When I think about running a timed mile in elementary school PE class, I can still feel the full-body sensation of stress. The mile run was part of the National Physical Fitness Test, a bi annual assessment given to elementary through high school students, which included five events: the mile run, sit-ups, pull-ups or push-ups, a sit-and-reach and a shuttle run.
Twice a year, the top 15 percent of participants nationwide were honored with a Physical Fitness Award. At my school, the winners'names were painted on one of the gym's walls. For years I stared admiringly at those names, wondering if I would ever make the cut. But no matter how hard I tried, I could never pull my chin above the bar.
I believe deeply in the value of physical activity for both the mind and the body. However, it wasn't until I was in my 30s and had run a half-dozen half-marathons, at a comfortable pace, that I even began to believe I was a sportswoman. I've heard similar stories from many people. My friend Natalia, a group fitness instructor, said that for years she saw herself as lacking athleticism thanks to her experience in PE class. It was only when she took a fitness class that she began to see herself as physically capable.
Their experiences, and my own, made me believe even if PE class and fitness assessment fail to make you develop a positive relationship with sports, there is definitely a positive opportunity to make it a source of joy in your life.
It's taken years to meet myself where I am. When I run a mile these days, I feel so good by the end that I want to run another. I still can't do a traditional pull-up, but a trainer at my gym recently introduced me to assisted pull - ups with resistance bands; I delight in finally feeling up to the task.
Fitness shouldn't be for the few. We all benefit from sports, whether we earn our names on the wall or not.