculties (action, emotion, will and wisdom) of Personality into
state of Self realization.
World Book Encyclopedia states health to be a state of physical, mental and
social well being. It involves more than just the absence of disease. A truly healthy
person not only feels good physically but also has a realistic outlook at life and gets
along well with other people. Good health enables people to enjoy life and have the
opportunity to achieve the goals they have set for themselves.
According to ancient texts, health is the harmony between body and mind,
harmony between mind and knowledge, harmony between the members of the family,
harmony in the neighborhood and with every other person. If we want a healthy body
we have to make our mind healthy. With physical health, one’s mental health has to
improve. Health is an equipoise state of the body, mind, sense organs and soul. This is
the state of ease.
In this age of advancement of science and technology we are taking maximum
advantage of man-made machines. The tremendous explosion of recent knowledge and
its advancement have given us maximum comfort so that we are able to do work by
sitting at one place by utilizing a limited time. Such comfort and availability of excessive
leisure time have changed our living environment which in turn is leading us towards
several degenerative diseases. As a result the physique (which is the product of
heredity) is affected. This gives a clear picture that leads to formulate a hypothesis that
modern day’s lifestyle, which is full of stress and tension, might have changed the
personality profiles not only of common man but also in children.
Although Adivasi or Tribal population in Maharashtra State is around ten percent
of total population very little studies are conducted on adivasi communities. The adivasi
group mostly stays in forest or hilly areas that are far from civilization. It is believed that
India represents approximately four hundred adivasi communities which represent
about 7% of the population. These communities continue to live with old fashioned and
primordial lifestyle. A significant number of them are hunters or use ancient techniques
for agricultural purpose. Most of them live away from modern civilization.
There are several tribal or adivasi communities differ from each other in quite a
lot of aspects. For example in the language they speak and in their socio-economic
classes. As most of the tribal communities live in the remote areas they are untouched
by the development that is happening in other parts of the State. As a result, these
communities remain backward particularly in health and education
In fact, health is a state of physical mental and social well being. Fitness is state,
which portrays the capacity of a person to do work without undue fatigue. Good health
empowers individuals to revel in life euphorically and have the chance to attain the
objectives they have set for themselves; in their existence. Health related physical
fitness is a term has wide range of meaning. Generally, physical in sports competition
means to exhibit top performance and here the real sense of fitness is performance
related. Such fitness may not consider one’s health. In this piece of research the
researcher considers a status of physical fitness of these tribal that has relation with the
health.
Generally, being alive without any disease or illness is called Health. But
According to Ayurveda when all the systems of the body works satisfactory and soul,
organs and mind are in pleasant condition, it is known as health. Therefore, there is no
need to tell that some kind of physical fitness that also contributes to health is essential
for every person.
However, it has been seen that as adivasi people reside in remote areas and
they are deprived of good education as well as health services. In fact, in our society
rich and middle class children receive better facility and opportunities i.e., good
education, food, exercise and guidance etc. But the children belonging to Adivasi
(Tribal) communities are always lacking these facilities for the development of their
child. The details of the Adivasi areas in Maharashtra are as follows:
Different tribal groups of Maharashtra
Sr. No Tribal Groups
District
1 Otkar Gadchiroli
2 Pardhan Nanded, Yeotmal
3 Pawara Dhule, Jalgaon
4 Madia, Gond Gadchiroli, Yeotmal
5 Bhil Nandurbar
6 Halbi Gadchiroli
7 MaloharKoli Thane
8 Rajgond Gadchiroli
9 Korku Amravati
10 Tandvi Jalgaon
11 Kolam Yeotmal
12 Warli Thane
13 Katkari Thane,PuneRaigad,Ratnagiri
14 Kokana Dhule, Nasik
15 Anhdha Nanded
16 MahadeoKoli Pune, Nasik
17 Thakur Pune, Thane,Raigad, Ahmednagar
1.2 Brief about Yoga
The word ‘Yoga’ needs to be understood. Equally important is what it implies and
how it can be implemented in daily life. Yoga, gently textured by dance and music, with
meditation as its flowering, is the panacea for all ills that threaten mankind in this
millennium. It is not only about the physical fitness or beauty that is so widely advertised
and so ardently desired. The aim is to attain balance, harmony and tranquility in all the
functions of the body mind framework, individually and collectively.
Today, more and more people in the Western world are becoming health
conscious. This renewed attention to health may reflect our sense of imbalance with
accelerated technological growth, while we witness our incredible potential to transform
the outer world, at the same time we experience a growing thirst for inner
transformation. We want to live healthy, productive, and meaningful lives with a sense
of inner contentment.
Following the current trend toward improving the quality of life, the health industry
has blossomed. New prepackaged, generalized, get healthy quick programs continually
appear and yoga, too, has been brought into the market. The principles and scientific
approach that yoga uses are without bias and therefore can be applied irrespective of
race, religion or faith. It permeates beliefs only to empower all the positive facets of life
and much more.
This is a great and beneficial development. It is important, though, that in the
midst of this expansion the deeper, more truly practical relevance of yoga not be lost,
that, with an eye to the market place, we not lose sight of the essential principles
underlying this profound tradition.
As human beings, we are a complex of interrelated systems (including the
various components of our anatomy, physiology, and psychology) existing within a
larger complex of interrelated systems, including our interpersonal relationships and our
environment. There is a reciprocal relation between these various structural
components and the metabolic functioning of the body as a whole. The body possesses
an intrinsic, organic wholeness, and the key to health lies in the balanced interaction of
all these systems.
We have all noticed that there are some people who always seem healthy, while
others have chronic problems and we may tend to think of these differences as being
largely ingrained, especially today, as we learn more and more about the role of genetic
inheritance in individual health. Yet, while it is true that we are each born with certain
genetically predetermined characteristics that influence our health, who we are and how
we feel is strongly influenced by our day to day activity. This means that we have
prospect, through altering our actions, to achieve immense changes in our wellness. If
we understand who we are, we can refine and improve how we feel, no matter what our
genetic predisposition.
The process of achieving wellness, however, is complicated by the fact that our
day to day activity is influenced by our conditioning, what is known in the yoga tradition
as samskara. For each of us, this conditioning has been forming since early childhood.
It is the result of our particular relation to our interpersonal and social environments, the
result, in fact, of all our past actions.
