BodyFit by Amy YouTube Star Shares Simple Movement Practices to Strengthen Mental Health and Build Resilience in Youth
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Movement is critical in building resilience and strengthening mental health in youth. This month we learn some easy ways for parents and teachers to incorporate more movement into the lives of our kids and teens from the creator of the YouTube Channel BodyFit by Amy.
Amy Schemper is a certified personal trainer and fitness instructor with 15+ years of experience in the industry. She has a Masters of Science Degree in Exercise Science from Concordia University in Chicago, and two undergraduate degrees from Virginia Tech. Amy is a certified Pregnancy and Postpartum Corrective Exercise Specialist, and a Pre/Postnatal Performance Training Specialist, and is passionate about helping women navigate fitness during pregnancy, postpartum and life as a mom. She has trained clients of all ages and fitness levels, and has training in kettlebells, TRX, pilates, sports specific training, nutrition and boxing. 10 years ago, Amy started her youtube channel, Bodyfit by Amy, and since then she has garnered a community of 920,000 subscribers and created over 1700 workout videos that are free, fun, effective and for everyone!
BodyFit by Amy YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@BodyFitByAmy
Brain Breaks Videos: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLMHMyl3oeyh3tYqMNy8a9SC7WOjAXA7A0
Thank you for listening to the Raising Resilient Kids Podcast where we provide parents, teachers and coaches with ideas and strategies to help kids and teens build their resilience and achieve their potential in a healthy, fulfilling way.
It takes a village to raise a healthy, resilient child and this podcast gives you, as members of your village, tools to do exactly this.
For more information on the podcast, or if you have a question you would like answered by one of our expert guests, please visit us at - https://www.smarthwp.com/raisingresilientkidspodcast.
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Episode Transcript
Tom: [00:00:00] How essential is movement in building resilience and strengthening mental health and youth? Extremely important. So as a creator of the very popular YouTube channel, body fit by Amy and our guests on this month's podcast, I'm Tom.
Jeannie: And I'm Jeannie. We are a brother sister team who are passionate about providing parents, teachers, and coaches with ideas and strategies to help kids and teens build their resilience and achieve their potential in a healthy, fulfilling way. Welcome to the Raising Resilient Kids Podcast
Jeannie: Our question from a viewer this month is how important is physical fitness in strengthening mental health and building resilience in youth?
Here to answer this question is one of my dearest friends, Amy. Amy is a certified personal trainer and fitness instructor with over 15 years of experience. She has certifications in pregnancy, postpartum corrective exercise, physical Fitness for menopause and is a pre postnatal training specialist.
10 years ago, Amy started her YouTube channel body fit [00:01:00] by Amy. And since then she has garnered a community of over 920, 000 subscribers and created over 1700 workout videos that are free, fun, effective, and for everyone.
I know her because not only do I do her workouts three times a week, but she's also one of my dearest friends, Amy. I was stumbling over all of those statistics because they're so. big. I think I might have been subscriber number two.
Amy: Well, you probably were because you were there when I first started and I think I probably said like, We're just going to try to make some videos and these will be things that you guys and my other training clients can do when I'm gone or when you're traveling and who knew? I mean, it, it took a lot of time, but people are doing them all over the world,
Jeannie: so aim. So what is your answer that how important is physical fitness and strengthening mental health and building resilience in youth?
Amy: Oh man, I would, I mean, I don't know if I can quantify it. With kids. I mean, obviously if you've been around kids, they have a [00:02:00] lot of energy. They need to be using it. , we already know we talk about how good it is for our bodies, for our physical health, but for our mental health.
And there is so much research to support this, um, you know, research where they've looked at kids all through their teen years. They've looked at kids who were genetically predisposed to depression or anxiety. And exercise is one of the main things. that we know will help lower those rates. , exercise has similar benefits to an antidepressant, depressant of, , how it affects our brains, our serotonin levels, our dopamine levels, our endorphins.
, we talk about this a lot in adults. I think it's talked about less in kids, but it's this, it's a similar effect. And then the other thing is we know that it's Our brains work better when we move our bodies ironically, some things like physical education classes and, recesses and things are getting cut out of school days because, or limited in school days because we want to improve the test scores.
