Compare and contrast the differences in a person's cardiovascular fitness between an exercise program that utilizes the progression principle and one that does not.

Answer:

In a program that uses progression, exercise demands such as duration or intensity increase gradually as the person becomes fitter. This helps the heart and lungs adapt and can lead to continued improvement in cardiovascular endurance. A program without progression may produce some early gains, but the same workload eventually becomes familiar and improvements may plateau. Progression should be gradual; increasing the workload too quickly can cause injury or overtraining.