At birth most of our movements are instinctive we experience hunger or fear, and
we respond by crying. As we grow, our movements gradually become more and more
active, more intentional, and as the mind develops, it begins in turn to program the
functioning brain and body. Learning how to walk, to talk to play, to relate with other
people acquiring these skills we impose onto our neuromuscular structure an order that
becomes programmed, through repetition, into our pre motor cortex in the form of
increasingly conditioned reflexes. Where we once had to focus all our attention on a
movement as seemingly simple as walking, we are gradually patterned to move
reflexively, unconsciously. This learning process is the beginning of our conditioning,
and it is why we tend, even if we don’t like to admit it, to walk, talk, and behave like our
parents or the people who raised us.
As we continue to grow, even beyond childhood, the development of our body
and mind continues to be conditioned by these twin processes of neuromuscular
organization and socialization. Meanwhile, those particular patterns we each acquire
and develop are always imperfect in some way, in relation to wellness, even though
they allow us to function. In fact, because they allow us to function and are therefore,
reinforced they inhibit our optimal development. The result of this conditioning is
inequity at diverse levels of our system, accumulation of stress, and, ultimately, disease.
In normal behavior our attention is primarily focused outward, into the world. as a
result, we are generally unaware of the mechanical and repetitive nature of our actions,
both physical and mental. Thus, the starting point in breaking these cycles and
changing the quality of our lives must be interiorizing our attention. This is the key to the
yoga process.
This process begins with the discipline of body, breath, and mind, known in the
yoga tradition as asana practice. At the most basic level, this practice involves
consciously moving the body into specific postures asanas remaining in these postures
for some time, and organizing them together in particular sequences.
Since ancient times, the asanas have been defined in terms of relatively precise
forms, by mastering these forms, an individual demonstrated his or her mastery of
certain basic principles of movement. Yet it was also generally understood that the
practical application of these principles must be based on each individual’s actual
condition. An individuals way of doing each posture was therefore worked out between
teacher and student. In this sense, the transformational value of a posture was always
seen in relation to its function, not to its form.
Unfortunately, chief among the popular misconceptions about yoga is the idea
that the value of each posture lies in achieving its precise, fixed form. Thus, emphasis
has too often been placed on superficial details of positioning and the development of
the body in the direction of preconceived, external standards of perfection and the forms
have been crystallized into rigid, static postures in which the living quality of the asana
is lost.
But if we strive in this way to meet external standards, without first recognizing
our actual condition and developing our practice accordingly, we may actually re
enforce dysfunctional patterns and completely miss the deeper value of asana practice.
In such a case, yoga practitioners generally attempt to achieve a form through a willful
effort of muscular contraction, but the achievement of a form through static contraction
creates rigidity and, ultimately, other problems, such as compression at the joints and
restriction of blood flow. The body creates resistance, stress is absorbed in vulnerable
areas, and problems almost inevitably develop, either immediately or after some time.
Our efforts to achieve the precise form of an asana then become an actually harmful
imposition of the body, of an order that has no relation to the actual needs of the body.
If we analyze the classical asanas in terms of their function and interrelation,
however, we can see them as a systematic record of the structural potential of the
human body. According to this view, the benefits to be achieved from these postures
derive not at the level of form but at the level of function.
The Myth of Yoga
The greatest myth of yoga and there are many- is that its meaning is confined to
complex physical postures and breathing exercises. But that is not the case, these are
only means to an end.
Also, the general impression is that yoga asanas are meant for a select few or
the elite, or even for those sequestered in some far ways ashram. This is not at all the
case yoga asanas are for almost anyone, including the lazy, old, stiff-backed,
handicapped and infirm and can be performed within the sanctity of the four walls of
your own home.
The aim of such asanas is not to make you an acrobat or a gymnast, but to
create a reasonably supple spine, as well as deal with other related health aspects.
Understanding Yoga as a Whole
The general understanding and definition of yoga is reunion or union of the
individual spirit with the universal spirit, or union of the limited self with the cosmic self
or our limited consciousness with the cosmic consciousness. According to realized
yogis, there is an anomaly in this concept, for this definition implies a ‘separation’ from
the cosmic whole rather than a union with it.
This feeling of separation arises because our mindset and awareness is at zero,
or ground level, from a spiritual perspective. But as we begin to expand our awareness
and have an aerial view of existence and of our being ness, this feeling and belief of
separateness drops like a dry leaf falling off a branch on to the ground.
According to Albert Einstein, who was also a well known yogi, ‘A human being is
a part of a whole, called by us ‘universe’, a part limited in time and space. He
experiences himself, his thoughts and feelings as something separated from the rest, a
kind of optical delusion of his consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison for us,
restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for a few persons nearest to us.
Our task must be to free ourselves from the prison by widening our circle of compassion
to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty.
Yoga implies unity and oneness. Its main aim is to gradually root out the ego and
transcend its limitations so as to repose in one’s real and innermost nature. This defines
yoga in its highest and spiritual perspective.
In general parlance the word ‘yoga’ indicates the practice or the path or the
program one adheres to, but the term also includes the meaning of its end point and its
progressive aims.
This subject itself or the very experience of self realization is a mighty tall order
for anyone whose mind is essentially immersed in or focused on the mundane aspects
of earthly existence. According to sages and yogis, this ultimate experience could take
innumerable lives to attain, running into thousands or even millions of years of earthly
life in the normal course of human evolution.
At the physical and physiological level, yoga provides the means to achieve
coordination and efficiency of the various functions in the body to reach the goal of
physical harmony and health.
At the mental level, yoga, is the integration and harmony between thoughts,
words and deeds or integration between head, heart and hands.
From a psychic point of view, yoga is the science that aims to awaken one’s
psychic centers to achieve a high level of creativity and confidence, to eventually unfold
deeper aspects of our being and consciousness.
Therefore, the primary aim of yoga is to remove all anomalies in the body mind
complex, to balance opposing forces, to bring about a state of integration and harmony
between the physical body, the pranic or bio-plasmic body and the mental body to merit
sitting on the throne of meditation and onwards to experience the immense range of self
discovery and self mastery.
Types of Yoga
The most important two types of yoga disciplines are explained as follows:
Hatha Yoga
The principles and practices of Hatha Yoga were compiled after several
generations of scattered practices all over India by Yogi Swatmarama in the 15th century
AD under the text of Hatha Yoga Pradipika. There are several other ancient texts on
Hatha Yoga, such as Shiva Samhita and Gheranda Samhita. These three mentioned
treatises stand out as most prominent amongst all Hatha Yoga texts.
