ReCharge! Training Center | Tools for Instructors | Coach's Clipboard: Physical Activity Information


		Click on a question below to be directed to the answer. What does it mean to be physically fit? What's physical activity and how much do kids need? Why emphasize "Energy In" and "Energy Out"? What are the benefits of physical activity? How important is it for children to warm up and cool down before and after physical activity? What does it mean to be physically fit? Physically fit children have the energy to get through their day with vigor and alertness. Physical fitness includes "health-related fitness," which is endurance, muscular strength, flexibility and body composition. It also includes "skill-related fitness" — such as balance, coordination, speed and agility. Activities in ReCharge! help children focus on both how much energy they have and how they feel when they get plenty of physical activity, as well as development of their fitness-related skills. What's physical activity and how much do kids need? The 2005 Dietary Guidelines recommend at least 60 minutes of physical activity for children and 30 minutes for adults on most days, and ideally every day of the week. Children don't need to get their 60 minutes of physical activity all at once, and the activity does not need to be organized and regimented. The more activity children include throughout their day, the more likely they are to get the 60 minutes they need. In addition to school P.E. class, there are many other ways for children to be physically active, such as playing at recess, walking to school or the bus stop, taking the stairs, throwing around a football and dancing in the living room. A good rule of thumb is any movement from walking on up is physical activity. Children should be able to answer yes to the question, "Am I moving my body from one place to another?" It's also important that children not confuse being busy with being physically active. Children can be busy talking on the phone, playing video games and watching TV, but that does not mean they are physically active. Why emphasize "Energy In" and "Energy Out"? An estimated 16 percent of today's children and teens are overweight — three times as many as in 1980. And this number is expected to grow. Good nutrition and physical activity are key solutions to the epidemic of childhood overweight and obesity. All children, regardless of how much they weigh, need to make nutritious food choices and get plenty of physical activity because the benefits of both go well beyond weight control. Focusing on "Energy In" and "Energy Out" helps children understand the link between the two. The body is like an engine, and food is the fuel to make the engine go. Nutritious foods from the Five Food Groups give children energy to do things they like, and physical activity uses energy from the foods they eat. Balancing "Energy In" with "Energy Out" not only helps children (and adults) feel good, but also helps them maintain a healthy weight. What are the benefits of physical activity? In addition to maintaining a healthy weight, getting children up and moving can relieve stress, build self-esteem and increase their capacity for learning. Along with adequate calcium intake, it builds healthy bones and strengthens muscles and joints. Currently, it's estimated that fewer than one out of four children gets at least a half-hour of physical activity every day, and their participation in all kinds of physical activity lessens as they get older. How important is it for children to warm up and cool down before and after physical activity? Warming up before physical activity is important if students have been sedentary for a period of time and they are going to do a vigorous physical activity. A full warm-up is time-consuming. Individuals performing strenuous and/or competitive activities need at least 15 to 20 minutes for warm-up. Warm-up should include light aerobic exercise, stretching and warming up parts of the body used for the activities. Many of the activities in ReCharge! are moderate or intermittent vigorous physical activities, so warming up and cooling down is not crucial. And, because children are young and generally active in their day-to-day life, warming up is not as important now as it is when they are older. However, having children think "warm-up" and "cool-down" is important as they get older and make physical activity a lifelong habit. In many lessons, warm-up is built into the activities and cool-down can be as simple as having students gradually reduce their level of intensity within the activities or having them walk or stretch during the "Touchdown" discussion.

Click on a question below to be directed to the answer.

What does it mean to be physically fit?
What's physical activity and how much do kids need?
Why emphasize "Energy In" and "Energy Out"?
What are the benefits of physical activity?
How important is it for children to warm up and cool down before and after physical activity?

What does it mean to be physically fit?

Physically fit children have the energy to get through their day with vigor and alertness. Physical fitness includes "health-related fitness," which is endurance, muscular strength, flexibility and body composition. It also includes "skill-related fitness" — such as balance, coordination, speed and agility. Activities in ReCharge! help children focus on both how much energy they have and how they feel when they get plenty of physical activity, as well as development of their fitness-related skills.

What's physical activity and how much do kids need?

The 2005 Dietary Guidelines recommend at least 60 minutes of physical activity for children and 30 minutes for adults on most days, and ideally every day of the week. Children don't need to get their 60 minutes of physical activity all at once, and the activity does not need to be organized and regimented. The more activity children include throughout their day, the more likely they are to get the 60 minutes they need. In addition to school P.E. class, there are many other ways for children to be physically active, such as playing at recess, walking to school or the bus stop, taking the stairs, throwing around a football and dancing in the living room. A good rule of thumb is any movement from walking on up is physical activity. Children should be able to answer yes to the question, "Am I moving my body from one place to another?" It's also important that children not confuse being busy with being physically active. Children can be busy talking on the phone, playing video games and watching TV, but that does not mean they are physically active.

Why emphasize "Energy In" and "Energy Out"?

An estimated 16 percent of today's children and teens are overweight — three times as many as in 1980. And this number is expected to grow. Good nutrition and physical activity are key solutions to the epidemic of childhood overweight and obesity. All children, regardless of how much they weigh, need to make nutritious food choices and get plenty of physical activity because the benefits of both go well beyond weight control. Focusing on "Energy In" and "Energy Out" helps children understand the link between the two. The body is like an engine, and food is the fuel to make the engine go. Nutritious foods from the Five Food Groups give children energy to do things they like, and physical activity uses energy from the foods they eat. Balancing "Energy In" with "Energy Out" not only helps children (and adults) feel good, but also helps them maintain a healthy weight.

What are the benefits of physical activity?

In addition to maintaining a healthy weight, getting children up and moving can relieve stress, build self-esteem and increase their capacity for learning. Along with adequate calcium intake, it builds healthy bones and strengthens muscles and joints. Currently, it's estimated that fewer than one out of four children gets at least a half-hour of physical activity every day, and their participation in all kinds of physical activity lessens as they get older.

How important is it for children to warm up and cool down before and after physical activity?

Warming up before physical activity is important if students have been sedentary for a period of time and they are going to do a vigorous physical activity. A full warm-up is time-consuming. Individuals performing strenuous and/or competitive activities need at least 15 to 20 minutes for warm-up. Warm-up should include light aerobic exercise, stretching and warming up parts of the body used for the activities.

Many of the activities in ReCharge! are moderate or intermittent vigorous physical activities, so warming up and cooling down is not crucial. And, because children are young and generally active in their day-to-day life, warming up is not as important now as it is when they are older. However, having children think "warm-up" and "cool-down" is important as they get older and make physical activity a lifelong habit. In many lessons, warm-up is built into the activities and cool-down can be as simple as having students gradually reduce their level of intensity within the activities or having them walk or stretch during the "Touchdown" discussion.