But what we know [00:03:00] improves brain function, cognition, memory is movement.
Jeannie: Mm hmm.
Amy: we're gradually seeing some changes in that, but, , Getting your kids active and having movement just to be a regular part of their life is probably one of the best things we can do as parents, as caregivers, as , people with, with kids in our lives.
Jeannie: And Amy, one thing that I realized that I did not say about you that is a big part of your life is not only are you a wife, but you're also a mom. So do you feel like since having kids, they're, they're of school age, like, do you notice a difference between them when they're moving more and moving less?
And
Amy: Um, I always quote, , my son's first day of kindergarten, his first day of quote unquote real school, he had been in preschool and he had been at home.
And the first thing he said when he came home is I had fun, but I'm We do a lot of sitting and I feel like that is what, and I was like, okay, well, they come from preschool where all they do is play all day. Right. Which is exactly what they should be doing developmentally at that age. But [00:04:00] you know, they get into school and that's, That's why they're there, right?
They're learning, they're processing, they're learning to, you know, listen and read and do all the things that we're supposed to learn in school, but they are very sedentary during those school days. And, , my kid's school is great. They have two recesses. They do have a physical education program. They get to be outside a lot. But it's still sometimes they come home from school and I can just tell they need to burn off energy they've just been sitting a lot and their their brains are tired. Their bodies are tired Not because they've been doing too much physical activity, but because they haven't been doing enough which is something, We talk about with adults I talk about with clients You don't want to wait to get the energy to go workout, you're going to get the energy from that movement.
And so I when kids feel sluggish, or they feel like they don't want to do something or they're whiny, or they're complaining, a lot of times they just, they just need to move.
Tom: Amy, can you tell us a little bit more? So they have two recesses during
Amy: do. I feel
Tom: more about [00:05:00] that? Because we have a lot of people that, a lot of teachers that listen to this and that's not true
Amy: it's not. Yeah. Yeah. So they have a built in, they're short. They have a built in snack period, which it may change as they get older, but right now for their elementary years, they have a snack time, which is, usually like nine 30, 10 o'clock and , they can eat a snack and they can go play.
And then their lunch period is also their recess So it is paired with with nutrition
I also think they have good teachers who do a lot of brain breaks. , I made some videos like this years ago and I've been making more recently with my kids, just little five minute videos of ways to get kids moving. The amazing thing is this, that side of things really boomed during the pandemic years.
Cause there were a lot of. teachers and PE teachers and trainers like me putting stuff out there on YouTube and social media and other places you can get stuff for free. So if teachers are looking for things like that, I certainly have some on my channel, but you can just look up brain [00:06:00] breaks and find a lot of really good stuff, you know, quick dance.
Dance parties, things like that. I think that stuff can be really beneficial. It's kind of what we talk about with adults. We think of exercise has to be 30 minutes or 20 minutes, but really just five minutes of movement here or there. , especially with kids throughout their day can be really helpful.
Jeannie: I think that that is encouraging to hear, you know, that it really is just five minutes here and there. You don't have to send a kid out and say, okay, play outside for 45 minutes or whatnot.
Amy: I know there's a lot of pressure on teachers to, , get the test scores up to make sure they get all of the standards of learning. Like I, you know, a job I could never have. They are true like angels on earth teachers. So I know that it is hard to make time for anything else. , so just remembering that just quick little movement breaks can be really beneficial for, for our brains and for our bodies.
Jeannie: So this is a question that I feel like I could hear my parents asking when I was a kid, which is how do I motivate my child who isn't into athletics? That was me to [00:07:00] exercise for. So what would you tell my parents, you know, 30 years ago what suggestions do you have on how to motivate that kid?
Amy: I would say the number one thing that parents, caregivers, anybody who has children in their life can do to get their kids active is to model active behavior. And this again, statistically kids who have parents who are active, even down to in the womb. Yeah. You know, when women work out when they're pregnant, statistically, those kids tend to be more active as adults, as kids.
