I apologize for pushing this discussion off-topic with my discussion of the drawing.
In at least one retirement home, exercise teachers have students do mental challenges while doing exercises. As far as danger, some also deal simulate danger by having them practice recovery techniques from positions from which they would otherwise fall. Something that also happens in skating practice.
In the same vein, I'm still working a lot, with minimal success, on the balancing on one foot (on the floor) with eyes closed.
Maybe ice skating coaches should push their students to supplement skating with more dangerous sports...
?
Of course it is safer to practice skating skills while doing stuff like rubbing your tummie, or doing unrelated things with your hands.
Or music training. I just discussed with someone why prior music training is supposed to help students learn math skills. In addition to dealing with fractions (time signatures, rhythmic patterns), and feeling those rhythmic fractions in your whole mind and body, she claimed that music pushes people to concentrate and learn self discipline. Which skating does too. So, music, skating, and other dance should all reinforce each other. Not sure if that applies to martial arts, rock & ice climbing or sky diving. Though Kata practice resembles dance.
On a side note, I'm skeptical of claims that people are radically different from other creatures. Can it really be true that other hominids don't exercise? Do they play? I assume exercise is needed to adapt muscles, connective tissue and bones to each other's sizes, shapes, and to the physical stresses movement place on them, and to adapt the nervous system to control and receive information from their bodies, all of which vary too much from individual to individual for genetics to fix without exercise.