by Haley Vickers |

“…79…80,” the recording plays to tell students to relax, “You have now completed the push-ups test.”  Students in physical education class, participate in fitness testing three times a semester.  They take a pre-test, a mid-test and a final.  These tests include the push-ups test, the sit-ups test, sit and reach, the flexed arm hang, the mile and pacer. The gym classes also measure students’ height, weight and their Body Mass Index (BMI) to complete a full range of measurements to record students’ overall physical fitness.

“Fitness should be a lifelong process, something that you work towards through your life, just to maintain a healthy life style,” Body Sculpting teacher and athletic trainer Deanna Neldon said.

Most students have very strong opinions on fitness, which pushes students both mentally and physically.

“It shows your ability and what your strengths and weaknesses are and your overall fitness,” junior Brandon Forth said.

Neldon said, “The tests give them a guide to where they are at physically.  They might be strong in the upper body, push-ups area, but really weak in their cardiovascular, as far as the pacer.”

Students agreed that boys tend to enjoy fitness testing more than girls.  “Girls are really worried about getting sweaty and gross and guys just don’t really care and just do it,” senior Victoria Hollar said.

“Boys like to show off what they can do,” sophomore Sharee Zombo said.

There is also a disagreement on which tests are the easiest and the most difficult.  “That depends on who you ask,” Neldon said. “I think the easiest test is probably the sit-ups test.  Most students tend to do really well on that one.  And probably the hardest test would be the Pacer.”

Hollar agreed.  “Sit-ups are easy,” she also added, “The flexed arm hang is difficult because I have no upper body strength.”  Forth said, “The sit-ups only goes up to 80 and you don’t have to sit up that far.”

Students also have opinions on which test is the most important; pre, mid, or final tests.  The grading for these tests depend on the teacher, but there is a scale that grades students depending on how well students preform.  Students work hard to do their best on the final because in the end, that is the test that affects their grades.

“One, the final effects your grades and two, it shows how much you have improved,” Zombo said. There are also many who question if fitness testing is a good judgment of how physically fit students are.

“I try to grade on their improvement, instead of really where they are at.  I feel like that can be a little discouraging,” Neldon said,  “So just because they are able to max out on the sit-ups, doesn’t mean they’re a great athlete.  And maybe they don’t do too great on the sit-ups, but they are a really great soccer player.”

Whether students are involved in athletics or just an average physical education student; fitness testing is something everyone has to participate in at some point.  Fitness testing is an important part of student’s physical education grade and is a way for students to accurately measure their overall physical fitness and improvement over the semester.