The (Dreaded) Mile Run

Who remembers it?  The long laps, the tired legs, the awful side aches... the list can go on.  And I bet all of you remember some part of "fitness testing" from when you were in school.  But do you remember WHY you did it?  What was the point?  What did you learn from it?  I bet for most of you, the memories you have are not what your P.E. teacher intended.  And I know not every P.E. program/teacher is the same, but hopefully I can bring some clarity to these fond memories!

Cardiorespiratory Endurance and Aerobic Capacity = The Mile Run

Starting in kindergarten we begin teaching aspects about heart health, how your heart and lungs work and what they do for your body.  Most of the time when I ask students what part of our body is getting stronger while running the students respond with, "My leg muscles."  They are not wrong, because they notice those muscles getting tired and their legs are carrying them around the field.  But more importantly we do aerobic exercise (continuous movement) to strengthen our heart and lungs.  

This year we will have the Heart Adventure Challenge Course for a few days where we discuss how the heart pumps blood/oxygen through our bodies.  The students will actively move through this course acting as the red blood cells going to and from the heart, lungs and rest of the body. 

Fitness Testing, especially the mile run, is never something I just throw at the kids one day, each day during P.E. our warm-ups and games/activities are meant to increase all fitness areas (as well as other sport specific skills) leading up to our testing.  By the time our spring fitness testing rolls around, we will discuss what our fall scores were and what our GOALS are for our spring tests.  Where do you want to be?  How can WE work together to get you there? 

So, as we embark on this WONDERFUL mile run this week, I hope we can all look back to our school fitness testing days with a better understanding and appreciation of what our P.E. teacher was trying to accomplish and give them a little thank you for wanting us to be healthier and looking out for our hearts. 

RUN GATORS RUN!