MINGO JUNCTION-Ohio Lt. Gov. Jim Tressel unveiled his Team Tressel Fitness Challenge at Indian Creek Middle School on Aug. 26 to get kids moving and making healthy decisions.
Lt. Gov. Tressel and former Ohio State University and NFL wide receiver Ted Ginn, Jr. appeared at an assembly where they spoke to an estimated 500 middle schoolers in grades 5-8. The challenge is aimed at self-improvement through exercise, nutrition and sleep and comes after President Donald Trump reinstated the Presidential Fitness Test this July. Students viewed a brief video and Tressel explained its importance, saying the goal was to get active and ultimately feel better about themselves.
The challenge will kick off on Sept. 8 and students will receive a workbook to help keep them on target.
“Gov. Mike DeWine has a set of goals to make sure every Ohioan is safe, every Ohioan is healthy and every Ohioan is meeting their God-given goals,” Tressel said. “We know that the healthier we are, the more we can reach our dreams.”
He said the Ohio Department of Education and Workforce (ODEW) contacted school superintendents and principals seeking involvement, which is open to grades 4-8, and more than 160,000 students in 638 schools currently were participating. The challenge incorporates fitness, nutrition and sleep habits and students can work from bronze and silver levels to gold. Bronze includes setting six goals over 10 days; silver has 10 goals over 20 days; and gold features 12 goals in 30 days. Tressel said the 90-day challenge winds down the first week of December, but students may complete them in only 60 if they are motivated. In the end, they will receive certificates signed by Gov. DeWine, Lt. Gov. Tressel and Ginn.
Officials were crossing the state to visit schools from Youngstown to Ironton and Columbus to Cincinnati to spread the word. Hopes are to expand and include more schools and more challenges, possibly during the next spring and fall.
“When you think the healthier we are, the better we’ll perform…and the better we’ll feel about ourselves every day,” Tressel added.
The former OSU football coach said Ginn joined the effort and brought his own ideas to help kids get in shape, saying the challenge should be personal. Activities are all-inclusive from adaptable moves for the disabled to more intensive for the athletically inclined, ranging from cardio, strength and mobility to flexibility and balance. Participants may work at their own pace and set their own goals, and Tressel said demonstration videos are available on YouTube to guide them. He also encouraged the school to submit their own videos so others can view their progress, as well as do exercises at home and include their loved ones.
Ginn and student volunteers Ty Banfield, Lane Speece, Tiegan Chaffee and Nina Nixon displayed their athletic prowess by performing including jumping jacks, squats and leg lifts to cite examples of exercise moves. Tressel said there was a long list of exercises but students may include a few of their own to personalize their goals. He further encouraged them to keep track of their progress, drink more water and eat balanced meals, as well as get a proper amount of sleep each night. A few more recommendations were to put away computers and cell phones and read before bed.
“You’ll be amazed how much improvement you will have in your schoolwork,” he noted. “We always take time and reflect on how we feel after a workout, how we feel after sleep and how we feel after we change our diet. We also have an ‘attitude of gratitude.’ We have so many blessings and it’s healthy to challenge yourself. I promise, you’ll be better, you’ll do better and you’ll think better.”
Meanwhile, Ginn said health was of major importance to him. As a one-time OSU standout who has played for myriad teams including the Arizona Cardinals, Miami Dolphins and Chicago Bears, he was pleased to be part of the initiative and share his ideas.
“Coach called me and asked me to be part of it. I attended meetings and discussed the ways the challenge could go with me working with the youth,” he continued. “Fitness has been a part of my whole life and family legacy, and at this age, fitness is a lifestyle, and I wanted to create that lifestyle for young kids.”
School officials were also excited to be involved, particularly since Indian Creek is the only local school district participating in the challenge. Assistant Principal Todd Herman will serve as the building coordinator and said it fits seamlessly into ICMS’s ongoing Leader in Me goals. Leader in Me is a Utah-based program where students strive to meet goals for education, culture and leadership, and Herman said the fitness challenge would be another component in that plan.
“We’re excited for this opportunity and I think it’s a good initiative. We will include it in our Leader in Me initiative and the students will get the fitness challenge workbook, then they will meet with their accountability partners [peers in LIM] to see if they are meeting their goals.”
Superintendent Dr. T.C. Chappelear was equally enthusiastic to have a district school participating in the program.
“It’s exciting for our students and I think we had a great message of exercise, nutrition and proper sleep, and all of these components are important to meeting their potential,” Dr. Chappelear said. “We are excited to be part of Lt. Gov. Tressel’s fitness challenge.”
