physical fitness
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The benefits of physical fitness for personal development

Originally published April 7, 2018 in the New Zealand Herald.

Personal development can seem like a daunting task when you think about all the improvements you want to make in every area of your life: health, money, career, relationships, education, family, travel/leisure, sports, spiritual growth and so on. So often it seems like you succeed in one area only to see another one neglected. It’s not that you’re not achieving successes, you may be wildly successful in one area and it just seems so hard to succeed across the board.

Wouldn’t it be incredible if you could simply do one thing to improve yourself and there was a ripple effect? Imagine improving one area of your life, and every other area of your life was improved as a result – kind of like the “all ships rise with the tide” phenomenon. I believe there IS such a thing, and I believe that one thing is physical fitness.

We often think of our personal fitness as being all about “workouts and nutrition” – but TRUE FITNESS is much more about PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT…

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exercise
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Want to Stay Young Longer? Science Says This Exercise Makes Your Body Act Like It’s 9 Years Younger

Originally published June 26, 2017 by Inc Magazine.

By Bill Murphy Jr.

It’s been a dream of civilizations since the dawn of time: If we can’t live forever, can we at least slow down the aging process and stretch our lives out as long as possible?

Now, researchers from Brigham Young University say they’ve found that a certain type of physical exercise can slow the aging process within our cells. That ultimately means better health, and physical conditioning that matches the natural age progression of a significantly younger person–as many as nine years younger.

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health
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Adding PE Heart Rate Monitors Makes Health Students More Active

Fort Lupton (Colo.) Middle School teacher Lindsay Yost uses P.E. heart rate monitors to maximize the effort her students put forth during activity breaks in her health classroom.

The once-and-future physical education teacher and mountain biking champion gets her health students up for several activity breaks and active-learning sessions during her 42-minute class period. Yost uses a variety of tools to make sure students take any opportunity to maintain or even improve their fitness levels.

“I’ve missed being active,” she said, sensitive to what students feel after being in a classroom period after period. “It’s interesting, too. My own fitness levels have declined because I’m in the classroom all day.” Read More

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Texas Elem. School Triples Recess Time, Sees ‘Incredible’ Results

Originally published Feb. 6, 2018 by Inspire More.

By Kimberly White

Experts recommend we get up from our desks to stretch our legs and fingers every hour or so, partly to ward off tendonitis and give our eyes a break. Taking a break, even if it’s just wandering into the kitchen to grab a cup of coffee, also gives our brains a chance to reboot, and we often return to our tasks more invigorated.

So … shouldn’t the same apply to kids in the classroom? After all, balancing work and play is always a good thing, regardless of the setting. Read More

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School gets results by teaching reading in PE

Originally published Jan. 25, 2018 by Interlochen Public Radio.

By MORGAN SPRINGER

A growing body of research says more physically active kids do better in school. But, across the country, time for [physical educatinon] class and recess has been replaced with more sedentary time in classrooms. Traverse City Central Grade School is doing the opposite though, giving kids more exercise to help boost their reading scores.

Movement Lab

It’s a Wednesday morning in the gym at Central Grade. Physical education teacher Mary Radecki puts on music and nearly 20 kindergarteners hurry off to different stations in the gym. Movement lab has started.  Read More