Childhood Obesity

Today I volunteered at the New Castle YMCA. They have an after school program for children considered overweight or obese due to their BMI. Going to this program is always fun but sad at the same time. Every time I go I enjoy myself and it always brightens my day. It is sad that the YMCA even needs a program like this. Watching the kids, you could tell they wanted to have fun but some of them couldn't even play tag because they became tired so easily. While doing a 5 minute warm up, a couple of the kids just give up when the tagger came towards them because they were too tired. As 10 years old kids they are already in bad shape and I really hope this program will help them so they do not become obese adults. Ultimately, I look forward to a day when the YMCA can eliminate this program altogether.

Cancer prevention

I read on cnn.com in the health section that eating a lot of fruits and vegetables may not prevent cancer as much as they previous thought. It turns out, that people that tend to eat the more fruits and veggies also tended to have an overall healthier lifestyle. I was not a fan of how they spun the article to make it seem like fruits and vegetables were not as good for you as they thought. Cancer is such an unpredictable disease, there is no way anyone should have thought that just by eating your fruits and veggies that you would somehow have a protective barrier from cancer. The article then talked very little about how fruits and vegetables were still important for preventing other chronic disease. But this was only very brief. I feel like our society is focused too much on trying to find the quick cures for our problems. I wish the article would not have focused so much on how "Fruits and vegetables are no miracles in cancer prevention" but rather, would have tried to reinforce the concept of fruits and vegetables being important for overall health.

Planning a fitness center

For two of my classes this semester I have to plan an athletic facility. One is a pool facility and the other is a fitness facility. I knew there was a lot of work and money to put a place like that together but after working on it for two separate classes I have gained a new appreciation for the fitness centers and even school administrators for assemblies great facilities. It takes a lot of planning to wisely use your budget while making sure you have all the equipment and supplies needed to make your facility accessibly and usable for all.

PETE Sterotype

Yesterday in my health class my professor was really frustrated with many of his students. He was telling us about how many are slacking, skipping class, and from his point of view being really lazy. He mentioned it was not just health major but PE majors in his classes were the same way. He was furious because he felt that the people in these majors were only in there to get in an extra workout or because they failed out of other majors. Coincidentally, later that day I was asked, "why do I try so hard to get good grades in the easiest major on campus?" This stereotype makes me furious! I know from friends that other majors like athletic training and physical therapy are very difficult, but why can't I want to strive to be the best physical educator I can be? Having this person tell me that my major is a joke gives me more of a reason to work hard and try to change the gym teacher stereotype.