ambredd-blog

[ambredd-blog]

Day 69: Exercise is Medicine

The School of Physical Education and Tourism Management is committed to promoting physical activity in the Indianapolis community. Rachel Swinford, Steve Fallowfield, and NiCole Keith, all PETM faculty collaborated with two School of Medicine professors, Bozorgmehr Ouranos, and James Holtz to bring Exercise Is Medicine On Campus (EIM-OC). As NiCole will oversee the program, Dr. David Crabb, the chief of internal medicine at Eskenazi Hospital agreed to be the medical advisor. Jake Monroe and Brooke Buckner, two PETM kinesiology students worked their passion and was the driving force that set Exercise Is Medicine On Campus in motion. EIM-OC is a subset of a larger global health initiative set forth by the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) called Exercise Is Medicine (EIM). The primary goal of EIM and EIM-OC is to promote physical activity as a vital sign of health. EIM-OC seeks to connect university health professionals with university fitness professionals to integrate physical activity and exercise into an individualized health and wellness plan. They wish to make movement an integral part of the campus culture. Jake Monroe feels EIM-OC is beneficial to the university as it encourages decisions to be health-promoting. The chronic lifestyle-related diseases are ever-increasing on a global scale. While many of these diseases present during mid- to late- life stages, the choices that have influenced their development to begin at a much younger age. The university setting is a pivotal stage in which individuals are free to begin making their own life choices. Jake and Brooke recruited an enthusiastic group of people to represent EIM-OC at IUPUI. In the initial stages, they hoped to inform students and faculty of the benefits that physical activity can have on health and wellness. Future goals include implementing physical activity screenings at several campus locations, and hosting events to promote physical activity. They believe success will be indicated by and EIM on Campus Week where kinesiology majors encourage other students to spend a week focusing on health-benefiting physical activity. Jake says, “My undergraduate education in PETM has been valuable to become informed of the health consequences of inactivity. The magnitude of effect that a sedentary lifestyle can have on personal wellness affected me greatly, and lead me to seek the formation of EIM-OC at IUPUI.”