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Students exercise with home workouts, try healthy recipes, thanks to USA Olympic athlete Lavetta Tevis


Lavetta Tevis, a USA Olympic athlete who brought weightlifting to afterschool programs in Covington schools, is focused on keeping kids moving and giving them healthy snack options, even though Covington students have been stuck at home for months. She is providing two workout videos and two nutritional recipes a week, all of which can be accessed HERE through the 21st Century CLC Virtual Program.

Lavetta is encouraging students to use whatever they have at home to stay active.

“Because most kids do not have a home gym or have limited equipment or no equipment at home, I try to put together workouts that involve their body weight,” she said. “I have incorporated a jump rope, which most students have. I use cans of soup/veggies and water jugs filled with water as weights and a mop or broom stick or a PVC pipe as a barbell.”

The workouts include a variety of exercises, such as sit-ups, push-ups, squats, planks, and lunges. The students can deadlift with water jugs or do bicep curls with food cans. The workouts typically are timed or done in rounds. Lavetta has taught the students to take their heart rate before and after the workout and drink plenty of water.

She films her workouts at Florence Strength and Conditioning in Florence.

A home cook, Lavetta tries to offer students simple recipes with ingredients they might have at home. “I try to pick simple and healthy recipes that typically have five or less ingredients,” she said. “These ingredients are very common and are staples in the kitchen, such as honey, milk, peanut butter, etc. I also try to introduce some of my favorite ingredients to the students, such as Greek yogurt, almond milk, mangoes, blueberries, etc.”

As an example, she has taught students how to make frozen yogurt-covered blueberries with only two ingredients – Greek vanilla yogurt and blueberries. If a recipe needs a stove, knife or items that require some adult help, she tells students to get help from an older sibling, parent, guardian or grandparent.

Even though this school year has been difficult for students, families and staff, Lavetta feels she has provided healthful experiences for students. “I think my lessons have kept students moving,” she said. “They have learned how to use what resources they had around the house to get in a good workout. My recipes have been short and sweet and have given the students the opportunity to experiment with various healthy foods and to ‘create’ a healthy snack option for themselves.”

A Holmes High School graduate, Lavetta is “happy to be part of the team” and help students on their health and wellness journey. “I have been with Covington Partners since February 2019, and I have enjoyed every minute of it,” said Lavetta.

Covington Partners


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