The following article was written by Rebecca Kielar, a student at LHS, for the LHS school newspaper, The Musket.
Muscle Madness
As I was signing up for courses during my freshman year at Lexington High School, I was
pleasantly surprised by the number of physical education electives offered at the school. No more participating in middle school gym, where only some of the activities seemed appealing. Now I could choose whatever class I wanted, and what a selection! I could choose tennis or volleyball or dance…badminton sounds fun…It took some time before I finally decided on my top four choices. Done.
Next thing I knew, I was sitting in homeroom peering down at my clean, new schedule with a
grimace on my face. The words Total Body Conditioning cheerfully winked back up at me, and a mental image of thirty two-hundred-pound upperclassmen flickered into my field of vision. This was definitely not what I had in mind. I blinked a few times and read the line again. Nothing changed. A friend leaned over and asked me what courses I had. Next thing I knew, she was laughing hysterically, most likely visualizing all five feet of me desperately trying to lift a one-hundred-fiftypound barbell over my head. So much for an enjoyable gym class. Nevertheless, I decided to try attending the first class to see how it went.
I walked into the field house, and marched over to the squad of high schoolers gathering near the bleachers. I recognized a few faces, and took note of the fact that all were of different shapes and sizes, unlike my previous predictions. I crossed my arms, still unconvinced that the course was for me. We took attendance and off we went jogging around the track, warming up for the exercises that would come later in the block. A few push-ups and wind sprints later, I was heading back to the locker room, the first class complete. Not too bad, I thought, certainly manageable. It turns out that while Total Body Conditioning was not my all-time favorite class, it was not completely unbearable either. I found the course to be a great break from my other, more academic classes. From talking to my friends and even picking up on outside conversations regarding gym classes and schedule changes, I know I am not the only student who has felt completely misplaced. However, from giving the class a chance, I was able to learn more about ways to exercise and build body strength.
Lexington High offers a wide variety of physical education and other elective courses that allow everyone to learn something new. Not all of the classes will be the right fit, but they all have something special to offer.
Before immediately burdening the guidance counselors by demanding schedule changes, we should try going to the first class and getting a chance to experience it.
Who knows? It might turn out to be better than anticipated.