January is the time of the year that a huge part of the population starts to focus on a fitness plan. The physical education program at Riverhead High School started their plan a lot earlier in the year. The emphasis in high school and the elementary schools in Riverhead is on both fun and fitness. The district’s elementary schools were the first in the state to embrace Project Fit, a program that is an ideal balance between fun and fitness. The new fitness program at the high school, which is referred to as Blue Wave Fitness, is new to the 2015-16 school year and focuses on fitness.
The fitness exercises in the program are based on a cross fit model but modified for both skill and fitness levels and available equipment. Physical education teachers write up the exercises to be completed each day and post them on a white board. Students copy the exercises into notebooks for future reference, go through a series of warm up exercises and then begin to rotate through the exercises posted on the board for each of four stations. The students continue to rotate through the stations with one to two minute rests in between sets of four.
Blue Wave Fitness is designed to enhance personal fitness and is a core strength and conditioning program. The program is modeled after a modified cross fit program. The first two days of Physical Education every week are fitness days. Students alternate between a series of fitness exercises which include exercises such as Dumbbell Push Presses, Running, Burpees, Ski Hops, Swiss Ball Ab Crunches, Mountain Climbers, Box Jumps, Wall Ball Shots, Wall-to-Wall Runs, and Hand Release Push Ups. There are four rounds of exercises at four stations for 45 seconds to 4 minutes each with a 1 to 2 minute recovery after each round of four stations.
“We are constantly changing the exercises,” notes physical education teacher Maria Dounelis, “which keeps the program fresh and interesting. Because of the variety of exercises, lots of muscle groups are being worked. We also have the students keep notebooks so they can use their notes as a reference guide for working out at home, in the gym and hopefully throughout their lives. During their other physical education times, we play games and teach skills, but this fitness program makes sure everybody is working out simultaneously and not just sitting and waiting for their turn to play.”
Photos courtesy of Sandy Kolbo.
The survival of local journalism depends on your support.
We are a small family-owned operation. You rely on us to stay informed, and we depend on you to make our work possible. Just a few dollars can help us continue to bring this important service to our community.
Support RiverheadLOCAL today.