Hatha is composed of two words ‘ha’ and ‘tha’, ‘Ha’ means the sun and ‘tha’ , the
moon. ‘Ha’ (sun aspect) is associated with the right nostril and ‘tha’ (moon aspect) is
connected with the left nostril.
According to basic tenet of yoga, the moon aspect influences and rules over
mental functions and the sun aspect controls the vital and physical functions.
For a perfect balance between mental activity and physical activities, the flow of
breath would have to be balanced for a period of twelve hours each in alteration
between left and right nostrils in a day of twenty four hours. Such a balance in the flow
of breath between the two nostrils leads to perfect health and harmony. This is the basic
aim of Hatha Yoga.
This aspect of breath follows naturally after achieving perfect coordination
between several other functions in the body and also after acquiring a balance in the
psychic channels, the autonomic nervous system the endocrine system and overall
body by the practices prescribed.
Hatha yoga is primarily concerned with the purification of the body to achieve
mental and emotional calm, with discipline of the physical body.
The basic practices are:
1. Cleansing the nose, alimentary canal and the intestines and the massage of
abdominal organs, etc, under the heading ‘shatkarmas’
2. Asanas: physical postures of yoga
3. Pranayama: breathing exercises
4. Practice of physical gestures or psychic positions called ‘mudras’
5. Practice of bandhas: Physical movements and positions to lock up the energy
flows.
6. Trataka: the practices to develop concentration.
Patanjali Yoga
Patanjali yoga is also referred to as Ashtanga yoga or Raja yoga. Sage Patanjali
is believed to have been born some time before Christ, and compiled and reformulated
the yoga philosophy, its techniques and practices in an exposition of 196 verses named
‘Yoga Sutras’
This is a comprehensive approach and an upscale program compared to the
ways of Hatha Yoga. The system consists of eight stages leading the aspirant from
mental programming to yogic postures, regulation of prana by way of controlling the
breath and onwards to meditative practices leading to meditation and eventually
transcendence or realization of pure bliss.
The eight stages are, in progression of practice-
1. Yama
2. Niyamas
3. Asanas
4. Pranayama
5. Pratyahara
6. Dharana
7. Dhyan and
8. samadhi
Introduction to Asana
The Asana is Sanskrit word derived from the verbal root as, meaning ‘to sit’ or to
be present, and in the context of the yoga tradition, means ‘to be established in a
particular posture’. Traditionally the term refers to a wide range of bodily postures that
have been transmitted by teachers in India for thousands of years. Since the forms of
many of these practices specifically defined in the classic texts of Hatha Yoga tradition,
each asana is characterized by certain objective criteria, and, in fact, one traditional
definition of asana is the arrangement of the different components of the body in a
specific way. However, the history of asana is not a record of the possibilities of bodily
contortion, nor simply a record of an ancient form of physical culture, rather, asana
evolved as an integral part of a comprehensive spiritual practice oriented toward
purification, accomplishment, and realization.
These postures have been devised with the specific aim to nourish and activate
the organs and their functions in their locations in different parts of the body, as well as
the connective tissues, ligaments and joints, synovial fluid and the pranic body, to treat
the system as a whole. The initial goal is to improve the functioning of the internal
organs of the body, loosen up the joints, stretch and tone the muscles and improve the
condition of the connective tissues and ligaments.
However, the main aim of asanas, according to advanced yogis, is to aspire and
acquire a state of higher consciousness by initially eliminating all aches and pains and
disease, alleviating mental stress and physical tension. This is achieved by influencing
the three aspects of your being-body, mind and consciousness-and aligning them to be
in harmony.
Asanas can run into several hundreds in number, though about one hundred are
perhaps better known today. There are two types of asanas: the therapeutic –
preventive and the meditative.
Meditative asanaas are basically sitting poses and can be learnt easily from
books or ordinary teachers, but to understand the influence of these on the psychic
centers one has to learn them from an advanced teacher or master. There are eight
meditative asanas, of which three are most preferred. These are padmasana,
siddhasana and siddha yoni asana.
The highlights of these poses are that they-
1. provide a firm base to ensure a stable position
2. ensure an upright position of the spine without much effort,
3. distribute the weight of the body over a wider area, thus reducing the pressure on
the buttocks and
4. redirect the blood supply towards the pelvic and abdominal area as they reduce
flow into the legs in these postures, thereby toning up the muscles, organs and
nerves in the area.
Therapeutic preventive asanas are of two main types- the general category
taught to most people, with the exception of those vulnerable to contra indications of the
exercise, if any, and specific or restorative asanas taught to special individuals with the
aid of props such as weights, ropes, pulleys, etc, to rectify imbalances and conditions
and thereby assist the individual in completing the stretch to arrive at the required
posture for a certain duration of time. Such asanas are classified into four types, each
with its own salient features:
1. standing poses,
2. bending and twisting movements,
3. inversions and
4. sitting postures.
Yoga asanas attempt to harmonize the body by eliminating afflictions and
disturbances, so that you may tread the path of higher consciousness without being
hampered by the body’s identifications and its associated ailments. The correct
performance of asanas demands participation of your whole being- body, mind and
consciousness- with maximum awareness of the movement and the posture, the stretch
and the relaxation of muscles, and the breath. In summary, the approach towards yoga
asanas should be clear, they should not be viewed as merely physical poses, but as an
active and focused involvement of your attention or being.
Pranayama
Pranayama is an essential and esoteric aspect of yoga that deals with the
manipulation of ‘prana’, or vital life energy, through the regulation of breath with the help
of breathing exercises.
The general impression is that pranayama is a physical practice of breath control.
It may appear to be such, but in reality all such exercises have been devised to
influence the nervous system and the pranic body or psychic energy within all of us.
Therefore, the control of this psychic energy is a major concern to the practitioner of
yoga as a therapy to restore health and as an ideal means of preparation for meditation.
Since, it is the most direct method to adjust the flow of energy in the body and a very
powerful tool to do so, practitioners should exercise caution before they embark on the
pranayama journey. People with any physical imbalance or these who are aged or
suffer from coronary ailments should attempt this only under expert guidance.
Every technique in pranayama can graduate to advanced stages and therefore
must be learnt slowly and gradually after mastering the preliminaries. Systematically
done, the method confers great benefits to the practitioner over a period of time.
