FITNESS AUTHOR
Mallory McKeever
CREATIVITY & FITNESS n Creativity has a surprising role in physical
health for kids, both in physical development and practicing exercise today.
O
ften, creativity is assumed to be something only for painters, artists or musicians. However, it’s also for the biker, soccer player, dancer, archer, weightlifter and climber — all of whom press on to a greater physical feat by asking, “What is going to motivate me to move?” Is it the challenge of another rep of curls? Pushing for an extra mile during a run? A new dance move to master? A workout routine that gets you excited? Creativity is that which makes life vibrant, forges new paths, invents new colors and sounds, and designs with ingenuity. In 2022,
AUGUST 2022
the Journal of Creative Behavior stated that creativity through the eyes of hard science is known to bring joy, wonder, excitement and pleasure into life. Not only does creativity bring joy, but it also affects physical health in kids who are still developing. According to Boston Medical Center Pediatrics, physical activity is generally important for one’s health but especially so in childhood, the “golden period for physical and mental development.” Physical fitness for kids is about more than protein intake or athletic genes; it revolves around implementing one’s own personal
54
sense of creativity. “(When) a person gets to pick and choose and put together the types of movement that make them feel good, I think it sticks more,” says Michele Rusnak, a former elementary physical education teacher at Austin ISD and assistant director of health and physical education. For Rusnak, creativity is about the individual plan and starts with figuring out what creative movement you really like. This creativity can come in lots of forms, she says. If the activity reinforces the thought, “This feels good; I like this. I’m going to stay moving for the rest of my life,” then
