Students at Westmount School got a bit of a workout on Friday.

Local cyclist Todd Martin spent the day at the school cycling 100km on a stationery bike to raise awareness for Wounded Warriors, an organization that provides support for veterans and first responders.

Students from grades 4-9 were invited to join him for 15 minute increments throughout the day, utilizing 16 spin bikes provided by Natural High Fitness.

Martin says one of the purposes from the event was emphasizing that it's okay to ask for help.

"Today wasn't about fundraising, today was about raising awareness about Wounded Warriors, about who that program serves, and then also making connections to the kids so that they know that the bravest of our brave are not afraid to ask for help. So if it's okay for police, fire, EMS, and military to ask for help, then it's okay for them to ask."

As a direct illustration of that lesson, local police, EMS, and fire personnel stopped by to cycle alongside Martin throughout the day.

Students were asked how they were feeling before, during and after their cycling sessions in order to demonstrate the effectiveness of physical activity as a way to deal with stress.

Martin says it was an effective way to engage the kids.

"They may not enjoy what they're doing in the moment because of their head-space, but with some physical activity, and with some check-ins, you find that most of them went from kind of being okay with it to being more enthusiastic, and by the time they were done, they were really pumped about it."

Outdoor Education teacher as Westmount Steve Kotowich says though there are various support services for veterans and first responders, the utilization of physical activity as a stress reliever is one the students can easily understand.

"They're dealing with a lot of emotional stress, and transitioning from work to they're regular life, that takes a toll on someone. There's a lot of things in place to help them out, but the message of being active, finding some way to relieve some of that stress that you carry with you, it's a great thing. That's what we tried to share with our students today."

The event also served as a training session for Martin, who'll be travelling to Holland in June to participate in the 2020 Battlefield Bike Ride.

 

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