Prana and Pranic Body
In the ancient texts of yoga and the Upanishads there are several difinitions of
prana, all pointing to the same concept. But, in literal meaning, ‘prana’ is composed of
two words – ‘pra’ which means ‘force’, and ‘na’ or constancy’. Therefore, ‘prana’ means
‘force in constant motion’.
Prana is said to be the inner matrix of air and is described as a type of complex
multidimensional energy consisting of a combination of electrical, magnetic,
electromagnetic, thermal and mental energies.
Oxygen is not the only element that is needed for life, in fact, oxygen is
concerned only with maintaining the chemical aspect and organic vitality of the body. It
is prana, the cosmic essence, both macrocosmic and microcosmic, that is the
substratum of all life. It permeates all living organisms. It animates the psychic (pranic)
body and vitalizes every cell and every organ of the being.
Breath and prana are intricately linked. Under normal circumstances, at death,
when breathing stops, prana leaves. As long as prana is retained, the body will retain its
ability to see, hear, move, etc., and will not become a decaying corpse.
It is said that prana or mahaprana, the universal, all encompassing energy out of
which we draw substance through breathing, enters the fetus in about its fourth month.
Until then, the fetus grows and survives solely on the mother’s prana. Upon entering the
new entity, this universal prana divides itself into five functional sub-pranas in the body,
responsible for metabolism, circulation, assimilation, elimination and crystallization.
There are mainly four sources of prana energy:
• Solar prana from sunlight absorbed through the chakras and, in some cases,
through the pores of the skin by advanced yogis.
• Prana from air, which is of a positive plarity and absorbed by the lungs during
breathing.
• Prana from the earth, called ground prana, is absorbed through the soles of the
feet. That’ why many people recommend walking barefoot in the park to energize
and increase vitality.
• In addition the negative polarity of prana, some is obtained from food and water
and transferred to all the cells of the body by way of the digestive system.
Prana and Scientific Research
The knowledge of Prana is not new. It has been known to the yogis from time
long past by virtue of their intuitive realizations. Scientific research in the 20th century
has endorsed the findings of these wise men, confirming the existence of the pranic
body.
There have been several non-mystical scientific minded people who have
demonstrated and/or given evidence to support the existence of the pranic body. In
1935 Dr Harold S Burr, a professor of neuro-anatomy at Yale university in the United
States, established that all plants, animals, organic matter and humans are enveloped
by an energy body. He called it the ‘electro-dynamic field’ and stated that it controlled
the growth, shape and decay of all cells, tissues and organs that regulate the functions
of the physical body.
In 1939, Semiyon Kirlian, and ingenious technician from Russia, and his wife
developed a photographic device of high frequency that produced images of the pranic
body of humans, plants and other organic matter. This outstanding discovery paved the
way for other scientists to conduct further research on the matter, with revealing
conclusions. No one had seen such beautiful, iridescent colors emanating from the
pranic body- lights of all colours bursting and then some fading away. The scientists
were seeing a new kind of energy that defied all previous classification into the normal,
known forms of energy. They called it the ‘bioplasmic body’ and termed its light
emanations as ‘bioluminescence’.
‘Bio’ means ‘life’ and ‘plasma’ is defined as a gas containing ionized and neutral
particles, or ionized gas with positive and negative charged particles.
Pranayama
Pranayama is composed of two words. ‘Prana’ equates to ‘vital life force in
motion’ and ‘ayama’ means to stretch, restrain and expand. Thus ‘pranayama’ means to
extend and overcome one’s normal limitations. It also implies pranic capacity or length.
It employs breath control to bring about alterations in the flow of prana in our
pranic body.
Breath control means to alter-
• The duration of inhalation, exhalation and retention
• The depth of inhalation and
• The force of inhalation and exhalation. Pranayama exercises can be sorted into four basic categories-
• Sensitizing • Tranquilizing
• Balancing
• Vitalizing
All pranayama exercises have an energizing effect, the vitalizing techniques have
a heating effect, tranquilizing techniques have a cooling effect and balancing techniques
have a balancing effect on prana flow and the physical body. All such techniques
essentially refine, harmonized decongest, charge the frequency of pranic flow and
promote proper distribution to parts of the body via the vast network of nadis.
Prior to starting any pranayama exercises, it is imperative to know and practice
yogic breathing and a few exercises for developing lung and breath capacity. This will
facilitate the practice of other balancing and vitalizing exercises.
Brief Introduction to Physical Fitness
Endurance In everyday language the term endurance is used to describe the durability of an
objector an individual’s ability to tolerate circumstances that are less that pleasant. In
sport it is usually used in the context of the ability to sustain some form of physical
activity. This implies that the athlete operates like many mechanical engines which are
able to develop maximum power until they finally break down or run out of fuel. In the
case of the human machine the situation is less straightforward. The power that can be
developed depends upon the duration of the activity. This becomes apparent when the
relationship between race length and running speed is examined. There is no particular
achievement in being able to run continuously for four minutes, but it is very much
harder to do so at a pace which results in a mile being covered. Superficially this may
appear to be a matter of speed rather than endurance, but in fact endurance is very
much involved. A minute mile requires a speed of 6.7 meters per second. It is relatively
easy to maintain this pace over 100 meters – the distance would be covered in about 15
seconds, 50 per cent slower than the current record. A successful miler must maintain
this speed for almost 4 minutes which requires the development of half a horsepower
over this period. While it is easy to work at this rate for a few seconds, very few
individuals can develop such power over a period of several minutes. Endurance thus
amounts to more than the ability to continue physical activity; it involves continuing to
work at a rate that is high in relation to the duration.
Energy sources
Maximum power output varies with duration because different energy sources
are involved. Some provide power at a high rate but are quickly exhausted; others last
for much longer but are capable of supporting only a low work rate. There are
similarities with a space vehicle that is powered by a multistage rocket. The size of each
energy source is inversely related to the maximum rate of power output. High energy
phosphate compounds provide energy at the greatest rate but the total amount
available is so small that exhaustion occurs in a few seconds. At the other end of the
scale the body can have vast stores of fat but the rate of utilization of this fuel is so low
that it is normally used as an energy source only during light or moderate activity.
Endurance is primarily about the ability to generate energy at an appropriately high rate.
