I remember how my college had a strict outlook on attendance to physical education classes. Although I’ve always been quite inclined to sports yet I could not really buy the idea of shaking my legs and arms and what not (with a background score by our trainers shouting – Say 1, Say 2, Say 3…) right after the lunch time when all I felt like doing was hit the bed. Most of us considered our “sports’ class” as a punishment for bunking the lectures. Looking back I analyze what was the big deal about and what made the college feel those awkward jogging in loose track pants or stretching or jumping were indeed vital to our curriculum.
I might have been averse to the idea of physical education back then because it was made compulsory and doing something out of compulsion was against my nature but it took me quite some time to see where this was headed. The same was not mandatory for the final years’ and that’s when I started experiencing terrible back pain from sitting in a continuous position for hours during lectures. Six months post my graduation and into my new job, my back pain gave me a real tough time and that’s when the doctor offered me two choices – physiotherapy or spondylitis. So here I was, back to boring twists and turns and hops and burns, minus the loose track pants.
I understood that physical activity in colleges is not only a health-enhancing move but a technique to use leisure time in judicious style. These activities vary from simple fitness exercises like free-hand or professional training on gymnasium to sports such as badminton, football, basketball, etc. A college’s objective to slot in physical education in its curriculum includes cultivating individuals to reach an emergent value system, accomplishing the peak of proficiency in movement abilities and inculcate leadership qualities too. However youths begin to develop distaste to sports when they’re either out of touch or the approach by their respective colleges is too dull. There is a need to hunt out for options that make exercising enjoyable because in order to like something, one must want to keep doing it. And to want to keep doing it can only be flagged by the way of a stimulating line of attack. Earlier parents were apprehensive about involving their children in ‘too many activities’ but lately there has been an interesting shift in the minds of parents about child fitness; and the need for physically as well as mentally fit body has started getting the due importance in contemporary world. Also a successful rank in sports opens door to multiple scopes as good colleges have sports’ quota for brilliant athletes.
Although many colleges have walked away from the traditional manner of working out by commencing some curious ways to embroil youngsters but few of the same have failed to sustain a proper schedule as per a handful of influences affecting it like age of individuals, qualification of trainers, proper structure of nutritious food chart, etc. With an effective training program as this, colleges could go a long way in ensuring their students are not only scholastically sufficient but also have the fitness and dynamism to achieve the level of contentment.