And to make it not about, Oh, mom has to go work out because she's trying to lose weight. Or, cause we're supposed to work out and not make it a chore, not be very aware of how you talk about it, that it's just a normal part of life, that it's fine. Fun that it's something that we do because we feel better.
That just leaps and bounds will make a big difference in how our kids view movement. For kids, it's, how can we get [00:08:00] them moving in a way that's fun for them? And that is going to be different. Obviously sports is something that's talked about a lot because kids also learn teamwork and cooperation But not every kid is into that. I would say like expose kids if you can, and there are great parks and rec programs and things like that. But also I find around here, there's a lot of stuff that's not necessarily organized sports that you can find. Our parks and recs has things like, dodgeball and they have karate and they have, , hip hop dance classes and things like that. , and then just finding ways to really make movement fun at home.
, so with my kids, we, speaking of, dance, we, Always do an after dinner dance party. We take turns picking the music and, and, and I'll be honest, some days they're not into it.
You know, some days they're like, Oh, but some days we. Crank up the music and we will sometimes play a game where it's like, okay, somebody's in the middle. We copy what they're doing. Okay. Who can do this the fastest? Okay. We need to clean up the living room. Who can move their [00:09:00] shoes to the right place and their clothes and the hamper as quickly as we can.
My kids, if I say, let's go take a walk, they might be like, I don't think so. But if I say, Hey, let's go take a walk and make it a scavenger hunt.
Amy: And let's make a list of all the things that we're going to look for on the walk. , and I don't want parents or caregivers to think that like, Oh, I have to get super creative.
It's like one more thing that I'm supposed to plan for my kids. They can be super simple. There's also a lot of really good games now that get you super active. . My kids love to play twister, , or even charades, something that you don't think of as like, Oh, that's a movement game, but it, it really is.
Jeannie: You are so creative, you have , this fitness background, but you also have this arts background. You came up with such great suggestions there, but for maybe the parent or the teacher that like, is like, I don't, I can't think about that stuff. You created those brain break videos, which I know you talked about
Amy: did.
Jeannie: So tell us a little bit about that. What made you want to do that? And, and tell us about the, about those videos.
Amy: The very first ones I did were probably 10 years ago and I had a client at the [00:10:00] time who was a kindergarten teacher . And she asked me specifically if I could make some for her, because she was like, you know, what I need is these five and six year olds are just, , they're You know, moving in their seats.
They can't sit. They need to get active. Can you just make me something that's five minutes long, , for them to get up out of their seats and be able to get moving. There is so much research behind kids learn better when they're active. , I've done a lot to incorporate what we call like cross body movements, you know, things that we do in exercise anyway, crossing right side and left side of our body. What that does to stimulate our right side and our left side of our brain.
They, they're communicating really quickly in those movements. So they're getting a lot of activity, which is going to again, get you ready to learn, ready to, , To listen, to focus, um and then just any time we move our bodies. We get more blood and more oxygen flowing throughout all of our bodies, but our brain loves that our brain [00:11:00] loves oxygen and blood flow.
So the more we can do that, the better we are to learn, the more focused we can be, better concentration, better cognition, better memory.
It's not just, oh, they need to burn the energy. It's, oh, during a school day, this is really going to help in a lot of different ways.
We talked a lot about how movement is important for kids, but we also know that it's important for us, , as adults too, but you know, we have teachers, parents, our lives are so busy these days.
Jeannie: So what suggestions do you have for a parent or a teacher or a coach who doesn't feel like they have that time for exercise?
Amy: I would just remind everybody that five minutes here or there is can go a long way. , that those brain breaks are just as effective for somebody in the middle of their work day as they are for a kid in the middle of a school day. I have tons of workouts on my channel that are 10 minutes long, 15 minutes long, some [00:12:00] with no equipment, some with limited equipment, some that are all standing we kind of grew up with this idea that, exercise had to be a 60 minute class or a, a 45 minute run, . And we just know that that's, you know, One, for most people, that's not sustainable.
