Scouts learn to keep themselves healthy while working on the Personal Fitness merit badge. They explore nutrition and exercise. They develop an exercise plan and carry it out over 12 weeks. They also find out about careers related to personal fitness.
The Personal Fitness Merit Badge is required for the rank of Eagle.
Help with Answers for Personal Fitness Merit Badge Requirements
Find specific helps for some of the Personal Fitness merit badge requirements listed below. Some of these resources will just give the answers. Others will provide engaging ways for older Scouts to introduce these concepts to new Scouts.
Personal Fitness Merit Badge Requirement 1: Physical and Dental Exam
Do the following:
- Before completing requirements 2 through 9, have your health-care practitioner give you a physical examination, using the Scout medical examination form. Explain the following:
- Why physical exams are important
- Why preventive habits (such as exercising regularly) are important in maintaining good health, and how the use of tobacco products, alcohol, and other harmful substances can negatively affect your personal fitness
- Diseases that can be prevented and how
- The seven warning signs of cancer
- The youth risk factors that affect cardiovascular health in adulthood
- Have a dental examination. Get a statement saying that your teeth have been checked and cared for. Tell how to care for your teeth.
Requirement 1 Helps and Answers
Why Are Physical Exams Important?
- To learn about any possible problems you might not be aware of so they can be treated early
- To check your growth
- To provide an opportunity to ask questions about your health
- To learn how you can improve your health
Why Are Preventative Habits Important?
- To reduce the risk of obesity and diseases such as diabetes, heart disease, cancer, and stroke
- To make you feel better about yourself and improve self-esteem
Tobacco Risks
- Can cause lung, throat, and other cancers
- Increases risk of heart attack and stroke
- Is highly addictive
Alcohol Risks
- Impairs judgement and can lead to other risky behaviors
- Also impairs reflexes, vision, and hearing
- Associated with depression, stroke, cancer, liver disease
- Can directly lead to automobile accidents, which are the leading cause of death for 16 to 20 year olds
What Are Some Diseases which Can Be Prevented?
- Communicable diseases can be greatly reduced by good hand hygiene
- Many diseases such as measles and whooping cough can be prevented by immunization
- Good eating habits improve your body’s defenses against cold and flu as well as more serious diseases such as heart disease
Seven Warning Signs of Cancer
- Change in bowel or bladder habits
- A sore which does not heal
- Unusual bleeding in the stool or urine
- A thickening or lump in the breast tissue
- Indigestion or difficulty swallowing
- Obvious change in a mole
- Nagging cough or hoarseness
Youth Risk Factors for Cardiovascular Health
- Obesity
- Sex (males are at higher risk)
- High blood pressure
- High blood cholesterol
- Diabetes
- Smoking
- Lack of exercise
- Family history of heart disease
How to Care for Your Teeth
- Brush your teeth immediately after meals
- Floss regularly
- Avoid sweets between meals
- Eat a healthy diet
- Have regular dental checkups
Personal Fitness Merit Badge Requirement 2: What Personal Fitness Means
Explain to your merit badge counselor verbally or in writing what personal fitness means to you, including
- Reasons for being mentally, physically, socially, and spiritually fit
- Reasons for being fit in all components.
- What it means to be physically healthy
- What it means to be socially healthy
Requirement 2 Helps and Answers
Reasons for Being Fit
- Aspects of fitness work together
- Activities, exercise, diet, sleep, family life, religious involvement, and physical fitness impact mental and emotional fitness
- All types of fitness improve quality of life
- Fitness provides energy to do the activities we enjoy
- Developing a healthy fitness pattern continues throughout life
What Does It Mean to Be Mentally Healthy?
- Being able to express your feelings and emotions
- Not being controlled by anxiety
- Learning to communicate
- Understanding that ups and downs in life are temporary
What Does It Mean to Be Physically Healthy?
- Regular exercise
- Balanced diet
- Preventing disease through good habits and immunizations
- Maintaining a healthy weight
- Refusing to use alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs
- Getting enough sleep
What Does It Mean to Be Socially Healthy?
- Having good friends you can talk to and trust
- Developing social skills
- Dealing with peer pressure
- Growing in confidence
Personal Fitness Merit Badge Requirement 3: Health Habits
With your counselor, answer and discuss the following questions:
- Are you living in such a way that your risk of preventable diseases is minimized?
- Are you immunized and vaccinated according to the advice of your healthcare provider and the direction of your parent(s)/guardian(s)?
- Are you free from habits relating to poor nutrition and the use of alcohol, tobacco, drugs, and other practices that could be harmful to your health?
- What are the advantages to getting a full night’s sleep?
- Define a nutritious, balanced diet and why it is important.
- Do you participate in a regular exercise program or recreational activities?
- What are you doing to demonstrate your duty to God?
- Do you spend quality time with your family and friends in social and recreational activities?
- Do you support family activities and efforts to maintain a good home life?
- Do you carry out daily activities without noticeable effort? Do you have extra energy for other activities?
- Are you free from habits relating to poor nutrition and the use of alcohol, tobacco, drugs, and other practices that could be harmful to your health?
- Do you participate in a regular exercise program or recreational activities?
- Do you sleep well at night and wake up feeling ready to start the new day?
- Are you actively involved in the religious organization of your choice, and do you participate in its youth activities?
Requirement 3 Helps and Answers
Minimizing Preventable Diseases
- Being up to date on immunizations
- Eating a balanced diet
- Not using harmful substances
- Getting a full night’s sleep
- Exercising regularly
- Being emotionally, mentally, and spiritually healthy
Why Is a Full Night’s Sleep Important?
