Anatomy students complete body plan lab

Students in Mrs. Lawson’s Anatomy and Physiology class performed the Body Plan Lab. It showed students how cardiovascular fit they really were. It also teaches students the lifelong benefits of exercising to improve the cardiovascular system.

Amelie Million, a sophomore who is in Mrs. Lawson’s fourth period class stated “It was really cool to see because even though I run cross country, I have never really paid much attention to my heart rate or pulse.” The main goal of the lab was to teach the students the importance of comprehending the heart rate while exercising safely. The students also learned that cardiovascular exercise makes the heart beat faster, makes breathing harder and causes the body to use oxygen more efficiently.

Students first learned how to properly calculate heart rates by locating their pulse points either on their wrists or necks. Using either their right index or middle finger, they counted the number of beats in fifteen seconds and multiplied by four. This indicates how many times the heart beats in one minute. To complete the lab, they monitored their heart rate before and after exercise. They counted the number of beats in six seconds both before and after the activity. The students then added a zero to the totals. The exercises included jumping jacks and running in place. They monitored the heart rate that was taken after they exercised until that heart rate returned to normal. This heart rate is known as the resting rate. The quicker the student’s heart rate recovered, the better the cardiovascular fitness level is for that student.

Story by Natallie Noel