Portugal: Becca Warzyn
Program: UW Movement as Medicine in Portugal, Summer
Becca’s Major: Kinesiology
How will your experience benefit you in the future? How might it affect your future career or studies?
While in Portugal, we were focused solely on one course: Sedentary Behavior and Movement as Medicine. This course has never been offered at UW, which gave us the unique experience of being completely immersed in one course topic and lots of one-on-one opportunities with the professors who designed and taught the class. Sedentary behavior and movement is something that everyone does, and everyone should be aware of. Additionally, we did not just learn about movement, we moved. We walked, biked, surfed, climbed, hiked, and included many non-sedentary breaks during class. We had the opportunity to create our own interventions for sedentary behavior and pitch them to the class. This was the most hands-on class I have ever had, and it will most definitely leave a lasting impact on how I treat patients later on and how I encourage activity.
We jumped around with strangers of many different nationalities, but everyone enjoyed it all the same. Our class topic was sedentary behavior and movement as medicine, and we definitely moved, jumped, climbed, and much more during that hiking trip.
What is your most memorable experience from your program?
The most memorable experience from our program was our trip to Sintra. We explored the various castles that sat atop the hills, and found ourselves immersed in Portugal’s incredible history and culture. The day started out clear, but fog rolled in by the time we got to the second castle. Hundreds of stairs led us to a stone tower that allowed us to look over the entire city of Lisbon. However, by this time we could hardly see ten feet in front of us due to heavy fog. This is the moment someone decided that Jump Around was the perfect mood setter for our group to celebrate the journey to the tower. We jumped around with strangers of many different nationalities, but everyone enjoyed it all the same. Our class topic was sedentary behavior and movement as medicine, and we definitely moved, jumped, climbed, and much more during that hiking trip.
What is your advice for someone considering your program?
Be prepared to try new things. This program is packed with activities, learning opportunities, and free-time to explore the city. The best food and experiences were found simply by wandering different areas of the city during our free time. Keeping an open-mind to food, traditions, suggestions from locals, and more will make the experience the best it can be. I had never surfed before in my life, similarly to my classmates, and yet surfing was one of everyone’s favorite activities during the entire trip. New can be scary, but it can also be amazing.