- Controls metabolism and weight
- Strengthens the heart and prevents cardiovascular disease
- Boosts the immune system
- Increases knowledge retention
- Helps with memory
Personal Fitness Merit Badge Requirement 4: Physical Fitness
Explain the following about physical fitness:
- The areas of physical fitness
- Your weakest and strongest area of physical fitness
- The need to have a balance in the four areas of physical fitness
- How a program like the President’s Council on Sports, Fitness & Nutrition can lead to lifelong healthful habits
- How the areas of personal fitness relate to the Scout Law and Scout Oath
Requirement 4 Helps and Answers
The Four Areas of Physical Fitness
- Body composition
- Flexibility
- Muscular strength and endurance
- Cardiovascular and pulmonary endurance
Why Have Balance?
Difference challenges require different types of fitness. Being well balanced in all areas helps you be ready for all sorts of activities. For example, a long hike will require endurance. Putting up a tent requires flexibility.
What Is SCOUTStrong?
The SCOUTStrong Presidential Active Lifestyle Award (PALA) Challenge will help your unit members add physical activity to their lifestyle, as well as help them improve their eating habits. Learn more.
How Do Areas of Personal Fitness Relate to the Scout Law?
- Physical Fitness: Helpful, thrifty, clean
- Mental Fitness: Obedient, cheerful, brave, reverent
- Social Fitness: Trustworthy, loyal, friendly, courteous, kind
How Do Areas of Personal Fitness Relate to the Scout Oath?
- Physical fitness: For duty to country and to be physically strong
- Mental Fitness: Duty to God and to be morally straight
- Social Fitness: To help other people and to be mentally awake
Personal Fitness Merit Badge Requirement 5: Nutrition
Explain the following:
- The importance of good nutrition
- What good nutrition means to you
- How good nutrition is related to the other components of personal fitness
- How to maintain a healthy weight
Requirement 5 Helps and Answers
What Is the Importance of Good Nutrition?
- Food is your body’s fuel, so give it good fuel
- Poor fuel leads to low energy, dehydration, weight gain, and illness
- Good fuel helps the body function and heal
How Is Good Nutrition Related to Other Components of Personal Fitness?
- Keeps your muscles strong and helps your body heal
- Gives you energy to do activities you enjoy with your friends
- Makes you feel good and improves emotional well being
Personal Fitness Merit Badge Requirement 6: Initial Fitness Tests
Before doing requirements 7 and 8:
- Complete the aerobic fitness, flexibility and muscular strength tests as described in the Personal Fitness merit badge pamphlet. Record your results and identify those areas where you feel you need to improve.
- Keep track of what you eat and drink for three days. Identify three healthy eating goals you want to work on.
Requirement 6 Helps and Answers
Aerobic Fitness Test
Record your performance on ONE of the following tests:
- Run/walk as far as you can as fast as you can in nine minutes OR
- Run/walk one mile as fast as you can
Flexibility Test
Using a sit-and-reach box constructed according to specifications shown below, make four repetitions and record the fourth reach. This last reach must be held steady for 15 seconds to qualify. (Remember to keep your knees down.)
How To Make a Sit and Reach Box
Personal Fitness Merit Badge Requirement 7: 12 Week Fitness Program
Outline a comprehensive 12-week physical fitness program using the results of your fitness tests. Be sure your program incorporates the endurance, intensity, and warm-up guidelines discussed in the Personal Fitness merit badge pamphlet. Before beginning your exercises, have the program approved by your counselor and parents.
Requirement 7 Helps and Answers
Build Muscle and Camaraderie with this Fitness Plan
These Scouts made a fitness plan which involves getting together every Saturday for exercises of their own choosing.
Personal Fitness Merit Badge Requirement 8: Fitness Log
Complete the physical fitness program you outlined in requirement 7. Keep a log of your fitness program activity (how long you exercised; how far you ran, swam, or biked; how many exercise repetitions you completed; your exercise heart rate; etc.). Keep a log of your weekly healthy eating goals. Repeat the aerobic fitness, muscular strength, and flexibility tests every four weeks and record your results. After the 12th week, repeat all of the required activities in each of the three test categories, record your results, and show improvement in each one. Discuss how well you met your healthy eating goals over these 12 weeks. Discuss the meaning and benefit of your experience, and describe your long-term plans regarding your personal fitness.
Requirement 8 Helps and Answers
Log Sheet for Personal Fitness Merit Badge
Requirement 8 for this badge include doing some fitness tests periodically and recording a fitness plan over a period of weeks. This worksheet will help you keep track.
Personal Fitness Merit Badge Requirement 9: Careers in Fitness
Find out about three career opportunities in personal fitness. Pick one and find out the education, training, and experience required for this profession. Discuss what you learned with your counselor, and explain why this profession might interest you.
Requirement 9 Helps and Answers
Some Careers in Fitness
- Dietician
- Sports Medicine
- Personal Trainer
- Physical Education Teacher
Resources
Get fit with these related ideas and achievements:
Related Achievements
- Tenderfoot Fitness Requirements
- Second Class Fitness Requirements
- First Class Fitness Requirements
- Physical Fitness Ranger Elective
Program Features
Program features help youth leaders plan a month’s worth of meetings and outings around a theme. These two program features will help troop members earn this badge.
- Fitness and Nutrition Program Feature
- Hiking Troop Program Feature
- COPE (Challenging Outdoor Personal Experience) Program Feature
- Cycling Troop Program Feature
Sports Drink Recipe
Save some money by making your own sports drink for these activities.
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