The biological mechanism by which this occurs is considered as follows:
Energy for muscular contraction
All the energy used by the human is obtained from foodstuffs, carbohydrates
being the most important type. Glucose is one of the simplest carbohydrates. It is
compound of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen that has a great deal of energy locked into
the chemical bonds holding the atoms together. This energy was obtained from the sun
during the process of photosynthesis. When glucose is combined with oxygen it is
converted back into carbon dioxide and water and the energy in the chemical bonds is
released, sometimes as heat, occasionally in a form that can be used to produce
muscular contraction. The energy available is known as the free energy. In the case of
glucose this amounts to approximately 400 kcal per 100 g, about the amount used
during one hour of moderately heavy physical activity. If glucose is burnt it is converted
into carbon dioxide and water and all the energy is released as heat. It cannot be
converted into muscular work and in order to provide energy in a useful form the body
allows the reaction to proceed in a series of steps. A small amount of energy is released
during each step and is transferred to other chemicals that are used during the
contraction of muscle. The most important of these is adenosine triphosphate (ATP).
The step-wise process occurs due to the intervention of other chemicals known as
enzymes. These play a vital role in the regulation of all aspects of body chemistry and
several aspects of physical fitness.
The rate of a particular chemical reaction is often influenced by the concentration
of the principle enzyme involved. This has implications for physical activity because a
higher concentration of a key enzyme may allow energy to be produced at a faster rate.
In many cases it has been shown that athletes have a higher concentrations of these
enzymes than non-athletes. For example, Costill et al., (1976a) found that successful
runners had about three times the concentration of succinate dehydrogenase in their leg
muscles as untrained subjects. This enzyme is involved in the citric acid cycle and an
increase in concentration would be expected to benefit performance in middle and long
distance running. It has also been shown that an increase in enzyme concentrations is
one of the effects of training. For example, Thorstensson et al., (1975) demonstrated a
36 per cent increase in creatin phosphokinase an enzyme involved in the release of
energy from creatin phosphate after sprint training.
Long term endurance
Some sports involve a prolonged period of physical activity- long distance
running, canoeing, skiing and cycling are examples. In such activities endurance can be
influenced by one or more of a large number of different factors. The more important
include: the supply of nutrients, cardiovascular function, the ability to regulate body
temperature, water and electrolyte loss, tissue breakdown and injury, resistance to
fatigue.
Fuel supply: during prolonged physical activity the stores of muscle glycogen become
exhausted and energy is obtained from other fuels supplied via the bloodstream. These
include glucose obtained from glycogen that is stored in the liver, fats, and chemicals
derived from the breakdown of protein. The release of these substances is controlled by
a complex series of hormones that match the supply of fuel to the demands of the
muscles. The system is not yet fully understood but it appears that training leads to
changes in the hormonal balance during exercise. Diet has an important influence on
the availability of fuels.
Cardiovascular Function: During prolonged exercise there is a gradual decline in the
subject’s stroke volume and a corresponding increase in heart rate. It is not known for
certain whether this is due to fatigue of the heart muscle, or to other causes. Maher et
al., (1978) suggest that it is probably due to changes occurring in the circulation which
lead to a pooling of blood and a decrease in the venous return to the heart.
Temperature regulation: Physical activity leads to a massive generation of heat. When
working hard an athlete produces about as much heat as a one bar electric fire. If steps
were not taken to secure the removal of this heat a fatal rise in body temperature would
rapidly occur. One of the constraints upon long term endurance is the ability to maintain
body temperature at a normal level.
There are two principle mechanisms for heat loss. Large quantities of blood are
diverted to the skin where energy is lost from the body by convection, conduction and
radiation. This process requires the diversion of blood away from the working muscles
so that their oxygen supply is reduced. This results in a corresponding drop in work
output. The other mechanism involves the production of sweat which evaporates, taking
heat away from the body. The latter process is more efficient in that it involves the
diversion of less blood away from working muscle. Endurance training appears to
reduce the temperature at which seating begins so that more of the cardiac output is
reserved for the transport of oxygen to the tissues. A similar but more pronounced effect
occurs in the process of acclimatization to a hot environment. Sweat consists of water
and certain salts. These are obtained from plasma, the watery part of blood. Thus
sweating results in a reduction in blood volume and a loss of electrolytes from the body.
If much water is lost, venous return and cardiac output are compromised and the blood
supply to muscle is reduced. When the subject becomes dehydrated sweating is
reduced and eventually stops altogether. Body temperature then rises and the individual
succumbs to heat stroke. There is an increased risk of heat stroke in children and old
people. During long periods of activity fluid losses should be replaced as they occur and
the athlete obviously should not begin the activity in a state of partial dehydration. Other
ways in which the athlete can minimize the problem of the heat dissipation are through
endurance training, acclimatization to heat, and wearing the minimum of clothing
appropriate to the activity, natural fibers generally allow for better evaporation of sweat.
When the relative humidity is high, the evaporation of sweat is reduced. If the
environmental temperature is also high heat cannot be lost from the body by conduction
or convection and any form of prolonged activity will inevitably lead to heat stroke.
Prolonged exercise may also be limited by several other factors. Fatigue in the nervous
system is a likely candidate. This is not meant to imply that the individual simply stops
trying. Changes in the function of the nervous system may prevent the activity being
continued or indicate that it must take place at a considerably reduced rate.
It is likely that tissue damage also has an important effect. Enzymes and other
chemicals leak from muscle, and this may be responsible for a decline in power output
with time. Strenuous exercise can increase the urinary excretion of protein up to one
hundred times, some of this may be due to simple leakage, but there is evidence that
tissue breakdown also occurs.
Training
Adaptation
If you regularly take your mini up the motorway at top speed one of two things
will eventually happen. The car will either expire in a noisy disintegration of half shafts,
big ends and cylinder head gasket, or the top speed will gradually decline as the engine
loses its tune and begins to wear. If you run regularly at top speed yourself the result is
likely to be different. A catastrophic disintegration is still possible but provided you
remain intact your top speed will slowly increase. This improvement is due to the effects
of training.
The human body differs from a mechanical engine in that it can sometimes adapt
to certain conditions. In this respect it is like a thermostatically controlled central heating
system which responds to cold weather by producing more heat, in other ways the body
is different and much more complex. An appreciation of the process of adaptation is
essential to an understanding of the effects of training.
The body responds only to certain types of stimuli. Weight lifting leads to the
development of larger muscles, and running produces a greater stroke volume of the
heart. But high jumping does not lead to an increase in leg length or interval training to a
higher maximum heart rate, although both these changes would be advantageous. They
do not occur because the body has no biological and physiological adaptations that
occur during training.
