PHOENIX — Tom Eggert or Mr. Eggert as his students know him, isn’t your typical P.E. teacher.
“I like how he actually takes his time to do videos and shoot them and there's a lot of them,” says Cesar Chavez HS freshman Arlette Sanchez.
Eggert’s classes are authentically made. Instead of grabbing a video off of YouTube, he makes his own.
"I thought the best way for me to connect with my kids would be for me to do it, so I go out in 115-degree heat shooting at 5 in the morning and the video comes from the discussions in class,” Eggert says.
The workouts aren’t necessarily easy.
”He does different workouts. He either does arms, legs, abs. They are all killers, they all burn and everything,” adds Sanchez.
He turns his classes into what he calls tournaments, putting the competitive stride for each student.
”Last week we did a virtual turkey trot I gave 1.2, 2.4, and 3.1 (mile). I had a few people turn in a 3.1(mile),” adds Eggert.
Friday morning, students in Mr. Eggert's class are waking up to a Jingle Jog challenge. He went out to Vertuccio Farms earlier this week and shot his latest video as a source of inspiration.
“From my standpoint, I was like how do I work with these kids as if I'm right there in front of them,” says Eggert.
"Mr. Eggert encourages you to do more and more reps, it's great," adds Sanchez.
In a year where everything has been so out of balance, Mr. Eggert keeps creatively inspiring by being part of the challenge.
“The challenge I recently entered has 12 days left and I need 42 miles to get to 100. I've got my work cut out for me. I've gotten into a little better shape than I normally would and it's allowed me flexibility. I just want to be able to give the kids choices and make a connection at the end of the day. Whatever I can do to keep kids engaged, anybody can go out and walk a mile, run a mile, but why not go out and do something fun? “ he adds.
