Conflicted about whether I should email school: AIBU?

[Itwasntmeright]

I would like to preface this by saying that DS is not a snowflake, and I am not a parent that would indulge snowflakery, and neither is DS unfit.

DS has come home yesterday saying he was hurting after PE. Apparently they’ve been doing fitness and the teacher had them holding squats and lunges and god knows what all lesson. I just chuckled indulgently and said PE can be hard. Today they’ve had another lesson where, and I quote, ‘he’s had us doing stretches to fix it because he saw us waddling in like a bunch of penguins.’ DS has come home asking for ibuprofen because he says it hurts to walk.

I’m not happy about this. It’s fair to say that this particular PE teacher has a reputation for essentially beasting the kids, and being, for want of a better word, a bit of a twat. I have heard from current and past students that he teases the kids and frequently crosses the line into being a bully.

I’m not happy. Fair enough work the kids hard, it’s what PE is for, but there is such a thing as overdoing it, and the teacher has clearly overdone it this time. One should not be in actual pain to the point of needing pain relief after a workout, and the fact that the teacher has had the kids stretching each others’ muscles out today suggests he knows he’s overstepped. My natural instinct was to email DS’s tutor and raise my concerns, but she is also a PE teacher, and the teacher taking these lessons is known to be a bit of a power mad arse, and I don’t want them to just laugh about it between themselves and then for the teacher to take it out on DS tomorrow.

1. AI actually BU here and am I being that parent?

1. If the answer to 1 is no, would it BU to email DS’s tutor, who is also a PE teacher, and raise my concerns?

I know the teacher who took the lesson has been at a different school for a while and has just returned, and it’s my feeling that he’s on a bit of a power trip to reassert himself. Everything I’ve heard about him from several sources, some of them other adults, suggests this is not an unreasonable or unfair assumption to make.

PS. I’m bracing myself here, I’ve a feeling I might be in for a bit of a beasting of my own.

PPS. DS is in Y9.

its just DOMS

its normal

No it's Normal. It hurts when you do it. Itll get better.

With PE lessons there are usually multiple teachers around, so maybe you could ask your son if any others were around. If there were I would think what they were doing was probably ok, if not I would be asking questions.

If you can’t feel it afterwards you haven’t exercised.

I thought you were talking about primary school aged kids not 13/14 year olds! No pain, no gain at that age surely

Ok, so I am being unreasonable. I’ve just looked up DOMS and it says one of the things you can do is go for a walk. We walk anyway so I shall drag him out.

Maybe best I did ask on here then. This is why I was hesitant to email, in case I was being a tit.

Sounds like DOMS. Which is normal after doing unfamiliar exercises.

the day after I ran London Marathon my trainer dragged me out for a recovery run...best thing ever

Yes you are that parent.
Maybe he could knit?

@HereComesSpringAgain

the day after I ran London Marathon my trainer dragged me out for a recovery run...best thing ever

I was on a 12 hour flight after a marathon, I seized up so much I could barely get out my seat and I very stylishly feel down the stairs to exit the plane 😂

DOMS is a killer but totally normal!

YABU doing exercises like this is much better than just getting them to run around a field every lesson.

If the PE lesson was really bad and he was injured then you could mention it but it sounds like it was more painful afterwards which is completely normal and why they did a stretching session the day afterwards.

It’s worse if you sit/lie down for a long time. It’s definitely best to walk around the following day although this is hard when they’re sat at school all day.

This is why I was hesitant to email, in case I was being a tit.

Honestly asking on MN has saved me from looking like a nob more than once (and also supported me when I was under reacting!)

I don’t want them to just laugh about it between themselves

This would definitely happen I’m afraid! DOMS are a completely normal thing, I can’t believe he’s avoided exercise enough to get to year 9 without having them before. If they do the same exercises for a few weeks he will feel the difference and feel good about it.

@montysma1

Yes you are that parent. Maybe he could knit?

What a stupid comment.

The teacher taught a good PE lesson that exercised the students. I don't understand what you would be complaining about. I also wouldn't listen to nonsense about someone's reputation.

YABU, sorry.

Wasn't everyone's PE teacher a sadist? I thought that was normal. I remember having to plank for 60 seconds for being a gobby whinger back in the early 90s.

You've taken this in very good grace op, but muscle pain afterwards is pretty much the point of exercise. It's your muscles working to repair themselves and get stronger.
I'm guessing you guys are fit from walking and more gentle exercise, because you would get this feeling from any kind of hard sports match, hard run, body pump class, circuits class etc etc
I wouldn't take pain killers for this, I'd stretch or go for a walk.

YABU for using twattish terms like 'snowflake' and 'beasting'.

I'd say it's quite a good lesson actually. That exercise can hurt and that the fix is stretching.

I ache like hell after a gym session and if I do a lot on legs then my thighs can hurt for days.

That's what weights and things like squats and sit ups do.

Exactly the same thing happened to my DS though he is only in Y4. He is very fit and does a lot of sport but was still in a bit if a state after a squat-based PE lesson at school, as were the rest of the class and the teacher too! I thought it was quite funny really. They also did a stretching/ yoga based PE lesson the next day to recover. Clearly the teacher overdid it a bit but it didn't do any harm and I'm sure they'll tone it down a bit next time.

I pay good money to feel like that after a gym session!

My dc comes home every week aching from pe, I always make sure I have some muscle soak bubble bath for him, he loves pe tho will take it for his gcse so doesn't moan to much about the aches, I just assume it's because he's doing it whole heartly and putting alot off effort in.

A decent PE teacher would explain about DOMS, but I don't think this is cause for horror. I would just reinforce the fact that your DS has every right to drop out of a squat (or anything else) when he's reached the end of what feels bearable, and if the teacher challenges him to explain 'I'm doing what I can but I'm not going to push my body to the point that I risk injury'. I don't think any normal PE teacher is going to be horrible about a teenager trying everything to the best of their ability but stopping when they're in pain.