4.1: Why Get Physical

National Health Education Standards (NHES)

• 1.12.7: Compare and contrast the benefits of, and barriers to, practicing healthy behaviors, such as being physically active every day.
• 6.12.1–6.12.4: Set and carry out goals and plans to improve health, such as increasing physical activity.

Wellness Guidelines

• Increase how often you are physically active.
• Decrease sedentary behavior (time spent sitting or being inactive).

Instruction: In small groups or pairs, have participants discuss the questions below. Recognize anyone who has made progress toward their goals, and offer one-on-one support to anyone who wants to adjust their goal.

Discuss your SMART Goals:

• How is your current SMART goal going?
• What are some ways you could make more progress toward your goal? ("Grows")
• What are some ways you're already doing well? ("Glows")

GUIDELINE: Increase Frequency of Physical Activity and Decrease Sedentary Behavior

• Which guideline connects to today's lesson? Who has a SMART goal tied to this guideline?

Instruction: Choose one activity:

1. Guideline Popcorn – As a group, quickly call out all eight guidelines, one after another ("popcorn style").
2. Guideline Charades – Split into groups. Give each group a guideline to silently act out while the others guess.
3. Two Truths and One Lie:
4. Truth 1: Regular physical activity reduces anxiety and stress.
5. Truth 2: Regular physical activity boosts self-esteem.
6. Lie: Regular physical activity makes you more tired during the day.
7. Discussion or journal questions:
8. What physical activities do you enjoy most?
9. Where do you usually do physical activities?
10. What activities would you like to try?
11. How do you usually feel after being physically active?

• Why physical activity matters — not just for your body, but for your mind too.

Materials: Worksheet, slide presentation, Fitness Personality Quiz handout, Academic Fitness handout, Do Now activity, Physical Activity vs. Sedentary discussion, Motives for Movement activity, Academics & Fitness activity, Exit Ticket.

Key Terms (Sources: CDC, 2018; HHS, 2012; Merriam-Webster Learner's Dictionary, n.d.; WHO, n.d.)

• Fitness: The ability to do daily tasks with energy and without getting worn out.
• Physical activity: Any movement of the body made by your muscles that requires energy.
• Exercise: Movement that is planned, structured, repeated, and done on purpose — a specific type of physical activity.
• Overload: The physical stress placed on your body when an activity is more intense or demanding than what you're used to.
• Sedentary: Marked by a lot of sitting and very little physical activity; inactive.
• Evaluate: To determine how important or valuable something is.
• Benefit: A good or helpful result.
• Barrier: Something that makes an action difficult or impossible.

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Do Now: Your Fitness Personality

Instruction:

• Have participants complete the Fitness Personality Quiz handout.
• Then, in pairs or as a whole group, have everyone share their exercise "type."

Discuss:

• There are many ways to be physically active.
• Since everyone is different, we all tend to prefer different types of activity.
• The activities you enjoy often connect to your personality — use your fitness personality type as a guide when building your own exercise plans and goals.
• What does fitness mean? It's the ability to handle daily tasks with energy, without getting tired (HHS, 2008).

Results by type:

• Mostly A's – Competitive: You're a team player, on and off the field. You're ready to play almost any sport — soccer, softball, beach volleyball, and more. Aim to play hard a couple of times a week, but remember to build in rest time too. Everyone needs downtime to recharge.
• Mostly B's – Social: You do your best in a group setting, moving at full speed with friends by your side. Put that energy to good use by joining a class or club — martial arts, dance, or aerobics, for example. Most fitness classes meet a couple of times a week for thirty minutes or more, which is close to the ideal amount of exercise.
• Mostly C's – Solitary: If you're going to exercise, you'd rather do it alone. Try swimming, biking, or jogging around the park — there are plenty of solo activities to help you get fit. Aim for a couple of sessions a week, at least thirty minutes each.
• Mostly D's – Relaxed: You prefer a slower, calmer lifestyle, but there are still plenty of ways to stay in shape. Yoga and Pilates combine stretching and breathing techniques to tone your body — you'll feel the effort without running out of breath. Try to fit in exercise a few times a week.

