Physical Activity for All Children: Growing Up as a Decathlete

Growing Up as a Decathlete

It was a different era. In the 1960’s and 1970’s, every child I knew trained as an elite athlete. We ran, swam, jumped, skipped rope, climbed, and biked constantly. We played sports for hours with no substitutions. Since we rarely had enough players to complete two teams, every player played offense and defense without a break. I pushed and rode a bicycle loaded down with two baskets of newspapers up a long hill every Sunday. We walked or biked miles to get where we needed to go. It was how we played, travelled, worked and lived.

I am not a retro-phile. I’m a big believer in bike helmets, seat belts, and other ‘modern’ safety developments. My children are encouraged to participate in a variety of organized activities – nearly all of which are run by adults, and involve being driven to and from. I think that children should have structure and adult supervision. But I think that we have done a dis-service to our children by not letting them “go out and play” often enough.

The fitness industry, the professional sports establishment, and our conventional wisdom, have come to recognize the importance of “functional” training methods. Fitness is no longer measured by how much a man can bench press, how many miles a woman runs in a week, or what our BMI might be. There is a growing understanding of the need for exercises that prepare us for specific athletic challenges, whether they are sports-related, or merely the necessary physical demands of everyday living. The Functional Training Model has replaced the old “size, tone, and cardio” goals.

Classroom-based Brain Breaks from Bushintai-Do Programs.

In recent years, physical activity has been shown to facilitate brain development and improve brain function in children and adults. The positive effects of exercise on the brain are thought to be even  more significant and long-lasting in children. In addition, exercise has been shown to be a more effective treatment of depression than medication is.

The physical demands of my happy childhood constituted a complete functional training and brain development regimen. We had no idea of the mind-body-spirit significance of what we were doing, and neither did our parents. But current and emerging research tells us that is was good for our functional strength, cognitive development, and emotional state. Say what you will about the intelligence, fitness level, and mental health of the baby boomers, but apparently, it could have been worse.

Today’s middle-class and affluent children have more opportunities for learning new skills, participating in various activities, and developing new interests than ever before. But they are far more sedentary than previous generations, and have far more non-physical distractions available. Participation in youth sports is declining and, if you add in time sitting in the car on the way to practice, waiting for a turn, and taking instruction, the activity level is often low to moderate. A pickup basketball game or a sidewalk hopscotch session probably provides much more exercise than many organized sports practices - even more so if participants walk or bike to the playground or sidewalk.

A recent study indicated that children born in today’s sedentary Western society have a life expectancy that is five years shorter than that of the previous generation – due in large part to their lack of moderate to vigorous physical activity. To many, this is a startling call to action. There are some positive initiatives – Michelle Obama’s anti-obesity effort, the CDC’s recommendation for 60 minutes of exercise per day, and the NFL and Dairy Council-sponsored “Fuel up to Play 60” program – but there is one area of potential leadership and direction that is being largely under-utilized – the public school system.

Our education leaders have recognized that not only do our schools have an obligation to promote wellness, but also that it has a direct impact on a child’s ability to learn. We provide students with breakfast and lunch, not only for their overall nutritional health, but also because it supports their brain function. With everything we now know about the value of exercise, our schools should also provide daily moderate to vigorous physical activity for all school children.

Many will question whether this is practical – educators are already under pressure to improve student test scores, and are likely to balk at giving up classroom time in favor of any non-academic activity. But research has shown that test scores will improve with regular physical activity – even if it results in less classroom time.

Some have already adopted measures to address this. The Vermont Department of Education’s Education Quality Standards (2014) requires that every student in grades K-12 have access to at least 30 minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity every day – in addition to PE classes. This is a start, but we need to change the lifestyles of our children. We can’t – and shouldn’t – go back to a time without computers, two-income households, or fast food. But we can go forward as a society that understands the value of physical activity, and takes steps to promote it. 

David Quinlan, Founder and Lead Instructor
Bushintai-Do Programs and Martial Way Self-Defense Center
Milton, Vermont