May 20 - 24: Weight Room

Once again we were in the Weight Room and we did not have the opportunity to go outside because of the poor weather. However, unlike the other days in the facility we had the option of doing a different exercise. It was called the Filthy Fifty which resulted by having to do fifty reps of ten exercises which was absolutely torturous. The main exercise that had me sweating and dying was the burpees and the crunches. 

I actually prefer the Filthy Fifty exercise in the Weight Room than the regular activities because I find it extremely boring up there so it was nice that we got something new for a change.

May 24 - Fitness (30 Minute Run)

For the first time in this semester, we did the 30 minute run which I found pretty nostalgic considering the fact that I did not do it since Grade 9. However, we did this run in groups and we tried to stay in pace throughout the entire course. My group was to target 7 laps in the 30 minutes which seemed pretty reasonable to the members of my group which consisted of Gurpreet, Dominique, Janey, Amy, and I. I like the increase of motivation and encouragement in comparison of running by yourself and the existence of a pacing buddy which prevents me from running too fast right off the bat. 

It really disappointed me when we could not reach our goal in the end. The group decided to all split up at the last lap to reach our goal since we were running behind by a couple of seconds so most members started to increase the speed of our pace. Despite the plan, the majority of us missed the seventh lap by ten to fifteen seconds which was rather disappointing.

May 21 - Fitness (Triple Threat)

We did the Triple Threat today which was very fun because of the fact that it was partner work and it promoted motivation and encouragement. I gave my 100% again during this Fitness and I could definitely feel the soreness afterwards. The one thing that I discouvered today was that I am affected greatly when there was a lack of music during Fitness. 

I guess it was because of the fact that it would build the excitement and help me focus on something other than the Fitness activity I was doing. I would advise the PE classes to always to have music during Fitness since I felt like something was missing today.

April 30 - Fitness (Locomotive)

The weather enabled us to go outside and we had the Locomotive outside in the Upper Field. This was the first time I did the Locomotive because the first time we did it I was writing a Science Contest so I was excited about this. I felt extremely tired after the first round despite the breaks and I think the worst activity we had to do was sprinting and the bunny hop.

The two different moves were placed very close together so that eliminated my stamina very quickly. Furthermore, I also ran out of energy quicker because of the fact that some times the time would be out when I was in the middle of the field so I had to run across to avoid getting run over.

April 26 - Fitness (Hill Run)

We did the Hill Run at the regular location near City Hall which I found was quite different than regular Fitness activities. I honestly did not enjoy this activity as much as other Fitness because of the fact that it was only for approximately 10 minutes due to the distance from the school to City Hall. Despite the fact that it was just as tiring as the previous Hill Run, I liked the other one a lot more.

I decided to run on the steeper section of the hill because I thought that I would benefit more from it. I also wanted to focus on the speed of this Hill Run instead of endurance so I decided against running from the farther side of the hill. I had issues not wasting my energy on the way down as I found it impossible to slowly walk down as well.

April 22 - 26: Weight Room/Field

As the weather was really nice, the class would rotate around being in the Weight Room and being in the Field. In the Field we played a variety of sports which included lacrosse, baseball, and Capture the Flag. I participated fully, like always, and I helped bring out equipment on a daily basis this week as an example of demonstrating my leadership skills. 

I really enjoy lacrosse this year in comparison to previous years. I think that it is because of the change of students and the fact that I actually learned the basic skills this year.

April 30 - May 3: Large Gym

We were in the Large Gym again this week and, like always, we had a wide variety of choices again. We split the gym into two sections again and my major game that we played this week was badminton. I realize that not many people want to play badminton, but I really love the game and I was very happy we got to play it. We played it in teams of four so it was especially fun with the encouragement and the motivation from everyone.

The best part was the fact that everyone was participating for once and it made the class more fun and enjoyable. My one regret from this week was getting hit with the birdie on the face when Janey smashed it at me.

