Playground & Fitness Equipment

"Modified" Pull Up Station
*(See notes below)

Directions:  View Park Project PPT below to see differences between older designs made of wood vs. today's progressive equipment designs that emphasize experiential learning and higher engagement with today's children.  Today's children are not the kids from the 1960s.  Today's child can be very overweight, obese, and extremely unfit to the point where doing a simple push up, pull up, or bar dip is completely out of the question.  These exercises were "standard" in the 1960s.  Now they are the exception "unless" new designs of equipment are used with modifications for the above issues.

Solutions:  Choose equipment that is modified to allow for different levels of ages, weights, and fitness ability.  Fitter children can "train" hard while unfit children can at least "participate" without risking ridicule.  *Example--a modified pull up station like photo above with different height levels of horizontal bars that also have "step up" pegs so that unfit and heavy children can "climb up" into the starting position, do a partial pull up by just letting their body weight down, then climb back up for the next repetition.  With a training progression, strength can be improved to the point where a child is strong enough to "pull up" without using the legs to step up into the starting position.  Also consider equipment that is colorful, low maintenance, safer, and possibly different is design than just the standard military-type designs of yesteryear.

• Park Project Presentation (7.7 MB PPT)
• Progressive Park Examples:
  • Atlanta, GA-Best Examples
  • Dana Point, CA-Sycamore Creek

                      Get Fit.  Be Strong.
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