Here in the Sunshine State, residents can choose from a vast array of outdoor activities any time of year, with pleasant weather and beautiful scenery of all sorts to enjoy. Despite Florida’s exciting opportunities for physical activity, however, a quarter of the state’s youth are overweight or obese. Like in many other states across the nation, there has been increasing availability and advertisement of unhealthy junk foods, and decreasing access to physical activity due to financial and time constraints. As a result, many children and families have difficulty eating healthy and being active. But I believe that there is hope, and that a healthy lifestyle is still available to all of Florida’s residents.
As part of my service through the North Florida Health Corps, I help to implement and coordinate the YMCA of Florida’s First Coast Youth Fit for Life (YFFL) Program. This program was created to lower the obesity rate and educate kids about the importance of being active and eating healthy. My target population is youth between the ages of 5 and 12 years old that are enrolled in the YMCA’s before- and after- school care program. In Clay County, where I serve, this population varies greatly, ranging from suburban to rural and from higher to lower socio-economic status.
I collaborate with fellow North Florida Health Corps member Kylie Repasy (Dupont YMCA Physical Activity & Nutriton educator) to create weekly lesson plans that teach kids about nutrition and physical activity through fun and age-appropriate activities. After creating the lesson plans, I go to each of the 26 elementary school sites with the YMCA after school program and either teach the lessons to the students or train and observe group counselors who implement the lessons. This task can be challenging at times, since 26 schools are a lot to cover, and since the group counselors have varying familiarity with lesson implementation and with nutrition and fitness. Through the challenges, however, I stay motivated by reminding myself that the obesity epidemic will continue to plague our youth unless we take action.
I am extremely encouraged by the progress I have seen in my students from when I started in September to now. Many of the kids that struggled to do even one push-up or who hated breaking a sweat now enjoy the fun YFFL exercises and even excel at doing them. Seeing this with my own eyes has proven to me that there is hope for curbing obesity and diet-related disease in Florida and throughout the United States. Children don’t need high-tech gym machinery or the latest tricked-out treadmills to get moving and get healthy. Through my service I’ve learned that children can be inspired when you give your time and creativity to keep them active and engaged in learning about physical activity and nutrition.
Here in the Sunshine State, residents can choose from a vast array of outdoor activities any time of year, with pleasant weather and beautiful scenery of all sorts to enjoy. Despite Florida’s exciting opportunities for physical activity, however, a quarter of the state’s youth are overweight or obese. Like in many other states across the nation, there has been increasing availability and advertisement of unhealthy junk foods, and decreasing access to physical activity due to financial and time constraints. As a result, many children and families have difficulty eating healthy and being active. But I believe that there is hope, and that a healthy lifestyle is still available to all of Florida’s residents. 