Fitness: Surprise Workout Slips Keep Your Students Motivated
Here's an exercise-adherence trick you can use in class. It's also appropriate for individual students who've told you they're having trouble adhering to a fitness regimen because of monotony or because they just can't decide what to do on a daily basis.
On separate slips of paper, have your students write down five different workouts they enjoy. The workouts can be variations of a single activity, such as running. For example:
Day 1: Run 45 min slow
Day 2: Jog 10 min, run 5 hills
...Or they could include several different activities. For example:
Day 1: Bicycle 30 minute,
Day 2: Rollerblade for 25 minutes Day 3: Play basketball at the gym
They could even include two additional slips that state:
“Take today off—you deserve it!”
Each day, your students randomly select a slip of paper and perform the workout it indicates. They'll find they enjoy the variety and the element of surprise—it's almost like showing up at the gym and having a personal trainer provide a workout for them.
And, with the two “Take a day off,” slips in the hat, their days off will also be a pleasant surprise.
Variations
You could have your students use this idea after school as a homework assignment—they may even be able to get their parents involved.
Or you could use it for a week in class, by providing a selection of activities that are appropriate for your facilities and class length. This will be interesting, because each day the grouping of students performing each activity will change.
Reference: Linda Porterfield (PhD), “My Favorite Workout.” Shape, August 1994.