May 13 - 17: Field

For the majority of the week, the weather was nice enough to go outside and I enjoyed the activities we got to do. We had a lot of choice this week as we would normally have a vote to decide what games we would participate in. The funny thing is, though, I found that the one day that we stayed inside was the best for that day. We played All-For-One Dodge ball and it seemed to really get people moving especially with the teachers playing along with us. 

I made a whole bunch of alliances during the game, but I still managed to get out a lot because I kept targeting the group of guys who were standing on the sidelines. However, I do not regret the decision as it prevented them from fading into the background of the game.

May 17 - Fitness (Pond Run)

To add to the variety of different Fitness activities that were being produced, this Pond Run was a relay race with a team of four people per group. Each team would have one member who would run around the pond as quickly as possible and come back to get a ticket when they returned to their team. I was in a group with Amy, Janey, and Taylor and I found that they were really encouraging for me. I like this activity, however, I didn't enjoy the part that it was more independent and there was a lack of encouragement when you were running by yourself.

It somewhat demoralized me and, personally, I need someone to run beside me to encourage and help me find a decent pace to run at. I found myself pretty tired after the first lap because I sprinted and it tired me exponentially. 

May 14 - Fitness (30/30)

Fitness today was 30/30 which is one of the more enjoyable types of Fitness for me because of the extent I can push myself. To add a difference to this week's activity, the PE decided to split the students into two groups by splitting the gym into two sides. One side would exercise for 30 seconds then the other group would go until the 40 minutes were over. It surprised me by how much more energetic the students were when we did it this way.

I think that this improvement worked because this version of 30/30 prevents the lazy students from hiding in the corner and standing around during their time. I like this way a lot because it keeps the energy up as people cannot hide from the exercise.

May 6 - 10: Small Gym

This week was quite amazing as we had the choice of having PE inside the Small Gym as well as outside. I think that this was one of the best weeks that my class has ever had because everyone seemed energized and the majority participated fully for the first time. It was evident on how the class seemed to come alive with the more people who were willing to participate in the activity.

I think that this week showed everyone how one person can affect the entire class as well as how fun PE can be when everyone actually plays without cheating. This was one of my favourite weeks as I felt it showed the improvement the class made a whole instead of independent progress.

May 10 - Fitness (Field Circuit)

The PE teachers are certainly getting very creative in their choices in Fitness activities which I greatly enjoy due to change in variety. Another beautiful day to exercise outside so the Fitness was held on the upper field, but I missed the first half of the activity because of an interview about Physical Education 10. However, the variety of activities were extremely entertaining and it was really nice to have a change of the regular Fitness activities.

I know I might sound lazy, but I really enjoyed the rest station for this Fitness. I had time to relax and allow my body to feel the pain of growing my physical prowess as well as my endurance. Overall, I really liked how we got a new and well diverse activity for Fitness.

May 7 - Fitness (Community Run)

Another wonderful day to go outside for Fitness which I unfortunately had to miss because of the Safe Teen Presentation taking place during block one and two. I would have liked to see my improvement in the Community Run, but I think that the presentation was necessary as the facts and skills that they taught me seem to be amazingly experienced. 

The Safe Teen presentation certainly engaged me in its presentation, but I regret skipping Fitness for that day despite the fact that I felt really tired that day.

April 23 - Fitness (Poker)

Since the weather absolutely beautiful today, the PE teachers decided to bring us out for Fitness. Today's Fitness activity was new and it involved Poker as the base of the workout as well as weight carrying later on. I enjoyed the game of Poker very much becasue it was very entertaining and it was nice to do something different for once. I also liked the fact that it was a group activity since it helps with the encouragement and participation level drastically.

However, the weight carrying section killed me and my group because the fact that we decided to run with a 45 lbs weight. I honestly thought that we would be carrying the weight with a partner so I didn't think it would be that bad, but they decided that everyone was carrying it alone for a section. I died of exhaustion and my muscles ached for the entire week afterwards to. Clearly, I need more work in upper body strength.