Growing up, gym teachers and commercials constantly told us that we needed at least an hour of physical activity every day. One ubiquitous campaign pushing children to get outside and get active was the NFL’s Play60, which placed ads throughout football games and cartoons encouraging young viewers to spend at least 60 minutes playing daily.
For many of us, an hour of play was an achievable goal through sports, recess, and free time outside. However, our professors sadly do not give us recess, and it can be harder to stay active as midterms and internships (as well as student journalism) take up our time. At Georgetown, we feel pressured to be productive and efficient, often leading us to choose optimized workouts that maximize return on our time investment. In contrast, play does not have a strict goal of fitness and is more about fun than improving our physique. With that in mind, four Voice Sports writers attempted to complete a full week of active play for at least one hour every day. Below, we chronicle a week where we #Play60.
Homework and home workouts
By Andrew Swank
Monday: Monday was probably the easiest day for me to get 60 minutes of play. I typically finish my classes early and have an intramural soccer game in the evening. This Monday was no different; I spent an hour playing soccer with friends and won the game in a penalty kick shootout (no big deal)!
Tuesday: On Tuesday, my first class starts at 11 a.m., and my last class ends at 6:15 p.m. I am not a morning person in any way, shape, or form, so that really only left the evening. I ended up at home after classes with no desire to walk back to campus and the gym. I decided to take my volleyball out into the yard and pass it around. It wasn’t the same as an actual game, but I had a good time and managed to get 30 minutes (editor’s note: that’s less than 60) of play before it got too dark.
Wednesday: Wednesday was another simple day for me. I had an intramural volleyball game in the evening, and I stayed after the game ended to play basketball with friends. This amounted to nearly two hours of play, and the time totally flew by.
Thursday: A lot of schoolwork and a tedious midterm essay meant Thursday was my most difficult day. However, I took breaks from my writing and instead of going on my phone like usual, I went outside and walked around. It was a nicer break than mindless scrolling, but I only managed to record 30 minutes of walking as my exercise.
Friday: On Friday, I tried very hard to get my midterm essay done in time for some exercise in the evening. Unfortunately, I was not done in time to head to Yates and play soccer or basketball. That left a short evening walk as an essay break, as well as more backyard volleyball.
Conclusion: I simply don’t have a consistent enough schedule to manage an hour of play every day. Some days I have homework, some days I have meetings, and some days I’m just feeling exhausted. I constantly feel the pressure of assignments and extracurriculars, which leaves me with little energy for things that don’t feel urgent or important for my future. Still, making the effort to get outside and play for even part of an hour helped me feel better. I was more energized overall, even if I wasn’t being productive in the traditional Georgetown sense.
Play30, anyone?
By Vince Gude
Monday: After agreeing to participate in this challenge in the evening of the first day, I frantically headed to Yates to knock out a workout. However, as I sat at the lateral pulldown machine on a day that was supposed to be my rest day, I found myself stressing about all of the studying I could have been doing to prepare for my midterm next week. Nevertheless, I persisted.
Tuesday: Two hours of club rugby practice made Tuesday easier. Practice is a good escape from schoolwork, but this week I had trouble focusing on what the coaches were saying because of my ongoing battle against my studying. This, in turn, caused me to play worse and stress more.
Wednesday: Last semester, I got into the habit of running three or four times a week. Shamefully, I haven’t gone on a single run since the start of the school year, so I decided it was time for a change. Little did I know, running for an hour was a wildly unrealistic goal, and my one-hour “run” became a one-hour walk and jog. Still 60 minutes, though!
Thursday: I had yet another two-hour practice today that I was honestly dreading (don’t tell my coaches). Before practice, I told myself to just enjoy the time I would be spending with my friends rather than worrying about getting a fulfilling workout in. It gave me a completely different outlook on this challenge, and I felt excited for my last day.
Friday: Most of my friends don’t have classes on Fridays, so I looked around for people to help me complete the challenge’s final day. An hour later, I did something I’ve been wanting to do since I arrived as a first-year student over a year ago: play spikeball on the lawn. I felt like I was back on summer break without a worry in the world, and before I knew it, over an hour had gone by.
