Study: Weight loss shouldn't be the goal of PE
For adults, the goal of exercise is often to shed some pounds, but new research from the University of Georgia suggests the objective should be different for kids.
Physical education should focus on improving students’ physical skills, knowledge of the benefits of exercise, and motivation to be active. The goal should be to build students’ cardiorespiratory endurance, a measure of how well the body handles long periods of exercise—not to help them lose weight, according to the study’s authors. Kids can be overweight (as measured by the Body Mass Index or BMI) and still reach the recommended 60 minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity each day. Additionally, students who are more active during PE, despite their weight, are more likely to stay active after school as well.
“Research has shown that even in young children, people who are fitter in terms of cardiorespiratory endurance participate in more intense physical activities,” said lead author Sami Yli-Piipari, an associate professor in the Department of Kinesiology. “It’s not really your weight that matters. Children can be a little bit overweight but still be relatively fit.”