, and two, that our bodies, we, you know, the recommendations for, for adults is the 150 minutes or five days, 30 minutes a day of moderate to vigorous exercise, meaning just something that gets you a little out of breath, , raises your heart rate, raises your body temperature.
It doesn't mean that you have to be, Totally spent that you have to kill yourself in a workout.
You can get that with. Five minute workouts a day, or you can get that spread throughout your week. , I think we get really caught up in all or nothing like, well, I can't commit to it now, so I'll just start in January when, you know, I'm more than motivated or I have more time or after this current season of my life, that's really busy.
And you know, [00:13:00] why wait, start today. You can get just, just five or 10 minutes and I promise you'll feel better, but it's more sustainable when we think of it in these short, Just short bouts here or there can, can make a huge difference.
Jeannie: Do you have maybe a brain break or just like a simple exercise that you can walk, Tom and I and our listeners through right now?
Amy: Yes. Let's get our five minutes. Okay. So, the first thing I would say is everybody just stand up wherever you are. If you're, and you Oh, good.
Jeannie: You walk us through, Amy. It
Amy: up and the first thing is just to start moving whatever that is for you. So maybe a March and pump your arms, just something to get the blood flowing and knowing, you know, something I like to remind people of is that the more muscles we get moving, the the higher that heart rate is going to get.
So anytime you can incorporate your arms into something, maybe even taking them over your head, something like that. Also, if you've been sitting at your computer [00:14:00] and you're, you know, you're feeling all of that stress from sitting too long, this is going to help with that. So then let's take it. We were just talking about this cross body movement, which is going to help both sides of our brain.
And we're going to take our knee to our elbow. So you're just crossing and you can either, you can actually touch it, or you can take your hand to your knee, if that's better for whatever your mobility and flexibility is. So again, what this kind of stuff does is stimulates our brain, which we're already doing just by the blood flow, just by the oxygen.
But that right side and that left side in our brain, those neurons are having to talk constantly to each other and that's making them more receptive, more focused. Ready to concentrate on what's next. So, how about we add a little extra to that. And I want you to go underneath your legs if you can and clap.
You're going to clap up top, clap underneath. And if you can't get under the leg, that's okay. You can just do a clap and a clap. , and I would just encourage everybody, don't worry [00:15:00] about what it looks like. We can't see you.
, if you are moving, you are doing it right. That's what I always say. If you're moving safely and you're not going to injure yourself, you're doing it
Jeannie: I am laughing at how you look, Tom, I can't lie.
Tom: I
Jeannie: But we're moving, that's what matters.
Amy: you're moving. And that is, I want everybody to just remember that. Remember my voice in your head. As long as you're moving, you're doing it. Right. That's all that matters. And you could, again, I have brain breaks like this, but you also could just make yourself a little list. I always tell people, set an alarm on your computer or your phone, maybe every half hour, stop what you're doing. If it's work or you're at home and just get up and do it, makes a big difference. How do you feel guys?,
Tom: I feel great. I, you know, definitely more energy. And what's nice about that is I'm not, you know, crazy sweaty. Cause that's one thing is, you know, in this either school day or in the office. You don't want to, you want to take a break, but you don't want to get all sweaty and then just feel disgusting the rest of the school day or whatever it is.
Jeannie: . So Amy, you've given so many wonderful nuggets [00:16:00] of knowledge. Are there any final thoughts or words of advice that you have for our listeners? .
Amy: I would just encourage everyone, That fitness movement activity does not have to be complicated. It does not have to mean spending thousands of dollars or thousands of hours. I've, I made a whole business on this of home workouts. And my goal with that was just to make fitness accessible to everybody, because I feel like it's the biggest barrier for most people is.
time and money, right? I have a whole YouTube channel of over 1500 videos of things that you could do at home, but there's also a lot of other great free resources out there. , and when you do it, your kids are going to see you doing it when your kids see that it's fun.
It's a normal, healthy part of life that it's something you enjoy doing, that it's not a means to an end. It's just something that we all do because we like it. , and certainly you can still talk to your kids as they get older in age appropriate ways of the importance of movement and why we need it.
