09 Mar 2014

The Ministry of Education and Skills Development organised a six-hour ‘aerobathon’ on Saturday, March 8 at Mogoditshane Senior Secondary School to raise money for the underprivileged children in the Kweneng region.

Energetic fundraisers from the ministry and the public at large spent six hours working up a sweat during the aerobathon. Judges selected impressive individuals who showed a range of skills and commitment throughout the entire six hours.

The aerobathon challenged individuals to work out for the entire selected number of hours. “The main purpose of this event is to promote physical fitness in the ministry as well as raise money for charity” said Molefe Lebotse, senior education officer wellness and organser of the annual event.

He said they introduced aerobics among the ministry's workers because of the study carried out in 2008-9 which indicated that job stress and other communicable diseases hamper productivity in the workplace.

He said the main aim was to promote healthy lifestyle in the ministry thus increase efficiency. He added that the event also promoted socialisation among the MOESD workers from all over the country.

Lebotse said the event started last year and the money was donated to disadvantaged children of old Naledi in Gaborone. The money is made through the P150 registration fee from all participants.

The six-hour long session included a mix of many different styles of aerobics, ranging from hi-lo, kickbox, step, warm down and many more. The sessions rotated approximately every 2 minutes to allow participants to take part in the variety of workouts.

Instructor from Aerostop club (Moeding College) Urshula Segokgo said changing the sessions every fifteen minutes was beneficial to participants in many ways. She however emphasized that participants were not allowed to rest not more than five minutes because the workout needs concentration.

“We focus on body muscles because that is where the energy comes from” she said. She said the aerobathon encouraged people who have not been involved in health fitness activities to have fun and workout at the same time.

The aerobathon was open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., for people to come and go as they please. Not only did participants get the chance to work out, but they also had an opportunity to participate for the whole six hours for the best results.

After six long hours of sweaty exercises, participants travelled to Maharaja in Gaborone for the prize giving ceremony. One of the judges Masego Selepeng said they were looking at different things to select winners in every category.

“We were looking at someone who can attend all sessions, able to follow instructions, proper execution of moves, effort, endurance and positive attitude.

For both females and males, there were winners for best follower, best kickbox, best motivator, and best overall which was won by Onthusitse Jackson from Orapa health and fitness. Jackson said he was involved in aerobics and it was not the first time he participates in an aerobathon. “I am so happy and I never thought I would be judged” he said.Ends