Healthy Exercise Skills Lead Kids Away From Video Games

Blaine Pierce, 10, fourth-grader from Harp Elemenary School runs in a relay Tuesday at the Arkansas Governor’s Council on Fitness Great Arkansas Workout at the All-Star Sports Arena in Springdale. Fourth-graders from Harp and Asbell elementary schools had the opportunity to play different sports and drills as they learned about fitness and health.

Blaine Pierce, 10, fourth-grader from Harp Elemenary School runs in a relay Tuesday at the Arkansas Governor’s Council on Fitness Great Arkansas Workout at the All-Star Sports Arena in Springdale. Fourth-graders from Harp and Asbell elementary schools had the opportunity to play different sports and drills as they learned about fitness and health.

Wednesday, April 24, 2013

SPRINGDALE — James Davison showed fourth-graders how to do karate kicks Tuesday as part of the Great Arkansas Workout to energize and keep them away from video games.

Northwest Arkansas’ Great Arkansas Workout, a fitness event for fourth-graders hosted by the Arkansas Governor’s Council on Fitness, is designed to help kids develop a joy of participating in healthy activities, said Davison, karate instructor at All-Star Martial Arts of Northwest Arkansas. The event took place at the All-Star Sports Arena in Springdale.

When kids play video games for long lengths of time, it can affect their eating habits, weight and blood pressure, Davison said. The more time a person spends sitting down, the more likely they are to become overweight or obese, he said.

At A Glance

Great Arkansas Workout

Activities and sports at the 2013 event:

-Volleyball

-Core Training

-Karate

-Gymnastics

-Baseball

-Soccer

-Yoga

Source: Alisha Watson, Business Manager For AthletePlus Physical Therapy And Spine

Ashley Kissinger, fourth-grade teacher at Harp Elementary School, said about half her students know a lot about video games. She also said, when given the choice, her students would rather play outside.

“They definitely prefer outdoor recess,” Kissinger said.

About 67 percent of U.S. households play video games and 25 percent of people younger than 18 played video games in 2010, according to a study by the Entertainment Software Rating Board, an organization that assigns ratings to video games. Kids who play a lot of video games don’t learn how to socialize well, Davison said.

“You don’t learn how to interact with society,” he said.

Ulises Ruan and Cristian Vasquez, fourth-graders at Harp, said they prefer to play sports over video games and stay active by participating in Flying Hawks, a running program at their school.

The Great Arkansas Workout also introduces kids to activities they might not otherwise try, said Chris Cothern, owner of AthletePlus Physical Therapy and Spine and a member of the Arkansas Governor’s Council on Fitness. Cothern brought the event to Northwest Arkansas in 2010 as an expansion of a similar event in Little Rock, he said.

Another issue is some kids haven’t been exposed to sports because of monetary hardships, Cothern said.

photo

Jonathan Hernandez, 11, an Asbell fourth-grader, delivers a side kick to James Davison at the All-Star Sports Arena in Springdale. Davison gave the students a quick lesson on Shotokan Karate before letting them try and few punches and kicks.

“If we expose them to some of these activities, they might pick them up on their own,” he said.

The event was attended by 175 fourth-graders from Asbell Elementary School in Fayetteville and Harp in Springdale, said Alisha Watson, business manager for AthletePlus Physical Therapy and Spine.

The Great Arkansas Workout is part of a nationwide program instituted by Arnold Schwarzenegger, former California governor and actor, in the 1990s for the President’s Council on Fitness and Sports, according to the Arkansas Governor’s Council on Fitness website.