Associate Professor N.G. Proskuryakova
Tyumen State University, Tyumen

Keywords: fitness environment, All-Russian Physical Culture and Sports “Ready for Labour and Defence” (GTO) Complex, physical conditions.

Background. The All-Russian Physical Culture and Sports “Ready for Labour and Defence” (GTO) Complex reinstatement to encourage mass sports and physical culture, support patriotism and secure due succession of the popular physical education traditions was welcomed by majority of Russian people. However, there are still opponents to the initiative who well remember the past negative experience of enforcements and doctored records in the GTO system. We believe that it is critically important at this juncture to duly promote the GTO idea by a positive image of the renewed initiative being cultivated through the network of fitness centres using the relevant marketing, programmatic, informational, methodological, financial and technical supports in the process [6].

Objective of the study was to theoretically substantiate and practically test a model fitness environment to meet the physical training and sporting needs of people and make them fit for the GTO Complex tests.

Methods and structure of the study. The study was performed in Tyumen city at local fitness centres; subject to the study were 2031 people (aged 6 to 69 years) enjoying the fitness services on a regular basis and/ or engaged in other physical training, health improvement and sporting activities.

Study results and discussion. Fitness environment means herein, as provided by I.V. Manzheley [7, 8] the combination of spatial, material and social factors in the surrounding designed to encourage healthy lifestyles and individual physical and spiritual improvement efforts. In the context of the eco-psychology-driven approach, we consider the following elements of a fitness environment: subjects that mean the customers of the fitness services, coaches, administrators, service personnel etc.; spatial and material component that refers to the relevant surrounding assets including sport facilities, physical recreation sites, parks, public gardens etc.; social component including the relevant values, traditions, ideals, regulatory provisions, social interaction system etc.; and the technological component that implies the fibre-optic communication lines, software, marketing technologies, service range, training methodologies etc.

Theoretical and practical basis for the study was laid by the ideas of eco-psychology as to the active influences of environment and behavioural setting (R. Barker, E. Willems); subject’s activity in selecting the acceptable surrounding and mastering the ecological world (J. Gibson); key provisions of ontokinesiology on heterogeneity of a human motor potential [2] and kinesiology-based approach in education [5]; and the A.G. Asmolov’s idea of active mediation of individual motivations and semantic settings that implies that the individual “willing to reform the individual motivations and semantic settings must go beyond these semantic structures to change the activities that give rise to them …» [1]. It may be pertinent to note that the same idea provided a basis for the practical works and experience of A.S. Makarenko and V.A. Sukhomlinskiy.

Analysis of the current situation showed that there are more than 150 fitness centres (FC) in Tyumen, including 12% that may be ranked premium class ones, 27% as business class; and 61% as the middle class in terms of the quality and range of the services provided to the FC clients. The service quality was assessed with consideration for both the equipment and physical conditioning services – and the sanitary and hygienic condition of the service facilities (including the gyms, dressing rooms, bathrooms etc.); hospitality and serviceability of the service personnel (coaches, managers, cleaners etc.); and the extra services for convenience of the clients (cafeteria, spa-zone etc.). The fitness services were found to be in the highest demand by the age groups of 26 to 35 (32% of the clientele) and 36 to 45 (24%) year-olds, with women and men making up 54% and 46% of the clientele, respectively, the fact being explainable by the mature people striving for active physical activity to balance their generally sedentary lifestyles and to look fit and attractive (natural desire for mostly women) and to counter the negative age-biology-related factors and effects.

For the purposes of the GTO Complex implementation at three of the project fitness centres within one of the city networks, we established a Virtual Coordination Centre to design, facilitate, support and monitor the GTO Complex implementation project with an emphasis on the network cooperation of the different-class (premium, business, middle) fitness centres (see Figure 1 hereunder).

Figure 1. Model eco-dynamic fitness environment to help people get fit for the GTO Complex tests

Under the project design component of the initiative, we equipped the project fitness centres with fibre-optic communication system; and offered an online questioning form to the fitness centre clients to have their opinions on the client-friendliness, service quality and range, attitudes to the GTO Complex related service etc. Furthermore, we developed application computer software GTO Informational and Analytical System for the IBMPC-compatible hardware and for MS Windows XP/ Vista 7/8; the software taking 8.17 MB and protected by Certificate of Authorship #2015612698. The GTO Informational and Analytical System database covers every of the ХI classes of the GTO system and is applicable by any institution as a tool to record and report the GTO Complex tests; qualify the tested people; control the trainees’ progress in preparations for the GTO Complex tests; prioritize their progress for developing the deficient physical qualities; and rate efficiency of the coaching services. The software is designed to generate reports on the individual performance profiles (including the key performance rates; progress on a yearly basis; individual standings within the age group for every GTO test); profile group performance data for each of the GTO test exercise (with the group-specific mean arithmetic values and intra-group variations; numbers of the people who qualified or failed to qualify for the relevant class GTO badge – with the optional sample, date, units and percentage rates); corporate qualification reports (numbers of the people who qualified or failed to qualify for the relevant class GTO badge – with the optional sample, date, units and percentage rates for the relevant GTO class) [6].

