BC Youth Week: Teens Integrating Exercise Into Their Daily Routines
Thinking back to when I was a teenager, as much as it was about fun, fitting in, and figuring out how much my parents would let me get away with – it was also about finding myself! There’s no doubt joining school sports teams and discovering fitness played a huge role in that! Today on CTV Morning Live we were lucky enough to have Marley 14, Ava 14, Alex 15, Jordie 15, and Maya 16 join us from Vars/ty Initiative. Check out the segment of teens helping teens with everyday fitness!
This segment about youth empowerment couldn’t have come at better timing with BC Youth Week right around the corner! Wednesday, May 1st to Wednesday, May 7th is a week of fun, interaction, and celebration intended to build a strong connection between youth and their communities! You can check out the website – BCYouthWeek.com – for events happening ALL over the Lower Mainland. From drop in weight room orientations, Amazing Race style events in Coquitlam and New Westminster, teen pool parties, dragon boating, 3-on-3 basketball…and much more, there’s something for everyone!
Before getting to the exercises demonstrated on today’s show- here’s a bit about Marley, Ava, Alex, Jordie, and Maya! The five girls are part of a program called Varsity Initiative. It teaches teens about healthy lifestyle, movement, fitness, strength and conditioning. The mission is that through fitness and health, teens that feel good about themselves will not try to take others power (ie. bullying, etc). This includes, but is not limited to, Crossfit, martial arts, gymnastics, yoga, and parkour. The program which is offered after school, and over spring/summer break, is open to teens regardless if they’re into sports or not!
For teens who may not have a program to follow or who just want to exercise on their own, Marley, Ava, Alex, Jordie, and Maya demonstrated the following:
Who doesn’t like acting like an animal?
-Bear crawls
-Crab walk
-Gorilla walk
-Alligator
Workout with school supplies!
-With textbooks in your backpack run on the stop for 1 min
-High knees, and butt kicks with textbooks in backpack for 1 min
-Squats with textbooks in backpack for 1 min
-Sit ups using a heavy textbook
-Lunges while walking to school with a textbook