Conclusion: My biggest takeaway from this week is that exercise is just as important for mental health as physical health. I don’t think worrying about getting an hour of intense play a day is necessary. Rather, I think using exercise as an outlet, whether it’s going for a walk or playing spikeball on the lawn, is far more healthy for our minds.
Eep…
By Eileen Weisner
Monday: I was not off to a good start on Monday. I soaked up some midday sun on the HFSC patio after one of my classes as a way to get 60 minutes outside, and did homework between 8 and 9 p.m. At least the mosquitoes weren’t out.
Tuesday: Another midday sunshine session. Was I doing work? Yes. Was I outside? Also yes. I count that as a win. After a series of afternoon monsoons, my friend and I took a half-hour neighborhood stroll.
Wednesday: While I hit peak productivity in the morning and evening, my afternoon was swallowed up by miscellaneous obligations. My one hour of outdoor time came in the form of tabling during the Farmers’ Market. The lack of physical activity in my schedule grows more prominent as the semester picks up, and I’m really noticing it now (regrettably, while I chronicle it in print).
Thursday: If you were concerned about my stationary lifestyle, fear not! I supplemented my four hours of class with my weekly tennis match at Yates. While not outdoor activity, I believe it mostly matched the Play60 guidelines. I lost the first set 6-4, which we had started last week, but I am up 4-2 in the second set. Stay tuned for updates.
Friday: The closest I got to playing today was reading game theory for Comparative Political Systems. I went to classes, submitted a problem set, and completed homework to prevent the Sunday scaries. I got Julia to take a post-dinner walk with me, which, as you’ll see, makes up a much more significant portion of my weekly exercise than it does hers.
Conclusion: I don’t have much play built into my schedule, but even just being outside boosts my mood and sleep. Moving forward, I want to be more intentional about my time and consciously build in more physical movement. (Edit: Sunday morning, I went to Yates and also walked laps on the Kehoe track. Be the change you want to see in the world.)
Bring back recess!
By Julia Maurer
Monday: As a decidedly morning person (take that, Andrew), my Monday started off with a 40-minute run. While running, I thought about what really counts as “playing” when you aren’t an elementary schooler with recess. While the Play60 campaign focused on getting 60 minutes of physical activity, I took our challenge to mean making a concerted effort to play for fun outdoors rather than purely exercise.
Tuesday: This was by far the easiest day for me—as a member of both club ultimate frisbee and club rugby, I spend about three hours on Cooper Field every Tuesday. Although three hours in one day certainly is a lot, I have learned that blocking out time to be able to run around with friends and enjoy being outside is crucial to my overall happiness. Since it was part of my weekly schedule, the time commitment didn’t seem too overbearing.
Wednesday: I woke up late, which meant that I did not take my typical pre-class run, and I could not find another time to work out. Nevertheless, I categorized Wednesday as a success as I spent over two hours outdoors tie-dyeing shirts with the frisbee team. I was on my feet and walking around (physical activity!), and honestly, it felt more like “play” than going on a run usually does.
Thursday: Like Tuesday, my Thursdays are defined by over three hours on Cooper Field (putting up varsity numbers right here). Between practice and a nice run around Theodore Roosevelt Island, I’m pretty sure I spent more time outdoors than actually doing homework. Great for my mental health! Not great for my weekend, which will now be filled with that homework.
Friday: For my final day of Play60, I spent about an hour on Kehoe Field playing pickup ultimate frisbee with some friends. As an activity that focused on having fun rather than strictly getting exercise, I felt like this perfectly wrapped the challenge up.
Conclusion: While I have a lot of time built into my schedule for moving around, I don’t always prioritize exercise for the sake of fun, rather than the Strava statistics. Finding a balance of both is critical for my mental and physical health. Basically, we should bring back elementary school recess with none of the bad parts (being forced to run the mile) and all of the good (dodgeball, freeze tag, and capture the flag).