Furthermore, we established a few GTO zones in yards and parks within a walking distance from the project fitness centres in the municipal areas (GTO camp, garden and park) equipped – on agreements with and with the active support from the local municipal authorities – with special training equipment (metal structures for practices, horizontal bars etc.) to encourage the local people get trained for the GTO Complex tests; constructed a few walking and cycling paths and tracks with convenient bicycle parking structures. In the project design component implementation process, we gave the top priority to the ecological compatibility, multifunctional design, symbolism and authenticity of the GTO zones [7].

The fitness centre clients’ activity facilitation component of the GTO project was designed to offer a few special programs (“Kilos-killer”, “Reset”, “Dacha fitness” and some others) and events (GTO Festival, “Fit-kid, get ready”, “Family GTO tests” etc.) to the visitors, and motivated them for participation by discounts on the FC services, free training days, hours and special promo actions. The coaches were encouraged to support the programs by bonuses depending on the numbers of permanent clients qualified for the GTO badges, the tests being performed twice per year during the GTO Festivals under the Autumn/Winter Health Days.

The project support component was designed along a few lines including the regulatory provisions; networking cooperation; equipping the GTO zones in yards and parks; staffing; marketing; social advertising line etc.; with the initiatives being harmonized with the FC staffing and personnel training policies and actions and new client services in the context of additional goals of the FC business. Under this project component, we offered a training course (for a group of 50 plus people) under the Individual and Group Training Technology Program with a special emphasis on the client’s motivations shaping skills; constructive cooperation skills; physical training and sport service marketing skills; and the modern physical conditioning technologies [4].

The monitoring component of the project implied the data on the FC clients’ attitudes to the GTO project and the physical fitness test data for every of the ХI GTO classes being collected, archived, analyzed and used to generate forecasts.

The 30-39 years-old FC respondents’ opinion polls (under the GTO Class VII test component) showed that 75.8% of the women and 65.2% of the men polled consider themselves patriots, with their patriotic agenda reported to be formed mostly by their families (50.7%), educational establishments (15.2%) and political events and situation in the world (25.3%). Most of the respondents interpret patriotism as the “national self-consciousness and pride for belonging to the nation and people” (44.3%); “unselfish love to and service to the Motherland, preparedness for self-sacrifice for its good and safety” (31.5%); and “love to the native home, city, country and devotion to the national culture, traditions and lifestyles” (24.2%). Most of the FC clients polled (84.2%) tend to believe that participation in the GTO Complex tests may be viewed as a symbolic action to manifest their patriotism, plus it helps test, on a regular basis, the individual physical fitness, take actions to improve health plus obtain benefits like bonuses and discounts on the FC services.

Given in Table 1 hereunder are the results of the progress-testing competitions in the GTO Complex Class VII test exercises that generally show the overall endurance being the most deficient physical quality of the tested men and women, and this finding agrees with the relevant student’s population test results [6].

Table 1. FC clients’ progress test rates in the GTO Complex Class VII test exercises, %

Conclusion. The GTO Complex public promotion initiatives including the works to: coordinate operations of the project fitness centres, establish their networking cooperation; develop the mass sport infrastructure with an emphasis on the public training zones in yards and parks; personnel training and skills-advancement courses; actions to expand the range, methods and forms of the fitness services customized for the local people’s needs; and efficient mobilization of the social networks in the areas – were found to create facilitating conditions to motivate the local people get trained for success in the GTO Complex tests.

References

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2. Bal'sevich V.K. Ontokineziologiya cheloveka [Human Ontokineziology]. Moscow: Teoriya i praktika fiz. kul'tury i sporta publ., 2000, 275 p.
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9. Proskuryakova N.G. Professionalnaya kompetentnost trenerov po fitnesu [Professional competency of fitness trainers]. Teoriya i praktika fiz. kultury, 2015, no. 12, p. 9.
10. Smith N. Sovremennye sistemy psikhologii [Modern systems of psychology]; transl. from Engl. ed. by A.A. Alekseev. St. Petersburg, 2003, pp. 192-208, pp. 325-330.

Corresponding author: proskuryakova_na@mail.ru

Abstract

The study was designed to theoretically substantiate and practically test a model fitness environment to meet the physical training and sporting needs of people and make them fit for the GTO Complex tests. The study was performed in Tyumen city at local fitness centres; subject to the study were 2031 people (aged 6 to 69 years) enjoying the fitness services on a regular basis and/or engaged in other physical training, health improvement and sporting activities. The study gives an overview of the methodological grounds for, structure and contents of the eco-dynamic fitness environment designed to make people ready for the GTO Complex tests. It considers in detail operations of a virtual coordination centre intended to design, encourage, support and monitor the GTO Complex implementation process; and gives an account of the Class IV GTO test results.