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      Long term adaptations to training

      I can describe the long-term effects of exercise on my body.

      Lesson 3 of 3
      New
      New
      • Year 10
      • OCR

      Long term adaptations to training

      I can describe the long-term effects of exercise on my body.

      Lesson details

      Key learning points

      1. Long-term effects of exercise refer to the benefits/changes in health and fitness after a period of regular training.
      2. Regular exercise leads to increased bone, muscle and joint strength.
      3. Regular exercise leads to cardiac hypertrophy and increased oxygen carrying capacity of the blood.
      4. Regular exercise leads to stronger respiratory muscles and increased lung volumes.
      5. The body is able to recover faster from exercise after a period of training.

      Keywords

      • Long term effects of exercise - the effects on our body of months and/or years of regular physical activity

      • Hypertrophy - the increase in size of skeletal or cardiac muscle

      • Fatigue - muscle tiredness when the body has a lack of energy

      • Capillarisation - the development of blood capillaries in the body which increases through long term effects of exercise

      Common misconception

      Cardio-respiratory benefits only come from endurance training and muscle growth only comes from weight training.

      Any training that regularly puts the bodily systems under more strain than they are in normal life will lead to long term benefits to the muscular, cardiovascular and respiratory systems. However, training intensity will effect results.

      Watching a recent sports montage from the Olympics, or similar, is a great motivational start to discussions about what the human body is capable of with dedicated training.
      Teacher tip

      Equipment

      Licence

      This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2026), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

      Lesson video

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      Prior knowledge starter quiz

      6 Questions

      Q1.
      Muscle temperature when you start to exercise.

      Correct Answer: increases, increase

      Q2.
      Which of the following statements is correct as a response to a gentle jog?

      Heart rate keeps going up.
      Heart rate remains at resting levels.
      Correct answer: Heart rate plateaus.
      Heart rate rises quickly to 220 minus your age.

      Q3.
      Exercising at a higher intensity produces more in the muscles.

      Correct Answer: lactic acid, lactate

      Q4.
      is caused if too much lactic acid builds up in the muscles during exercise.

      Correct Answer: fatigue

      Q5.
      Match the following short term responses of exercise to the appropriate body system.

      Correct Answer:increased heart rate,cardiac system

      cardiac system

      Correct Answer:increased blood flow to muscles,vascular system

      vascular system

      Correct Answer:increased breathing rate,respiratory system

      respiratory system

      Correct Answer:increased muscle temperature,muscular system

      muscular system

      Correct Answer:increased elasticity of ligaments,skeletal system

      skeletal system

      Q6.
      Gaseous exchange is the of oxygen into the body and carbon dioxide out as these substances move from high concentration/pressure to lower concentration/pressure.

      Correct Answer: diffusion, diffuse, transfer

      Assessment exit quiz

      6 Questions

      Q1.
      Which of the following are long term adaptations to regular training?

      Correct answer: decreased resting heart rate
      Correct answer: increased muscle mass
      Correct answer: stronger respiratory muscles
      Correct answer: improved ability to cope with lactic acid
      improved removal of oxygen from the body

      Q2.
      is the term used when muscle increases in size and strength.

      Correct Answer: hypertrophy, hyper trophy

      Q3.
      It takes at least weeks for regular training to result in long term changes to our body systems.

      Correct Answer: six, 6

      Q4.
      What does fatigue mean?

      increased heart muscle size and strength
      the growth of more alveoli
      Correct answer: muscle tiredness when the body has a lack of energy
      the impact of a sedentary lifestyle on body weight

      Q5.
      Resting heart rate following a period of endurance training.

      Correct Answer: decreases, decreasing, decrease

      Q6.
      Match up the following long term adaptations to the correct description.

      Correct Answer:increased muscular strength,an outcome of high intensity training with a heavy resistance

      an outcome of high intensity training with a heavy resistance

      Correct Answer:increased muscular endurance,an outcome of repeated muscular contractions over a prolonged period

      an outcome of repeated muscular contractions over a prolonged period

      Correct Answer:increased joint strength,ligaments and tendons become stronger

      ligaments and tendons become stronger

      Lesson appears in

      UnitPhysical education / Anatomy and physiology: the short and long term effects of exercise

      OCRPhysical education