Physical Fitness... We are on our way!

My parents decided at the age of 3 it was time I become involved in organized athletic activities.  They were tired of me doing flips off the couch and running circles around the house.  Seeing as how they both were extremely athletic they began enrolling me in any and all sporting events- soccer, ballet, gymnastics, swimming, etc.  As a child gymnastics was the sport that won over my heart and I was extremely dedicated and competitive- committing 4 hours a day, 3 days a week to my gym that was 40 miles away.  This is not to mention the weekends my family spent at competitions around the region and summer camps around the country.  As a teenager in high school I played volleyball, basketball, tennis and ran track.  And tennis followed me through college and into adulthood.

So, for a girl who has been extremely athletic since childhood, moving to a region of Brasil where physical fitness is not a top priority was a bit of a struggle.  I got strange looks as I did yoga on the beach.  When jogging along the country roads people asked me “What happened?  What are you running away from?”.  And the daily diet filled with meat and carbs (yes, both rice and pasta for the same meal) did nothing for either my appetite or my figure.  So, you can imagine my excitement when at the Alan Pinho Tabosa Professional School we began to take a different approach to wellness.

Since the beginning of the year the following weekly activities have begun:

A Capoeira Group for adults and children

A Soccer League for teachers and friends of the school

A Girl’s Handball team for the students at the school

Various dances during Physical Education and Art

An Aerobics and Yoga class for the community

And, last week all of the students, teachers and staff members at the school participated in the “Challenge Day” where we all did 30 minutes of aerobics, dance and athletic activity.  I am so excited to be part of a community that is not only bringing new forms of education within the classroom to students, but also is bringing new opportunities and possibilities to the entire community within and without the classroom. 

This week the Girls Handball team (coached by Joyce Mota Campelo), which has 15 girls who have been training for 4 months, will play in their first competition with other teams from the county.  We wish all of the players the very best of luck and applaud them for their hard work!