"A Unique Opportunity For Schools and Communities To Promote Youth Fitness"
Consider the following:
- 30% of US schoolchildren are overweight, and another 30% are right on the verge of being there with them.
- 8-18 year olds in the US spend an average, an AVERAGE, of 7 1/2 hours per day using some type of technology (computer, video games, cell phone, etc).
- Less than 3% of adults over the age of 24 stay in shape by playing team sports. 
This lack of consistent physical activity that begins early in life is linked to many health epidemics. Plus, it leads to increased rates of mental disorders later in life, including memory loss and depression.
Those facts are just downright disturbing, if for no other reason than that the solution is just so simple.
Kids should be moving around often, they simply need fun and engaging reasons to turn away from technology and embrace healthier habits. At their core, most kids love to run around.
Regular exercise is not just an easy sell once it is seen as fun, but it is quite clearly a great way to stay healthy over the course of your life and avoid the future pitfalls listed above.
But even if that wasn't enough, its growing link to short-term and life-long brain-boosting capabilities is becoming undeniable.
The California Department of Education has consistently found that those with higher fitness scores consistently have higher test scores.
The CDE also determined that 45 minutes to 1 hour of moderate to vigorous physical activity 3-5 times per week led to positive changes in body fat levels, cardiovascular fitness, self-esteem, bone density and academic performance while lowering the risk of depression and anxiety.
“The research consistently shows that the more fit you are, the more resilient your brain becomes and the better it functions both cognitively and psychologically. If you get your body in shape, your mind will follow.”
John J. Ratey, MD, author of "SPARK: The Revolutionary New Science of Exercise and the Brain"
“The point that I’ve tried to make – that exercise is the single most powerful tool you have to optimize your brain function – is based on evidence I’ve gathered from hundreds and hundreds of research papers, most of them published only within the last decade.”
John J. Ratey, MD
Schools and local communities can be powerful influences on what habits children develop in their earlier years. Imagine the potential impact they can have on the health and well-being of this next generation.
Power Source Training would like to help in solving this nation-wide crisis for our local communities.
Not only can we run programs to promote youth fitness, but we are also actively seeking to donate our time to help schools and communities find ways to get kids more active themselves.
Here are a few ideas that may be of interest to you:
- Activities with specific learning objectives that target state standards in any subject, but also include physical activity. This can tie in to science labs, writing assignments, math skills (probability, data analysis, etc), and much more. These activities can be reproduced at any elemenrary or middle school grade level.
- Ideas for making recess and lunch time more effective in promoting better health and nutrition.
- Before or after-school fitness programs
- Saturday group fitness programs at schools or fields in your community.
If you'd like to sit down and talk with us about how we can help your kids build healthier habits, please contact us by phone, mail, or e-mail.
We look forward to working with any school or youth organization leaders in or near Central Massachusetts that want to find new and creative ways to promote healthy lifestyles for their students and community members.
Parents, coaches, and school officials who are committed to lowering childhood obesity levels may be interested in checking out letsmove.gov, a great new resource with tons of activity and nutrition-related tips.
