**2. Elementary methodology for monitoring the achieved level of strength and overall endurance of students**

Based on objective and subjective methods of assessing physical activity indicators, a method for monitoring the level of strength and overall endurance was developed and tested. The results and opinions obtained during the pedagogical experiment suggest that the proposed technology is suitable for periodic use, and user satisfaction is significantly high. It is proved that the application of the methodology is possible both for expanding the practical skills of university students, and for objective assessment of the physical activity of amateur athletes [4, 5].

The underwritten section discusses the patterns of aging of the human body, the decrease in the amount of physical activity due to the specifics of modern labor activity, and the mechanisms of its negative impact on the body. The correlation between physical activity and the risks of developing cardiovascular diseases is substantiated and shown. The methods of preventing the processes of age-related changes by elementary means of physical activity are given [6].

Modern European and Russian society has changed a large number of life priorities, which were symbols of the outgoing XX century. Over the past 20–25 years, many countries have experienced significant changes in many areas of life: politics, economy, education, medicine, etc. The worldview and world perception of both an individual and entire social groups of the population have changed. Both moral guidelines and life values have changed. In the most developed European countries, the emphasis in mass sports was placed in such a way as to involve the general population in regular classes in sports clubs and sections, and to fight hypodynamia and hypokinesia everywhere [7, 8].

As a universal and most common means of combating the above-mentioned risks, modern humanity recognizes such types of physical activity as running, Nordic walking and cycling. And although the number of participants in the most

#### *Basic Tools and Techniques for Assessing Strength and General Endurance DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.96993*

popular running events in Europe in 2019 decreased by 13% and amounted to 7.9 million people compared to 2016 (then-9.1 million), they still remain the largest community of physical activity enthusiasts [9]. At the same time, in the countries of the Asian region and in Russia, the number of runners continues to grow to this day. There are more fans of running, but they have become slower to run their distances. To a greater extent, this applies to men. In 1986, the average finishing time for the marathon distance was 3:52:35. For today, this result is 4:32:49. The difference in the average finishing time increased by 40 minutes and 14 seconds. At the same time, the age of modern runners has also changed significantly. In 1986, their average age was 35.2 years, and in 2018–2039.3 years. The peculiarities of some running disciplines are that the amateur runners from Spain overcome marathon distance faster than other Europeans, and the Russians are the best at running half marathon distance. The Swiss and the Ukrainians are the leaders in the distances of 10 and 5 km, respectively. For the first time in history, the number of female runners exceeded the number of men. In 2018, the share of women accounted for 50.24% of all participants. In the last 5 years, there has been a steady growth trend in sports tourism. The motivation to participate in competitions has also changed. Now people are more concerned about physical, social, or psychological motivations rather than sporting achievements. This partly explains why people began to travel more, began to run more slowly. This is the answer to the question why the number of people who want to celebrate the achievement of a certain age milestone (30, 40, 50 years) participating in the marathon is less today than it was 15 and 30 years ago [10].

Consider as an example the Russian student population, as a quite significant social group, which in Soviet times, and today, is the object of close attention of specialists in various fields including doctors, psychologists, specialists in physical culture.

Over the past 25–30 years, an alarming pattern of deterioration in the health of young people and their overall physical development has been confirmed. This is due not only to the changes that have occurred in the economy, ecology, working conditions and everyday life of the Russian population, but also to the devaluation of the health and educational functions of physical culture in the society, which was reflected by the lack of harmonious personal development of many young men and women. The health of the nation still raises concerns due to the significant amounts of tobacco, alcohol, and drug use, as well as the lack of motor activity of young people. Positive changes are observed, but still not cardinal [1, 5, 11–13].

In 2018, students consumed 14.7% less alcohol than in 2019. According to the average data of official statistics and selective public opinion polls, 60.2% of young men and 21.7% of girls smoked about 10 cigarettes a day in 2018. In comparison with the beginning of the 2000s, the percentage of smokers among young students decreased from 62% to 60.5%, but in girls, on the contrary, an increase was recorded from 20% to 21.7%. A sociological survey conducted by RPORC (Russian public opinion research center) in August 2018 showed that 35% of the surveyed students living in megacities smoke in general. Surveys of the period 2013–2018 showed a stable share of smokers about 41% of the total number of students [3, 14].

If in 2016 only 39% of the surveyed students stated that they regularly play sports, then by the end of 2019, this figure reaches more than 52%. But at the same time, only 22% of them are engaged in physical culture every day.

As expected, the most active in this regard is the student youth living in megacities. More than 45% of the young people surveyed said that they regularly play sports. While only 26% of middle-aged people living in large cities turned out to be "regular" physical education students.

The most popular type of daily physical activity in Russia is fitness. 43% of respondents said that they do it, 15% of respondents said that they prefer athletics, 14% - swimming.

The main reason why residents of large cities do not engage in physical culture or sports is the lack of time. This was the response of 37% of respondents, 28% said that they do not need to exercise, and 22% said that they simply do not have the willpower to force themselves to exercise regularly.

