Because of this woman’s excitement, I couldn’t help but to focus in on their conversation. It went something like this:
“One of our teachers in the Upper School is a Zumba teacher. We’re going to have a morning Zumba class before breaking into work groups,” the excited teacher told her friend.
“As part of a wellness program?”
“I’m not sure … I don’t think so … I’m excited that we’re allowed to wear comfortable clothes instead of the usual dress code.”
“What district do you work for?”
“I don’t teach for a district. This year I’m at a small private school north of Philadelphia. [Pause] Zumba … I’m really excited.”
“I take the Zumba class here on Tuesday nights. But, it seems like an odd class for an in-service day.“
“They’re trying to show us ways to handle stress … healthy ways. The logic is, if we’re less stressed, our classes will benefit.”
And then the lights went out and we were asked to stand in mountain pose.
I mentioned what I overheard to my teaching friends, and they loved the idea. Maybe that private school north of Philadelphia has the right idea about changing things up a little to relieve stress—and maybe I have the wrong idea about it.
I frequent the yoga studio as a means to let go of my crazy week or my hectic afternoon. I never thought about using cardio as a way to manage my physical or emotional responses to stresses and pressures. Yet, according to researchers at the University of Maryland in College Park, MD, aerobic training can lower heart rate response to psychological stress, and may offer a protective benefit over the long term against an increase in the risk of coronary heart disease.
A few years ago here at ISM, the wellness committee launched a walking program. Participants who walked 35 minutes, three times a week for eight weeks, were rewarded with a half-day-work-day certificate. It turned out to be a success. There are several groups that have continued the walking spirit. (I have to admit I am not one of the continued walkers.) The benefit for ISM? Why, healthier, happier employees of course!
Teaching wellness and fitness to your school’s faculty and staff can benefit in a great number of ways. Healthier staff typically equals less sick time taken, lower health care premiums, and perhaps the best benefit of all—a healthier, more relaxed student body, as the happy woman from my Saturday morning yoga class said.
If you’re thinking about proposing the idea of beginning your in-service days with an exercise, here are a few suggestions that can work for groups:
- Zumba (find an instructor near your school)
- Belly dancing
- Ashtanga Yoga