Overload
A training effect usually occurs when a part of the body is worked harder than
normal. The situation is often referred to a overload. Biological changes then occur and
endurance fitness or strength is increased. In general terms the size of the training
effect depends upon the degree of overload. If the muscles are used to raise weights
only slightly heavier than those normally lifted, the training effect is small. If heavier
weights are used, strength gains are more rapid.
There is a definite intensity of effort below which no training effect occurs. This
varies from person to person depending mainly upon the individual’s initial capacity.
If the person can lift 100 kg with a particular muscle group, a moderate training
effect is produced if he trains with 50 percent of this weight. If he trains with 75 kg the
gains in strength are larger. There is no significant training effect when very small
weights are lifted.
As the training proceeds the individual becomes stronger and 75 kg is no longer
75 per cent of his maximum lift. He will now need to train with a heavier weight if the
strength gains are to continue at the same rate as before.
The situation with other aspects of fitness is similar. As the individual increased
his fitness the absolute intensity of the exercise must be increased correspondingly in
order to maintain the overload.
Specificity The effects of training are confined to those systems, or parts of systems,
actually subject to overload. Thus, running does little or nothing to improve strength,
neither does weight lifting normally increase flexibility. Furthermore, strength training will
affect only the muscles actually involved in the exercise and the gains may be confined
to the movements that occur during training. After isometric exercise increases in
strength may be confined to the joint angles used during contraction and there may be
little or no increase in the capacity for isotonic work. Increases in anaerobic endurance,
due to changes in the concentration of high energy phosphate compounds and
associated enzymes, are also confined to the muscles actually trained. Likewise, gains
in flexibility occur only in the joints that are actually exercised. Cardiovascular fitness is
slightly more general in that the heart and major blood vessels service all the tissues,
but even here there is a great deal of specificity because training produces biochemical
changes in the muscles that are active, and capillary density is also increased. All types
of aerobic training lead to similar changes in blood volume and cardiac function, but the
local changes are confined to the trained muscles and exercise involving running will
not lead to an optimum improvement in the oxygen uptake during swimming where a
different set of muscles is involved.
As a general principle it is an advantage if the athlete can train in a manner that
simulates his competitive activity as closely as possible. Overload can be obtained by
making the activity a little more difficult.
It may be necessary to remind the sportsman that the specificity of training is
determined by the biochemistry of his own cells, not by his coach or the editor of his
favorite athletic magazine. An exercise may appear to be specific to a particular
manoeuvre, but that is no guarantee that it is of any value as a method of training. The
only really satisfactory way of evaluating a new conditioning procedure is by means of a
carefully controlled experimental study which includes an examination of the
biochemical changes. A knowledge of some of the principles of training physiology will
help the athlete to avoid advice that is unsound, even though it may be well intentioned.
Cross-Transfer
Despite the remarks of the previous section some cross transfer effects of
training do occur. This is because the different organs and tissues of the body are not
entirely separate and the effects of a particular type of training will not be exclusively
confined to one part of the body. Also, it is difficult to overload one area of the body
without putting some extra stress on other parts. Endurance running is not a good
method of developing the strength of the legs. However, an individual who undertakes
this exercise regularly may develop greater leg strength than a person who takes no
exercise at all.
The term cross transfer is commonly applied to the strength gains occurring in
one limb when the opposite one is trained. This phenomenon was first described in
1894. In a fairly typical study it was found that the untrained arm increased in strength
by 8.9 per cent following a programme of training that produced a 12.6 per cent
increase in the trained arm. The effect is usually attributed to motor impulses arriving at
the muscles of the inactive as well as the exercising limb. These may cause isometric
contractions in the muscles of the limb which is not being trained. The cross transfer
effects of training are usually much less significant than the primary result. For optimum
gains in fitness it is essential that training programmes are tailored to the aspects of
fitness which need to be developed.
Reversal
The effects of training are not permanent and when physical activity is
discontinued fitness drops towards the pre training level. The regression is usually less
rapid than the initial increase and a given level of fitness can often be retained with a
much lower level of training than was needed for its development. Differences in the
level of activity between individuals make it difficult to quantify the rate of reversal once
training has stopped. After short training programmes strength seems to be lost at a
rate of 0.3 -1 per cent of the gains each week, that is, if the individual resumes his
normal pre training activity. If the limb is totally immobilized the losses may be up to 5
per cent per day. This was difference illustrates the importance of the level of post
training activity on the retention of strength. Berger (1965) has shown that one set of
maximum contractions per week is enough to maintain strength and may even lead to
further gains. With a normal level of activity losses are often small in the first week. After
this there is a more rapid decline for 4-6 weeks, then the losses become more gradual.
Endurance fitness also declines when appropriate training is stopped. The
decline is gradual and the higher the level that is achieved through training the longer
the effects continue. Smith and Stransky (1976) found that an 8 per cent gain, achieved
over 7 weeks, disappeared 7 weeks after training was stopped. In another study 10-14
per cent gains in Vo2 max were reversed after 7 weeks (Penderson and Jorgensen
1978). A group of champion oarsmen retained 82 per cent of their maximum oxygen
intake 18 months after training had stopped (Hagermann et al., 1975). This suggests
that they had probably retained about half the gains achieved through endurance
training.
But even very high levels of fitness eventually decline. A group of champion
middle distance athletes, whose maximum oxygen uptake was once 41 per cent above
average, were only 14 per cent above average 25 years later. Most of these men were
still doing some running. The Vo2 max of two who had become sedentary was below
the average for their age group. the study again demonstrates the influence of post
training activity on the rate of decline of fitness.
The rate of decline is normally lower than the rate of increase but isw influenced
by the post training activity level. The decline can often be halted by quite small
amounts of further training. With a normal level of activity a fit individual (subject A) will
maintain some of his gains for many weeks or months. When the gains due to training
are small (subject B), they are likely to disappear in a short time. The aspects of fitness
that are acquired slowly are generally retained for the longest period. Structural
changes in muscle will persist for many months, perhaps even years, while functional
changes and increases in blood volume are reversed more quickly. Thus, it appears
that the structural aspects of endurance fitness can be built up over a number of years,
although the functional part will still be influenced by the state of training at a given time.