Thus, over the past 8–10 years, the number of residents actively engaged in sports in Russia has significantly increased. And it is also important that only 30% of respondents believe that mass sports are poorly developed in Russia.

In modern society, the problems of forming the needs of university students in a healthy lifestyle occupy key positions, since students are the main reserve and a significant part of the labor resources of the national economy, and the state of health of students today is public health, the health of the nation in 10, 20, 30 years, as noted by a number of researchers, for example, by N. A. Aghajanyan, M. Ya. Vilensky, A. G. Shchedrina, etc. [1, 15].

These facts are extremely important for people to understand the most productive period of a person's life – a representative of middle age. Sociological research has shown that only 9% of respondents regularly engage in physical culture and sports, 17% of them do it on an occasional basis, and 18% - very rarely.

Physical activity is a multi-faceted and capacious concept. And one of the sharp edges of its implementation is the problem of building an optimal, individualized mode of physical activity, taking into account not the calendar, but the biological age. Otherwise, there is a great possibility of obtaining a negative effect and simply discrediting the principle itself.

With an overdose of physical activity in age-related individuals, overload manifests itself in an exacerbation of coronary insufficiency, blood pressure becomes unstable, and arrhythmia manifests itself. That is why medical, pedagogical and self-control should determine the individual dose of physical activity [6].

In countries with developed economies, the mortality rate from circulatory diseases by a large margin occupies a leading position among other causes of death and is 52%. Over the past half-century, this number has undergone a 5–6-fold increase.

As a result of large-scale studies conducted under the auspices of the World Health Organization (WHO) on large populations in different countries of the world, scientists have identified the main causes (risk factors) of the rapid growth of cardiovascular diseases and mortality from them. The factors were conditionally divided into two groups: primary, exogenous, depending on the lifestyle and environmental conditions; secondary, endogenous – pathological changes in the body that develop under the influence of external factors.

The leaders of the first group include: insufficient physical activity (inactivity) and excessive calorie intake (overeating). In the second: smoking, neuropsychiatric overexertion (stress) and alcohol abuse.

The predominant role of inactivity and overeating in the development of atherosclerosis and coronary heart disease (CHD) is confirmed by numerous studies conducted in different countries on different continents. It was found that in the countries of Africa and South-East Asia, where the population lacks food and the rhythm of life is characterized by relatively high physical activity, these diseases are almost not found [16]. For example, Ugandans, even in old age, are more likely to die from infectious diseases, but not from diseases of the respiratory system and blood circulation. A survey of representatives of the Maoban tribe in South Sudan showed that they do not have CHD at all, the blood pressure level is the same at 15 and 75 years old and is on average 115/70, the cholesterol content in the blood is low and averages about 3.47 mmol/l.

*Basic Tools and Techniques for Assessing Strength and General Endurance DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.96993*


**Table 1.**

*The relationship between physical activity during non-working hours and mortality per 1000 people, in %.*

The role of lifestyle in the development of atherosclerosis confirms the following fact. As a result of emigration to economically prosperous countries, experiencing changes in the regime and structure of nutrition, changes in the mode of motor activity, representatives of the African continent are equally affected by diseases of the cardiovascular system, as well as the indigenous population. Moreover, for example, in the United States, the black population has the highest percentage of CHD among the rest of the American population.

A strong relation between physical activity during non-working hours and mortality is shown in the **Table 1**.

The table shows that among people with moderate physical activity, the mortality rate is 2 times lower than in people who lead a predominantly sedentary lifestyle, and in the group with high physical activity, there is no such relationship at all.

The 16-year follow-up of Harvard University graduates revealed that the mortality rate from CHD was 2 times lower in those graduates who were among those who regularly engaged in physical exercise and led an active lifestyle than in those whose life was characterized by a hypodynamic regime.

Dr. Ralph Paffenbarger, as a result of many years of research, has established an interesting fact: the preventive effect against CHD is most effectively provided by physical activity during non-working hours (intensity-7.5 kcal/min, energy consumption per week-at least 2000 kcal) [6].

When observing 36,000 people for 10 years, an American scientist found that only physical activity with an intensity higher than 7.5 kcal/min (long-distance running) had a protective effect, and the usual professional activity in modern production does not have such a protective anti-coronary effect. This fact allows us to conclude that only special wellness programs performed in their spare time are an effective preventive tool to combat atherosclerosis and coronary heart disease. The nature of the loads performed is also of great importance. These should be loads associated with the manifestation of general endurance and sufficiently long in time, the criterion of which is the value of the maximum oxygen consumption.

Thus, individually established modes of physical activity performed in their spare time (in the form of cyclic aerobic exercises aimed at developing overall endurance and increasing the level of maximum oxygen consumption) compensate for the lack of energy expenditure in most representatives of modern society. This avoids the negative effects of inactivity and is a natural, widely available means of promoting and maintaining health, as well as preventing cardiovascular diseases.

Mandatory elements of determining the regime of physical activity is the passage of medical and pedagogical control.
