Demonstrating
How Collaborative Practices Contribute to Meaningful Physical Activity
Chessa
Hedman
Brigham
Young University
I read an article entitled, Demonstrating How
Collaborative Practices Contribute to Meaningful Physical Activity. I will begin by giving you a summary of the
article. I will then share my opinion of
the strengths and weaknesses that the article had. Following that, I will explain how the
article can be used or applied and I will end by sharing my personal reaction
and interests in the article.
Summary
of the Article
The article was a simple
article that basically discussed the benefits that physical activity can have
on a person. The authors began by
discussing what physical activity is. They
said, “Physical activity is an umbrella term that encompasses exercise, sport,
and bodily movements produced by the skeletal muscles resulting from energy
expenditure” (Groff & Zoerink, 2012, p. 243). They then went on to discuss the outcomes
that result from physical activity. They
talked about how it is a great thing that can help in many ways. Some examples of ways it can help were,
decreasing pain, lessening stress and anxiety, preventing physical falls, and
lowering symptoms of depression. The authors
more specifically stated, “Further, participation in physical activity acts
like a non-pharmacological therapy because it reduces the effects of many
health problems” (Groff & Zoerink, 2012, p. 243). Another topic discussed was how sports are a
type of physical activity and sports can be played on both an individual and
team basis. Sports are a way to find
personal satisfaction and self-confidence and playing team sports is a way to
improve one’s social life. They
conducted a study by implementing physical activity on non-profit organizations
serving persons with IDD, a state developmental disabilities agency, and a
university health exercise and science program.
After the study they stated, “Pre- and post intervention assessments
indicated statistically significant health improvements in total cholesterol
and resting diastolic blood pressure; and fitness improvements in flexibility,
muscular strength, and cardiovascular fitness” (Groff & Zoerink, 2012, p.
244). They also implemented ten week
physical activity and healthy nutrition in 9 sites across the United States and
found that “Individuals with an above-normal Body Mass Index (BMI)
significantly decreased BMI by the end of the program” (Groff & Zoerink,
2012, p. 244). All in all, the article
discussed what physical activity was and provided examples of how it can benefit
people.
Strengths
of the Article
I found the article to be very interesting. The title was very clear in telling the
reader what exactly they were about to learn about. The body of the article followed exactly what
the title said. It demonstrated how
meaningful physical activity could be beneficial. The authors did a great job providing not
just one, but many examples and studies that they had conducted to prove how
physical activity is beneficial for people.
As the reader, the article kept me interested the whole time. It was not boring. The authors stuck to the point without
varying off topic. With recreational
therapy, there is obviously a lot of physical activity involved, so it was nice
and interesting to see examples of how the physical activities we may do with
our patients can and will benefit them.
Weaknesses
of the Article
Although the article was
interesting, there were some weaknesses.
The first weakness was, I felt like the article was very short and could
have been elaborated more. It is good
for authors to stick to the point, however, sometimes they leave out valuable
information. There were some good
studies in the article, but the statistics were not always provided. For example, as I mentioned earlier, the
article talked about how with one of their studies, there was statistical
significance that showed health improvements in multiple areas. As the reader, after reading this, I would
want to know exactly what those statistics are.
The article did not provide the reader with any sort of statistics, only
statements. It provided good
information, but in my opinion, not specific or reliable enough
information.
How
the Article can be used or applied
If someone is interested in becoming more physically
active, this is the article for you. I
know that there are many people out there who do not see the benefit in exercise. They do not believe they need to
exercise. I would recommend this article
to those people. It can be used as a way
to motivate people and help them understand how much physical activity can
truly benefit their life. It will not
only tell them it will benefit their life, but it will teach them numerous ways
that it benefits. For example, they will
be more physically fit, they will have better self-confidence, they will be
healthier and happier, etc. It is a
motivating article for those seeking out information on physical activity.
My
personal reaction and interests in the Article
Overall, I felt it was a valuable article. It provided the reader with good information
on the benefits of physical activity.
However, I do not feel like it greatly benefited me personally. I am a person who already knows and believes
in the benefits of physical activity. I
was more interested in learning specific statistics and how I can apply it more
to therapeutic recreation. I know there
is a lot of physical activity involved in therapeutic recreation, but I do not
feel that this article related the two.
Coming from a therapeutic recreation journal, that is more what I was
expecting. I do not feel like I will use
this article for myself in the future, however I would recommend it to any
friends or family who are struggling to see the benefits that physical activity
can provide for them.
References
Groff,
D., & Zoerink, D. (2012). Demonstrating how collaborative practices
contribute to meaningful physical activity.
Therapeutic Recreation Journal, 46(4), 243-244.
No comments:
Post a Comment