Get out and do something!

I was watching one of those morning news shows today and the topic was child obesity. They had this kid on who is 12 years old and weighs 250 pounds. I found it amazing that we can have kids weigh at that size. I mean, two of me could fit in this kid. Granted I weigh less than some high school girls (140 lbs) but still, what happened here.

Well, the morning show had all these doctors who root the problem to poor parenting and poor food choices. While some of this is true, I still think that as a nation that is horribly out of shape and poorly educated, I blame the schools.

At this time, I still want to blame the parents for not working on proper nutrition and getting their kids to actually do something (a bike ride didn't kill anybody). The blame is equally with our educational system, not challenging kids to not only develop a strong brain but also a strong body.

I am a product of the modern education system, where the State of New York is worried more about me passing a test at the end of the year rather than actually learning anything. At the same time, they could care less if I can run a mile in under 10 minutes, just as long as I didn't die of a coronary at the Regents.

Schools don't care about gym, it takes too much money away. While President Obama talks about trying to create better schools for America, he should also consider improving the curriculum for gym as well. School districts should take note too. Especially since studies have proved that physically active kids do better in school.

During my junior and senior years in high school (2003-2004) our gym classes were changed from regular P.E. (playing kickball or floor hockey) to strength and conditioning classes. Our teacher was a former minor league baseball player who not only directed us on building strength. He also taught us how our bodies work and how to treat them so we didn't suffer injuries. Then every couple of weeks we had to run a mile. If you ran under 10 minutes you passed, if not you failed. Since I was on the baseball team and ran cross country, along with others in the class, we had 8 minutes to get in. Needless to say, when I ran a 6:40 mile, I was happy. Not only was it the end of the mile, it also helped build habits I still do today.

As the summer approaches in Rochester, I will be making daily trips to Dryer Road park, playing roller hockey for at least an hour. Not only will I get my daily dose of vitamin D but also burn off calories created from late night drinking and that trip to Taco Bell. I can easily attribute that to thinking of missing that mile goal of under 8 minutes. I know it has helped me avoid gaining weight in college (I lost weight from late night basketball games) but also helped me avoid having a healthy blood pressure and cholesterol.

Oh and did I mention that we had gym only once a week in high school. So imagine if we made gym mandatory, everyday in schools. We could nip that childhood obesity trend in the bud. We could limit childhood diabetes and other harmful health problems in children. So parents, get up and do something with the kids, go bike riding, learn how to ice skate. GET OFF YOUR BUTT AND MOVE!!! You will live longer... healthier.


ROC SPORTS NET 2009