village teacher my biggest wish is for the children to grow up healthy

In 2000, I graduated from a specialized sports school and returned to my hometown to teach.

In 2006, I followed my spouse to his hometown and continued teaching.

In 2008, I persisted in running for three months.

From December 2016 to the present, I have never stopped using Codoon for exercise and have encouraged students and alumni to join in.

Rural Teacher@Gao Li 87178696The story begins here.

A history of growing up weak and sickly.

In the summer of 1979, a malnourished rural girl was born. She was plagued by illnesses from a young age, constantly treated with herbal medicine. A passing doctor left three indelible 'copper coin' scars on her tender skin using moxibustion. Later, she contracted tuberculosis, and streptomycin and rifampicin became her companions for a long time. Jogging and brisk walking became her only forms of exercise.

In 1996, during the high school sports meet, I signed up for the 3000-meter race and won first place. From then on, I fell in love with sports and joined the school's training team. The morning and evening training sessions made me healthier, and I no longer needed medication for common colds. In 1997, I was admitted to a specialized sports school.

In 2000, after graduating and returning to my hometown to teach, I saw the pale and thin children during registration. I made a silent decision: to make the children healthy!

Rural Teacher in Action

The September sky in the countryside was exceptionally blue. The confident female teacher excitedly attended her first all-school teachers' meeting. There were 9 classes across 3 grades and 9 teachers (including the principal and other staff), with each teacher averaging 4 classes a day and teaching multiple subjects. I was assigned to teach Chinese, history, and physical education for the third grade, and art and music for the first grade.

Oh my goodness! There were only two physical education classes a week, and the conditions were rudimentary. How could I make the children healthy? 'Time is like water in a sponge; there is always some to be squeezed out,' I comforted myself. During physical education classes, there were no relay batons, so I sawed wooden sticks in the cafeteria; there was no track, so we ran around the teaching building (the only building in the school); there were no ping-pong tables, so we used desks. The children, who had experienced a lackadaisical approach to physical education, couldn't distinguish left from right and didn't understand commands, so we practiced repeatedly. Outside of class, we played gymnastics on the grass, held ping-pong competitions, and organized small school sports meets. Gradually, the teachers began to value physical education, the students started to love sports, their physical education exam scores improved, and the school became more vibrant.

In 2006, I moved with my spouse to his hometown for work. The conditions at the new school were much better than the previous one. There was a playground with a basketball court, teaching and dormitory buildings, and even a ping-pong room. The overall atmosphere for sports was much stronger. Physical education classes were no longer limited to running and ping-pong; we introduced group dances, martial arts, soccer, and badminton. When there were no male teachers to teach group dances, I stepped in. For the school's June 1st program, my class performed five-step boxing and martial arts exercises. My female students participated in the county sports meet and consistently won awards in the 800-meter run. The average physical education exam score for my class was always above 24 out of 30.

Soon, the state and higher authorities began to place more emphasis on sports development: horizontal bars, ladders, walking machines, waist-twisting devices, Tai Chi pushers, sit-up benches—fitness equipment was everywhere, both inside and outside the school. The children became explorers, eager to try every piece of equipment. I had to figure out how to use them safely and effectively, then guide the children through challenges and small competitions. They proudly showed off their small muscles to me, happily competed with me and sometimes beat me, and shared their life's troubles with me. I knew they were becoming healthier.

As the state and government placed more emphasis on school education, our school also established a rural youth center. We encouraged every student to choose an interest and formed interest groups based on the number of participants, with one class per week. I was the first to sign up and actively participated. My martial arts group, succulent plant group, Tai Chi group, and athletics group received unanimous praise from teachers and parents, and I became the 'king of the kids.'

Stepping Out of the Campus of HuangbiWalking Group

In 2008, my minor colds wouldn't go away without medication. I knew I needed to exercise daily. I started morning runs with my spouse, who accompanied me for about a month. Due to business trips, weather, and social engagements, he gave up. I persisted, occasionally pulling in a companion or two. Gradually, I was alone again, and after three months, my exercise vow faded away.

In 2016, I weighed myself and found I had reached a record high of 62 kilograms. An old classmate posted about Codoon exercise on social media. On his recommendation, I started using Codoon and fell in love with exercise. In my free time, I thought: if an adult can't stick to exercise, how can children? They are even less likely to persist. I should encourage more people to participate in exercise, creating a rural fitness trend and using collective strength to maintain and influence more people to keep going.

In 2017, I founded the 'Huangbi Exercise Group' and started running with the third-grade athletics group students. A year later, they graduated, and their data became 'zombie' data. With the rise of national fitness, people gradually started going outdoors. In the first half of this year, Codoon promoted officially certified exercise groups. I quickly joined and adapted our group to a walking group based on local conditions. With the collective effort of the group, we achieved certification on July 5th, with over 140 members, mostly parents and teachers, but also attracting walking enthusiasts from across the country. Our group activities became regular: twice a week. The gratifying part is that each activity had over 15 participants without reminders or reposts (teachers from other places went wild during summer vacation), with parents bringing their children and teachers bringing their families.

My team members and I are still working hard, continuing to influence more people.Children, don't forget our promise: to be healthy together!

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