Muscular and Skeletal System
There is more than just cardio training to prepare for the track meet. Three days a week you also lift weights in the gym. Lifting weights helps to strengthen your muscles. Your muscles are what allow you to move. Your heart is a special type of muscle. Other muscles in your body are attached to your bones. The muscles work with the bones of your skeletal system. When you contract, or squeeze, a muscle, it lifts and moves, your bones. This is how you are able to run and jump.
Your skeleton gives your body structure, like a frame. Your skeleton provides support for your muscles, and protection for your organs. Without them, you would be just a big blob of tissue! The bones of your skeleton are very strong. Your body uses your bones to support the weight of your body. The bones of your ribs form a protective cage for many of your body’s organs, like your heart, lungs, and liver. Some of the hardest bones in your body are in your legs. This is because your legs support powerful muscles that allow you to run and jump. Those bones and muscles in your legs also have to be able to withstand a lot of impact, or shock, from walking and running.
Endocrine System
Your body has grown in the last few months. This is a result of your Endocrine System at work. This system produces hormones. Hormones are chemicals that carry messages. The blood, part of the Circulatory system, carries the hormones throughout your body. These hormones signal the body to grow and also control your metabolism. Your metabolism is how much energy your body has. An important part of the Endocrine system is the pituitary gland.
It makes hormones that signal other glands in the body to produce other hormones. It is located near the bottom of your brain. Another important organ in the Endocrine system is the Pancreas. It produces a hormone called insulin. This is sugar that is important to keep your body’s cells fueled and in balance. People with diabetes need medicine to help control how much insulin is produced and how it is used by the body.
