Impacts of a Healthy Lifestyle: Dimensions of Physical Activities

Students will be expected to:  Identify and analyze the impacts of an active lifestyle on physical, social, emotional, intellectual, and spiritual well-being.  Identify the impact of active lifestyles on society and the environment.  Demonstrate an understanding of the impact of movement and physical activity on body image including self-esteem and self-confidence.  Demonstrate and use various forms of movement as a means of creative expression.

Have you ever watched the Olympics? If so, you have heard many words to describe the nature of the events. The information that is available to the viewer regarding each event now enables us to become somewhat knowledgeable critics of each event. Everything from drawings of the idea set up for a triple jump in figure skating to the aerodynamics of the equipment for cycling. Each of these Olympic activities has unique characteristics which are attached based upon the type of activity. These characteristics can also be referred to as dimensions.

Consider some of the events and think of a word or characteristic which may describe that event. For example, weight-lifting, may be considered to be all about strength. Whereas, a gymnastics floor routine may be described as artistic. The words used to describe these events can be categorized into the following dimensions:

1. Physical Dimension - includes strength, endurance, and flexibility.

2. Emotional Dimension - includes self- esteem, or personal awareness.

3. Social Dimension - includes sharing, roles and responsibilities to others, and flexibility.

4. Cognitive Dimension - includes the ability to understand, having knowledge, skills, and strategies.

5. Aesthetic Dimension - includes rhythm, timing, artistic, and balance.

Some may even add the dimension of spirituality when describing characteristics of their activity.

Note that each activity will have its own degrees of dimensions, where some are more dominant than others. If we return to the weight-lifting example, devoted participants may consider this activity to require elements from each dimension. However, many may not consider weight-lifting to be as artistic as a gymnastics floor routine. It is only when one has participated in an activity that they would be able to have a clearer understanding of the dimensions of that activity.

Activity: Identify ten (10) activities and describe which dimensions are included in that activity. Remember that each activity will undoubtedly contain more than one dimension. Question: How can participation in an activity affect ones lifestyle, self-esteem, self- confidence, and overall well-being?