As we get older, we become more appreciative of what others do. We can recognize their skills and how much they know. As graduation season wraps up, I figured it was time to discuss how we should respect what others do and recognize what they know. We have all undergone a lot of training in our fields in order to perform the jobs we have regardless of what our majors are.
Since I became a Phys Ed major (and even prior to) you would sometimes hear people say it’s a joke major or a major for dumb jocks. Yes you get to play sports in some of the classes but let me tell you PE and Exercise Science are no joke. You have to get through Anatomy, Physiology and Kinesiology which are very hard classes.
You take sport classes so you learn all the rules of a sport because you may have to teach or coach that sport. For the sport classes and depending on the professor, the classes could be fun but hard. I remember having to do head ball drills in soccer (I was not very good at these), full field games and a lot of running. It was a workout.
You also have to take statistic courses, exercise research classes and elective classes dealing with difficult topics such as aging, death and dying, drugs and sexual health.
You needed to learn periodization and training plans for all sports which would vary significantly. Conditioning for football for example is very different from conditioning for cross country. Even conditioning among athletes on the same team is different: distance runners versus sprinters in track.
Then there’s the class management part of PE. It’s not a traditional sit in your desk format but the students are constantly moving. You have to constantly check for hazards to make sure the students won’t trip or fall over anything.
You have to quickly assess your student’s ability so you don’t create mismatches that could lead to injury and unfair play.
I apply this my strength and conditioning job. I have to constantly make adjustments to lighten or increase a workout based on the shape of the athletes and how they are handling the workouts. More often that not I often have to lighten workouts. I like to kick ass. Not surprising because I do this to myself!
Space or I should say lack of space is another challenge of training as I’d have to come up with space to train teams if the weather was bad and the gym wasn’t available. This often meant planning multiple workouts for multiple sports or a lot of on the spot adjustments.
I’ll end with what I started in that we must respect what others do. They have a lot of knowledge which makes them qualified for what they do. Phys Ed and Exercise Science are not joke majors and are unique. We studied our profession, learned the language and apply our skills on a daily basis just like any other job. And just like any other job, there are daily challenges and there good and bad. The most important thing is to find a major and career you enjoy and can do well in! I’m so glad I switched into a field I love when I changed to Physical Education.
Good luck to the Class of 2022!
#exercisescience #physed #physicaleducation #dowhatyoulove
#respectallmajors #appreciatewhatpeopledo