It is known that gains of 15-20 per cent can be brought about relatively quickly while
larger increases take much longer to occur. Structural changes in muscle, due to
strength training, also persist for a considerable time. Very high levels of strength must
be acquired over a number of years and are then well retained.
Interference
Hickson (1980) has recently investigated the effects of training for strength and
aerobic endurance simultaneously. Increases in aerobic capacity occurred at the same
rate as in subjects who undertook this kind of training alone, but gains in strength were
significantly less than in a group undertaking only weight training. Hickson concludes
that endurance training interferes with strength training.
Achievements through training
The degree of achievements of an individual through training is determined by
the opportunities available and the genetic endowment of the individual. The effects of
training have been most widely studied in relation to aerobic capacity. The maximum
possible improvement for a sedentary individual appears to be between 25 and 35 per
cent, considerably less for someone who is already semi trained.
Factors which affect training
The rate of improvement in fitness may be influenced by several factors,
including; the initial level of fitness; the age, sex and nutritional status of the individual;
the mode, frequency, intensity and duration of training; the genetic endowment of the
individual.
Initial level of fitness
The initial level of fitness has an important influence on the gains likely to be
obtained through training. For example pre and post training scores of a group of 16
schoolboys who undertook the same programme of endurance training were observed.
The programme consisted of 200 m interval running and was carefully supervised so
that each individual undertook exactly the same amount of exercise. The subjects with
the lowest pre training scores increased their physical working capacity while those who
were fittest at the start of the study showed no improvement. This is because the
training did not produce an overload in the fitter subjects who had undertaken other
types of endurance training previously. Even when overload does occur, increases are
usually slower in subjects who have already undertaken some training. The influence of
initial level of fitness on the rate of increase often causes difficulties in interpreting the
results of training programs. If you devise a new type of endurance programme and test
it on discharged hospital patients you will probably get spectacular results. Many of the
claims for instant fitness programmes are based on just this type of study. They usually
give disappointing results when used with sportsmen who are already in good condition.
Intensity, duration, frequency
The intensity of training must be sufficient to produce overload otherwise no
gains in fitness occur. When overload has been reached the training effect appears to
depend upon a combination of intensity and duration, provided the latter is neither very
short nor very long. Many older studies appeared to overestimate the contribution of
intensity. Some recent investigations suggest that the two factors may play a more
equal part.
The frequency of training also seems to have a general effect. Small gains in
most components of fitness have been noted following one training session per week.
Two or three sessions per week normally produce much more significant increases, and
are usually recommended at the start of training programme. Raising the number to four
or five may lead to a further improvement, but this does not always occur. Where there
are three or four training sessions per week it is usually recommended that they take
place on alternate days. Many authors suggest that training on consecutive days is less
effective. Only one systematic investigation of this proposition is known. Moffatt et al.
(1977) compared the effects of endurance training on three consecutive days with the
same training carried out on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. They found no difference
in the gains in maximum oxygen uptake and conclude that the placement of tri weekly
training sessions is unimportant.
Age
The effects of a programme of training may be influenced by the subject’s age
and developmental status. A number of studies have failed to detect any increase in the
maximum oxygen uptake per kilogram of body weight of young schoolboys following
endurance training (Sprynarova 1966; Ekblom 1969; Cumming et al., 1969; Daniels and
Oldbridge 1971; Hamilton and Andrews 1976; Daniels et al., 1978a). This has not been
a completely universal finding (Eriksson 1969; Shephard 1977) but it is clear that up to
the end of puberty the effects of training are much less marked. The physical
capabilities of children appear to be determined primarily by considerations of size, and
growth is a more important influence than training. In a study by Weber et al., (1976) it
was found that a group of 16 year olds responded to training but 13 year olds, who were
growing rapidly, did not. A group of 10 years olds responded to a small extent. There is
little evidence to support the idea that training has a particularly marked and log term
effect in the young. In fact, the opposite is nearer the truth.
In children and adolescents both strength and aerobic capacity are strongly
influenced by size (Watson and O’Donovan 1977a; Davies et al., 1972). As age
increases this relationship gradually declines and the effects of training become more
significant. It was once thought that training had a reduced effect as the subject aged.
More studies shows that this is not the case, and theat endurance training produces a
similar percentage increase in aerobic capacity in individuals aged 50-80 as in younger
subjects ( De Vries 1970; Adams and De Vries 1973; Suominen et al., 1977).
Warm Up
A period of preparatory activity undertaken before the start of a race or match is
known as a warm up. A war up of an appropriate nature normally enhances physical
performance by increasing:
1. Joint mobility and flexibility
2. The power output available from muscles
3. Coordination and
4. The energy available from aerobic metabolism at the start of activity so that less
energy is derived from the production of lactic acid.
The susceptibility to injury is also reduced. These effects are derived from different
types of warm up and individuals sometimes show a variable response. These points
are considered as below-
Flexibility
A short period of light stretching exercise is capable of increasing flexibility,
presumably by its effect upon the length and suppleness of muscle and other tissues.
This type of warm up should be undertaken by everyone about to engage in physical
activity.
Power Output
The power output of a muscle is increased when its temperature is raised
(Binkhorst et al., 1977). The effect probably occurs for three reasons:
1. Muscle viscosity is reduced
2. The speed of conduction of impulses by nerves is increased and
3. The rate of chemical reactions is increased.
It is necessary to raise muscle temperature by about 2 degree before these
effects become significant. A fairly strenuous warm up lasting several minutes is
therefore required in order to optimize power out put.
Coordination
Coordination improves after a few minutes of practice. When an activity involves
fine motor skills these should be rehearsed during the period of warm up.
Aerobic Metabolism
An adequate warm up increases the rate of aerobic metabolism at the start of
exercise. This has the effect of decreasing the contribution of anaerobic processes,
thereby minimizing the accumulation of lactic acid.
1.3 Statement of the Problem
The children living in Adivasi (Tribal) areas are mostly suffering from malnutrition
due to the lack of knowledge and insufficient facilities. In addition, Census of India, 2001
(Govt. of India Report, 2005) states that the tribal population of India is over eighty
four million and it represent 8.2% of its total population. Numerous research reports on
diverse tribal populations living in different parts of India have found that the tribal are
socially and economically disadvantaged (Basu; 1993; Singh and Rajyalakshmi; 1993)
and nutritionally deficient (Singh et al., 1987). Such a situation may bring down their
overall level of health related fitness. Moreover, such an environment deficient nutrition
seems to be disadvantageous for memory power which is required for school education.