But I think the most [00:17:00] important thing is that it just becomes a part of your life and it doesn't have to be over complicated. Every little bit helps every five minutes here. There is, is activity that you wouldn't have gotten otherwise. And your brain and your body will thank you. Oh,
Jeannie: That's awesome. And thank you so much again, to our listeners. I highly recommend checking out her YouTube channel, body fit by me. I really do work out with my best friend three times a week to her videos. And at almost 40, I like my strongest that I've ever been. And so I just, I appreciate you as my fitness person, but also as my friend.
And just thank you so much, aim for being on the podcast.
Tom: you,
Amy: of course. Well, you know, I love Eugenie and I, , really have loved watching what both of you have done, but Tom with your company and everything that you guys have done over the years. I think it's just, , together we're making the world healthier and happier. That's what I like to think.
Jeannie: Woo. That's right. That's right. Thanks so much.
Amy: Thank you. Thanks for having me.
Jeannie: Okay, Tom, [00:18:00] so how cool is my friend?
Tom: She's pretty cool. But I knew that from a long time ago when we first did the The program for nursing students together.
Jeannie: Mm hmm.
Tom: she helped tremendously with that and building resilience and nursing students. So,
Jeannie: , you know, I live out in California, right near Hollywood, and have worked in entertainment for a long time, and sometimes you see people, , become really successful, and they're like, you know, fine human beings.
Some of them are more questionable than others. And she is just one of those people, , watching her succeed, you Has been so exciting and it makes me feel good because I'm like, wow, this is a really good person who deserves every single ounce of success that she gets. When we were personal training just by ourselves is exactly who the thousands of people watch every single day.
Like there is no difference. She is who she is. And I just, I'm so grateful. She's my friend. She's the best.
Tom: yeah. That's awesome. Well, what was your, I know you have heard a lot from her in the past. What was your main takeaway from this conversation?
Jeannie: the biggest thing, and this is kind of her slogan. And it's one of the reasons why I really [00:19:00] enjoyed training with her when I was young and still now to this day, close to 40 is her, her slogan is be where you are today. And she really talked a lot about that throughout our conversation of, millennials, probably Gen Xers.
We grew up where you have to do 45 minutes. You have to run 10 miles in order to make the workout worth it. And we have to change that frame of mind. And I love how she's like five minutes is enough. 10 minutes is enough. . Just doing it is important and being wherever you are today.
It's such a good reminder, really, when you're working out or when you're doing anything in life, it's be where you're at today.
Tom: I agree. I agree. That was, that was a good one. The, the brain breaks I think are an excellent idea. You know, if kids are spending a lot of time, like studying for a big test, just quickly get up and take a quick little, you know, five minute brain break that she kind of talks about, even in the classroom, potentially, you know, right before a test or as, as the class is about to begin, just taking a few minutes.
I mean, you saw there with ours, I don't even think that was probably two or three minutes is what we did. And I [00:20:00] felt. I felt fantastic after
Jeannie: Totally. Same.
Tom: I, I am very thankful though, that most people are listening to this podcast on Spotify or on Apple and not watching the YouTube video because I am sure I looked like an idiot in that
Jeannie: Same. We both looked quite ridiculous. Obviously, I was looking more at you and being like, okay, well, he looks that goofy. I know I don't look much better, but we're in it together. Hopefully you were listening and not watching. Just follow along. Even if you're watching, just close your eyes during that part, you know?
Tom: Exactly. Exactly. Yeah. No, no. I felt energized. You know, I think about the videos that we're doing, you know, the weekly mental fitness technique of the weekly videos. I'm going to do a brain break. I'm going to pull up on Amy's videos or brain breaks and do it right before I film because I just felt better, felt more energy, you know, more positive after just that short few minutes.
Jeannie: totally agree. She had so many, so many good little nuggets of knowledge, as I like to say in there. And I'm just, again, Amy, thank you so much for being on the podcast. You are [00:21:00] the best.
Tom: Thank you, Amy.
Jeannie: All right, everybody. Well, thank you so much for listening, and we'll see you next month.