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Three Ways to Make Incarceration More Productive

Prisoners can spend their time on more meaningful matters while waiting for the time of their release. Here are three best ways to make incarceration more productive.

Read

Reading is not only a great way to pass time, but also to learn more. There are services such as Corrlinks that allow prisoners to request pen pals, family and friends to send them educational articles through electronic mail. You just need to create a profile, which will be displayed on the website, to attract pen pals. Once you find a pen pal, you can try asking for books about the topics you’re interested in. You can request a book on carpentry to improve your skills or a dictionary to improve your vocabulary. While libraries do exist in prisons, a lot of barriers prevent inmates from using them such as limited hours, structural damage and low budgets. Libraries are also often out-of-date and mostly contain fiction books instead of educational materials. You will find that there are a lot of people who are willing to send educational books such as advanced calculus, philosophy and history to prisoners who have a strong desire to learn. 

Workout

Prison workout is also one of the best ways to make incarceration more productive. Penal institutions are usually sick places. Aside from detention in overcrowded areas, unhealthy behaviors like inactive lifestyle, irregular diet and smoking also lead to the development of psychological and physiological diseases. Physical activity can help prevent the development of illnesses. Studies show that regular endurance exercise training can help lower bad cholesterol levels and increase good cholesterol levels as well as triglyceride plasma concentrations, which can lower the risk of developing coronary heart disease. Resistance training programs can also help prisoners avoid developing Type 2 diabetes. Prison workout improves not only their physical fitness, but also their quality of life. Prisoner inmates always talk about routine and its importance. Since they follow a certain schedule, they always look forward to the time they can work out. Hand-stand push-ups, dips, pull-ups and sit ups can help them build large, broad shoulders, thick arms, a huge chest, a wide back, a V-taper and 6-pack abs that even the most dedicated gym enthusiasts would be jealous of. 

Enroll in School or Vocational Course

Inmates need to find a job once they are released from prison. Vocational courses in prisons can help inmates develop skills to land a job and earn money. Studies prove that inmates who enroll in vocational training programs are more likely to find a job than those who don’t get such opportunities. The sad fact is that only a third of federal and state prisoners get vocational training. Employment is a very important factor for a newly released inmate. It can determine whether they become a law-abiding citizen or commit more crimes. Prison inmates who receive vocational training and general education are also more likely to stay out of prison. Vocational training gives them the knowledge and skills they need to get and keep a job.