After the dark ages and the Middle Ages, there was a rebirth of cultural knowledge. Inspired by ancient Greek and Roman civilization, it created the Renaissance. During this period the interest in the human body was the thing. Remember, the ancient Greek glorified the human body.
Martin Luther (religious leader), John Locke (philosopher), Vittorino da Feltre, John Comenius and Richard Mulcaster (physical educators) had a high level of fitness to improve their intellectual learning.
Civilizations that recognized the importance of fitness need to convey it to people. Fitness and physical education have a common bond. So, physical education was the solution to spread the values and benefits of fitness. Before, school programs in ancient Greek already included physical education. The appreciation of human life during the Renaissance helped to develop physical education. As a result, physical education transmitted throughout Europe.
National Period in Europe (1700 – 1850)
Europe suffered several cultural changes after the Renaissance. Despite that fitness stayed high and continued. Physical education programs extend in the emerging country in Europe. The feeling of nationalism and independence has created the first modern fitness movement. These were gymnastics programs. They were popular in Germany, Denmark, Sweden, and Great Britain.
That’s all for today. Soon the rest of the fitness history
-Steph