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Good to Know: Physical Activity vs. Sedentary

Discuss:

• What does physical activity mean? Any movement of the body, powered by your muscles, that uses energy (WHO, n.d.).
• Physical activity isn't only important for your physical body (the outside) — it's just as important for your mind (the inside).
• Physical activity isn't just about how your body looks. It affects how you think, how you feel, how long you live, and what you're capable of doing.
• Today we'll explore why physical activity matters for both body and mind, and how it supports your overall wellness.
• Fitness is the ability to do daily tasks with energy and without getting tired (HHS, 2008).
• Exercise is planned, structured, repeated movement done on purpose to improve or maintain fitness. It's one type of physical activity (HHS, 2012).
• When are we using energy? All the time — your body needs energy just to keep functioning (heartbeat, breathing, digestion, and so on).
• But are we always physically active? Not necessarily. For real physical benefits, your body needs to experience overload — physical stress that's greater in amount or intensity than what you're used to. Three physical changes happen during overload (Bogdanis, 2012):
• Your heart rate (pulse) increases.
• Your breathing rate increases.
• Your skin changes — it may look pink or become sweaty.
• What does sedentary mean? A state marked by a lot of sitting and very little physical activity — being inactive.
• How do you feel after sitting or lying down all day? Common answers include: sore or achy, tired, weak, anxious or sad, and less focused.
• How do you feel after physical activity — and is that different from how you feel after being inactive all day? Which feeling is better? Common answers include: energetic, happy, and clear-headed or focused.
• A sedentary lifestyle can leave you feeling sore, tired, weak, or moody — because our bodies are built to move.
• When you sit all day, your muscles are under strain, and over time they begin to weaken (Vigelsoe et al., 2015).
• Sitting also reduces blood circulation, making it harder to deliver important nutrients to parts of your body — including your brain. A sedentary lifestyle has been linked to a higher risk of chronic diseases, including Type 2 diabetes and heart disease (Johns Hopkins Health, n.d.).
• Research also links a sedentary lifestyle to more negative emotions, such as anxiety, and to problems with attention (Kantomaa et al., 2008). That's exactly why it's so important to get moving.

Optional Instruction: Play the following two videos:

• What happens inside your body when you exercise? (British Heart Foundation, 2017)
• Why Sitting Is Bad For You (TED-Ed, 2015)

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Real World Relevance: Motives for Movement

Instruction:

• Brainstorm the benefits of being physically active every day, the barriers that get in the way, and how to overcome them.
• Also identify the emotional benefits and emotional barriers.
• As participants share their answers, record them on a board or flip chart.

Discuss:

• How much physical activity should you get each day?
• Children and teens should aim for 60 minutes of physical activity per day; adults should aim for 2½ to 5 hours per week (HHS, 2012).
• We'll evaluate — that is, determine the value of — the benefits of physical activity, the recommended daily amount, the barriers that get in the way, and how to overcome each one.

(Image created by HealthCorps staff, based on data from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the CDC.)

• What you enjoy probably falls somewhere between "sitting on the couch" and "running a marathon." Everyone is at a different point on the exercise spectrum, and we all need to take small steps toward our daily goals.

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Hands-On: Academics & Fitness

Instruction:

• Hand out an article written above participants' usual reading level and/or on a topic some may find dry.
• Example: "Is exercise a viable treatment for depression?" (Blumenthal et al., 2012). An excerpt is included below and on the accompanying handout:

"Depression is a common disorder that is associated with compromised quality of life, increased health care costs, and greater risk for a variety of medical conditions, particularly coronary heart disease. This review examines methods for assessing depression and discusses current treatment approaches. Traditional treatments include psychotherapy and antidepressant medications, but such treatments are not effective for all patients, and alternative approaches have recently received increased attention — especially the use of aerobic exercise. This review examines evidence that exercise is effective in improving depressive symptoms among patients with major depression and offers practical suggestions for helping patients initiate an..."