Amazingly, in India, no such information is available so far in this direction.
Therefore, it is necessary that for all-round development of the Adivasi (Tribal)
students –the basic components of health and fitness be stressed upon. As yoga
supports for improving health related fitness of civilized children, its similar role for
Adivasi children is assumed to be possible. Thus, the present study “Effect of Yoga
Practices and Physical Exercises on Health Related Fitness and Concentration of
Adivasi School Students” has an imminent need and hence undertaken.
1.4 Problem and its Relevance
India is in second position on the planet in respect to population, with an
expected 1.1 billion inhabitants. Out of which approximately ninety million people are
from scheduled tribes or Adivasis. These people live in various states of India and the
population in various states is significantly different. It has been seen that there is
persistent impoverishment, lack of education, hunger, deficiency of safe drinking water
and poor living conditions (Basu, 2000).
Furthermore, Shils (1999) seen that though the energy intake of adivasi children
was according to the guidelines of ICMR RDA they showed significantly lower body
mass index. However, significantly larger portion of them of them were malnourished. It
was also revealed by Wills et al., (2004) that most of the adivasi people are deprived of
facilities to improve health (Sen, 1999). There are inadequate research studies on
health in adivasi communities (Stephens et al., 2005). The research studies across the
globe shows that there is range of problems in adivasi communities like mortality
(Bramley et al., 2004), disease (Anand et al., 2001), health behaviours (Frank et al.,
2000), and health care (Finger, 2003).
The reviews presented above indicates that adivasi communities are deprived of
health facilities therefore, the researcher of present study intends to examine the
efficiency of yogic practices and physical training on physical fitness and concentration
of adivasi school students. As to date, a huge number of publications are existing,
studying various aspects of yoga in health and disease, this makes a strong base that
yoga may be of immense use to rehabilitate in promoting the positive health at physical,
mental, social and spiritual levels among the adivasi school students.
1.5 Objectives of the Study
Following objectives were kept in perspective while planning this research study:
• To assess health related physical fitness and concentration levels of the Adivasi
school children.
• To develop appropriate programmes of Yoga and Physical exercises, keeping in
view the attributes of co-ordination between health and related fitness.
• To see the efficacy of chosen yogic exercises and physical exercises training
programmes on physical fitness and concentration of Adivasi children.
• To suggest the usefulness of yoga practices especially for the children of Adivasi
area (Tribal area).
1.6 Hypotheses
After reviewing the literature and related research studies, it has been
hypothesized that-
HO1: The status of health related fitness of Adivasi area school students may not be
poor than other students.
HO2: Yoga intervention may not help to improve all the factors of health related fitness
of the school students belonging to the Adivasi (Tribal) areas.
HO3 Yoga intervention may not help to improve concentration levels of school students
belonging to the Adivasi (Tribal) areas.
1.7 Delimitation of the Study
Since the study has large scope for different age groups. It is, therefore, decided
to delimit the study as follows:
• This study was delimited for male students of the age group of 11 to 14 years
from Nanded District Adivasi area school.
• The subjects participated in this study were from low- income category, i. e.
below poverty level, which affects their standard of living and general health
standard.
1.8 Limitations of the Study While conducting the experiment, the present investigator has recorded some
drawbacks/limitations as follows:
o The subjects for the study were randomly selected from Adivasi Ashram School
of Nanded district, age ranged from 11 to 14 years. Factors such as geographical
locations, nutrition and diet, recreational activities and other such factors that
might influence subjects variedly and affect this experimental study, could not be
controlled by the research scholar.
o The researcher could not control psychological factors influencing the mind of the
subject during the conduct of this study.
o With paucity of time and limited financial resources, the researcher has to
conduct this research. Therefore, collection of large sample was not possible.
This might have affected the accuracy of the results.
1.9 Scope of the Study
The study has a very wide scope because it has been designed in such a way
that it will help other researchers, scholars, sports scientists, physical education teacher
and government to carry out various health related education programmes for the
development of Adivasi students.
1.10 Operational Definitions of the Term used
Yoga
The union of universal Self and individual self is Yoga. This is an applied science
and a systematic lifestyle for human. It’s aim is to develop whole some personality.
According to Maharshi Patanjali, yoga has eight limbs viz., yama, niyama, asana,
pranayama, pratyahara, dharana, dhyana and Samadhi. However, Hatha yoga defines
yoga with asana, pranayama, kriya and mudra.
Physical Exercise
Physical exercise is defined as any physical as well as muscular activity, where
body movement is done systematically, scientifically with regularly in involving one’s
mind, with a purpose to improve, maintain or to preserve and protect health, physical as
well as motor fitness of the body.
Health Related Physical Fitness
According to AAHPERD (American Alliance for Health, Physical Education,
Recreation and Dance), health related physical fitness can be viewed as physical
fitness having a multifaceted continuum extending from optimal abilities in all aspect of
life, to severely limiting disease and dysfunction.
Components of Health Related Physical Fitness
1) Abdominal Muscle Strength
Ability of exerting pressure in one pull; it is the ability of muscle or group to
maintain a sub maximal contraction over a period of time related to abdominal muscles.
2) Cardiovascular Endurance
It is also referred to as cardio respiratory endurance, which is a kind of
physiological fitness demonstrated through an adjustment of the heart and lungs to
prolonged physical exertion.
3) Flexibility
It is the range of movement of body parts and ligaments around joint and spinal
column.
4) Body Fat
Fat is essential for a body and when depleted it produces maximal energy for
muscular function. However, excessive deposition of fat in the body is harmful. The
amount of body fat (adipose tissue) that is stored is determined by two factors:
1) The number of fat storing or adiposities; and
2) The size or capacity of the adiposities.
Adivasi
The term Adivasi is coined from two words i.e. Adi and Vasi. The term Adi means
earlier and vasi means resident. These people are also known as tribals and this term
came into existence after the independence of India..
1.11 Significance of the Study
Adivasi students are always deprived of health and education programmes. It is
assumed that they have low level of physical fitness; the result of this study may be of
immense use in considering the following benefits:
• This study may be helpful for the promotion of health related fitness and
concentration of Adivasi area school students.
• Physical education teacher will be getting readymade training materials and
strategy to develop the fitness programme useful for the students of Adivasi area.
• This study may suggest the schedules of Yoga practices and physical exercises
by which the students of Adivasi areas will be benefited.