The Three Lost Components of Physical Education

Indianapolis Turnverein in the 1800s

On this the 250th anniversary of our country's legacy it gives me time to reflect on where we were only 250 years ago and how far we have come in that time in all domains, including but not limited to, science, the arts, education, technological innovations, medicine, space exploration and the list goes on. However as a part time history teacher at an Academy in New Jersey it also helps me reflect on things we have lost in traditional education. There are methods of teaching that for reasons beyond the scope of this blog have been removed from our institutions of learning. One primary method is the Trivium which includes Grammar, Logic, Rhetoric, and the Quadrivium which includes Arithmetic, Geometry, Harmony and Astronomy. Combined, these created the 7 liberal arts as it provided a template by which we can move through the world both linguistically and numerically. A future blog will break these down further.

The Three Pillars of Fitness

For the sake of Inner Athlete Training we will explore the foundations of physical education which include three pillars, Martial, Pedagogical and Restorative. These three components navigated both civilian and military physical education throughout our history. We will break each one of these down so you understand their context and their importance in building a firm foundation in physical education. If you are a physical education teacher, coach, trainer, group class instructor or teach people health and movement on any level you will find these principles important and useful. These principles were originally created for children in order to provide them a solid physical education foundation but it works well for any educator teaching any movement skills.

MARTIAL

We begin with the martial component. As it's name implies you might think martial arts, wrestling, boxing or other fighting skills. This component was created for the explicit purpose of teaching kids how to appropriately deal with aggression, regulate emotions and learn how to socially navigate situations involving aggression. The martial component is also associated with having complete focus for the task at hand. When one is in combat or any athletic endeavor, ones focus must be tack sharp. When we think of the people for whom we hope to be the biggest fastest and strongest. ie: our firemen, police officers, National Guard, and Military, we hope their martial acumen is at it's finest. We should however have similar expectations for ourselves. There is no reason we cannot maximize our own martial mindset and if it is taught to us in our youth, in school as it used to be, for both male and female alike, and if taught correctly, then we have taught our children how to defend themselves against aggression. The martial becomes an indispensable life tool that translates off the mat as effectively as it does on the mat when it comes to dealing appropriately with aggression of any kind. The real allure to the martial component is that it is ultimately not about the opponent you might be challenging, but the inner discipline, regulation, and sportsmanship you master internally within yourself that counts. As Plato reminds us: "For a man to conquer himself is the first and noblest of all victories."  We want to master the martial so we may be capable as citizens to fight so we may preserve our highest ideals.

RESTORATIVE

As it's name implies the restorative allows the body's parasympathetic system to kick in and return the body and the nervous system back to homeostasis. Many systems are associated with the restorative component such as Yoga, Pilates, Indian Clubs and others. The truth is however restorative is more a state of mind than a specific movement pattern. A pushup can be employed as a martial component, and the same movement when done in a more relaxed, less competitive way with proper breathing can be used in a restorative fashion. It's the same for the squat, lunge and most other movements. In 30 years as a trainer and self defense instructor I have always coached and emphasized the restorative component. Its the chance the body has to move in a relaxed, stress free and non competitive way and in doing so it helps the nervous system regulate.

PEDAGOGICAL

Pedagogical has to do with the methods, theories and practice of teaching movement sports, games, dance or whatever the task might require. The skill is taught through a progression and the student is not to move on to the next phase until they have mastered the current phase. This is the arena that requires great skill as a teacher and much concentration as a student. When a skill or game is taught with discipline and attention the student learns correctly and in time excels at said sport or activity.

CONCLUSION

Much more can be written in great depth on these three pillars but the point was to expose the reader to a method of teaching physical education that was once prominent in our nations history as we were developing our own unique physical culture. Our American physical culture took root in the 1800's before sport commandeered it. Many people would attend German Turnvereines which was one of the first iterations of gyms and came over to the U.S. from Europe in the 1800's. They would settle in central U.S. in places like Iowa, Michigan and Indianapolis. There were minimal weights as most of the training was off ground training using devices such as ropes to climb and parallel bars to work between so gravity was your true resistance. These types of tasks were gymnastic in nature and required great skill to master. People back then did not train for sport per se' but for full body mastery and that's why the three pillars were an instrumental road map to follow. As our country grows I find there are traditional legacies that have been largely dismissed in modern day fitness and education at large. At Inner Athlete Training we aim to preserve and master the best of old school traditions and that is why this blog is it's own salute to our nations 250th anniversary. Happy Birthday America! We should save worthy traditions so we may see another robust 250 years both in academics and in athletics.