7.NPA.4

What does this standard mean a child will know and be able to do?

7.NPA.4.1 Design goals for increasing physical activity and strategies for achieving those goals.
Young people can get into a pattern of regular physical activity by setting goals and developing strategies to meet them. To be healthy, a person needs about an hour of physical activity most days of the week (4-6 days). Strength, flexibility and endurance, provided by different activities, are needed for well-rounded fitness. Flexibility and endurance often go together, when people stretch after doing cardio exercise. Strength training (using machines, free weights, or some form of resistance) is recommended 2-4 days a week.

Students can play group sports like soccer, basketball, touch football, or hockey; or individual sports like tennis, golf or track and field. Games can be daily pick-up affairs in the neighborhood or organized through church, YMCA or youth center leagues. Lessons are available for all kinds of activity: dance, horseback riding, drill teams, cheerleading, swimming, skiing, yoga, Zumba, or canoeing. Some students like to be active within groups, some in pairs, and others like to go solo. At home a young person can walk the dog, play with the neighborhood kids, play a Wii game, ride a stationary bike, or even mow lawns (for exercise and money). Apartments and condos usually have pools, exercise rooms and sometimes tennis courts. Walking with a friend after school is an easy option that requires no special clothes, shoes or equipment. There is an activity suited for everyone including the disabled—just try it, and just do it.
 * The student will outline the standards for a good weekly program of exercise.
 * The student will generate as many activities as they can think of to maintain endurance, strength and flexibility.
 * The student will select sets of alternate activities for endurance, strength, and flexibility that he or she likes and believes will fit into his of her lifestyle.

7.NPA.4.2 Implement a personal fitness plan that balances caloric intake and expenditure.
It is important that physical activity and food intake balance so that weight can be maintained. Or, if a student needs to lose or gain weight, physical activity can offset calories for weight loss, or help build strength for healthy muscle weight gain.

Young people can use a weekly calendar to plan what activities they want to do, when, and for how long. They should also have a back-up plan of alternates they can do if it rains, practice is canceled, they have an injury, or they need to study extra hours on certain days. A student can also track his or her weight weekly using scales, and chart chest, waist, and hip measurements from time to time. If the student doesn’t like the weight gain or loss they see, he or she can complete a hourly timeline for two weekdays and a weekend day to see where changes can be made in activity, food and drink consumption, and rest. In fact, research now shows that people who get too little sleep tend to overeat and gain weight. Food recalls can also be constructed for two weekdays and a weekend day to help in problem solving.
 * The student will describe tools he or she can use to establish a plan for, or trouble-shoot a problem with, physical activity and weight control.
 * The student will implement a personal fitness plan that balances intake and output toward a healthy lifetime weight.