PE - did it promote a life long love of sport or was it ritual torture?

[LuckyMum96]

Just that really, for me it was mixed - too much PE was focussed on the school teams though and not enough on general exercise and activity

Hated it with a passion. Teacher was a dreadful woman who would do anything to humiliate you. Lucky for me she could never remember my name, and instead of shouting "Steamfan" at me when she wanted to speak to me she would scream "Stampfan" and I would ignore her for some while "oh, did you mean me miss? Thought it was someone else". In the sixth form there was an option to learn golf, but it was taken by all the favourites before anyone else had a chance

I liked it all except showers and changing, which I found sooooo embarassing.

But I like running around playing games. I don't remember being picked or not picked-- I don't think we did picking? I honestly don't recall.

I played on the school teams for netball and football but wasn't very good! I just liked crashing about. Everyone said they hated it so I said I hated it too. Just like maths (which I also secretly liked).

Torture. I was and still am rather bookish. It was made worse by the fact that 2 of my classmates competed at national level at their sports and totally outclassed the rest of us.

I didn't enjoy it and found it a waste of time. We played a lot of netball and I never knew the rules (most of us didn't)

There was also a lot of rounders which mostly involved standing around waiting for a turn.

I just don't think it was very effective in getting us moving and certainly put me off exercise for a long time after leaving school.

Torture. Didn’t have access to a swimming pool which was the one sport I could do well at. I loved football and went to watch it every weekend. Wasn’t allowed to play it at school because girls didn’t. In hockey, they used to put all the team together and use it as an extra practice against the rest of us. I largely remember standing around getting colder and colder watching the team run around with the ball.
By sixth form it improved because they let us try other things, like squash, and they also let us go to the local pool so I could actually do the sport I was good at. Bit late by then, my hatred of PE was ingrained.
As an adult, I swim. But I avoid all other forms of exercise.

Ritual Torture

I hated it, hated being the one no-one wanted in their team, hated being the one that everyone laughed at and humiliated.

Only sportsI enjoy watching are Dressage, Show Jumping and Gymnastics.

When I attended a was actually performed very well, my school reports said as much. The problem was the horrendous bullying I endured throughout my school life. This meant I did not get picked for teams etc. I played truant for 90%of my lessons and not just PE because of the bullying.

Loathed it - didn't mind gymnastics, dance and aerobics but hated everything else - pretty much anything involving a ball and that was 90% what we did

I didn’t enjoy it at all and it made me believe I was bad at all sports / physical exercise.
I was 38 when I learnt that wasn’t true, by taking up horse riding and judo, both of which I’ve surprised myself by enjoying hugely and actually being ok at!

Torture. Vile.

Lifelong hatred of sport and being overweight. Thankfully I found weightlifting which I adore and now I'm stronger and fitter than ever.

Ritual torture. I have severe hyper extension of both knees and hyper mobility in my knees, hips and shoulders. My mother (a nurse) refused to listen or get them seen, but PE was agony. I kept telling the PE teachers how painful it was to run etc but they didn't listen. One of my teachers actually shouted across the whole changing room, where 60 or so other girls were getting changed, "are you taking the fucking piss?", which caused all my peers to laugh at me. I didn't have many friends before that. I had none afterwards.

I've since had to have two operations to stabilise my knees, and now facing one for my shoulder. I wasn't taking the fucking piss.

Ritual torture.

Picking teams - nothing worse for a child’s self esteem.

I can still remember our PE teacher, Miss Buckley, shouting at all of us at the back during cross country running, that most hated of all PE lessons - “If you lot don’t start running I’m going to make you do the whole thing again.” Bitch.

I found it grim, I'm useless at running so school games as they were in the late 70s were not great for me. I was good at sailing and cycling so not completely hopeless. But the school wrote me off games wise

Because I also didn't have any friends, I was never chosen to play in any of the more fun team games so I spent every PE lesson watching my peers playing tennis etc. I was actually very good at tennis if I'd ever been allowed to actually play.

Torture. Miserable, pointless and poorly taught. I have joint hypermobility and ended up in terrible pain after most of these classes. Refused to participate any more after age 14. If we’d been made to shower I would have refused much earlier, I was an early developer and there was no bloody way anyone was seeing me in less than my underwear. I made the most of my horrendous periods and nurtured a verucca for two years.

These days I still dislike most sports, even as a spectator. But I love walking and hiking, and do weightlifting and yoga.

I still can never fathom why teachers could get away with not actually teaching in this subject. They did nothing to help those of us not naturally talented to improve or even want to do better. Hope it is easier for kids now.

Really enjoyed team sports at school.

Found it harder as a young adult as it cost more than I could afford to join and do the travel required for team sports. Now I could afford it I haven't found team sports played by my age group near me, and haven't the time, or sufficient inclination, to try to set it up, so only do solitary exercise now.

@derxa

assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/413540/School_Sport_Partnerships_-_summary.pdf The School Sports Partnership scheme launched in 2002 in English schools was a great initiative. Money was poured into school sport. Money for equipment, teacher training in sport etc etc. Lots of focus on inclusivity. But carry on talking about PE as if it is delivered by sadists.

2002! I started secondary school in 1966 so that was a bit late for most of the people commenting here, I think.

Torture... dreaded it and it spoilt my school days, never recovered from the humiliation of it

Ritual torture.

In my 20s however I have garnered a love for gym classes although that was probably by accident as a result of the stereotypical (get fit for the wedding' 😁

The question in the OP was asking how we experienced PE ourselves and people have answered that question.

Torture for me. I was never picked for team games and have poor hand eye co-ordination. I could run 100m and hurdles and do high jump and long jump but poor at everything else and it gave me a life long hatred of exercise, apart from walking and swimming.
I joined a gentle exercise class a few years ago and was amazed that I enjoyed it.
Some PE teachers still do their best to kill any interest in sport. My DGC liked sport at primary school and was good at it. The secondary teacher put her off it.

Loved sport until secondary PE.

PE teachers turned me off exercise and I invented genius reasons to get out of PE.

They do a lot of damage, PE teachers, don't they?

Torture and also gave me a lifelong hatred of all sports and team games.

I had a PE teacher who wasn't at all competitive (rare) and instilled in us that (a) there is an exercise that suits everyone, you just have to find it; and (b) it doesn't matter if you're shit at something provided you give it a go.

She also made communal showers after PE optional, for which I am eternally grateful (I had anxiety dreams about showering with others before I started secondary school).

I am not a natural sports person but I am active and fit as an adult. A lot of that is down to her.

Neither really.

But I can second others that there was very little teaching going on. The rules and that's about it. I was half-decent at some sports, crap at others, and there was nothing to try and change that. We just had to get on with whatever we were playing for the day. I was basically fit at least which probably spared me the hell levels some experienced.

Perhaps fortunately, we never showered. The teacher allocated a minimal amount of time at the end of the lesson to get changed and get off to our next class.