Fitness for Falcons
Mom.me: Kids go to school early for fitness
Niesha Lofing - The Sacramento Bee - Tuesday, December 1, 2009
Logan Garcia is proud of himself.
He should be.
Garcia, 13, has been getting to Katherine L. Albiani Middle School 45 minutes early most days to participate in a before-school fitness program aimed at students at risk for obesity or children who want to increase athleticism or gain fitness and nutrition knowledge.
He exercises hard and has come to enjoy yoga and Pilates the most. He's incorporating nutrition lessons into his eating habits and is even teaching his parents a few things.
"I've lost almost 10 pounds," Garcia said, his face beaming with pride beneath beads of sweat earned during boot-camp-style calisthenics one recent morning.
"It's taught me to be more active and eat better," he said of the TRI(y!) Fitness for Falcons program. "This is exactly what I need."
Garcia is one of about 30 students enrolled in the free program, funded through a grant by the Mercy Foundation to Methodist Hospital of Sacramento.
An epidemic of obesity, and the diseases that stem from it, is trickling down into younger generations, making the need for a fitness and nutrition program at the middle school level more critical than ever, said Rondi Crowley, bariatric program manager for Methodist Hospital.
"We're just trying to say that 'Hey, a few changes can make a big difference,' " Crowley said. "We see the effects in the adult world … If we can help kids at an early age, this is something that'll stick with them. It's all about changing behavior."
Little changes have already made an impact for Tracy Green-Taylor, 44, who started attending the program with her 12-year-old daughter, Kayla Taylor.
"I'm in really bad shape," Green-Taylor said. "This is a good opportunity for me and an opportunity to encourage Kayla."
Green-Taylor has started replacing sugar-laden sodas and energy drinks with water. Kayla now brings nutritious lunches packed at home. Gone is the juice box, a bottle of water in its place.
The physical activity also has helped Green-Taylor in ways she didn't expect.
"I have less fatigue and my cravings are less," she said. "And I sleep really good."
Parent participation is encouraged, and a 12-week parent transformation program is set to launch in January. Parents also are informed of their child's progress every two weeks, said Maria Kang, founder of Fitness Without Borders, a fitness education nonprofit contracted to run the program at Albiani Middle.
The parental component is important because at the middle school age, parents "have more influence than they realize," Kang said.
The fitness program's measure of success is in helping students develop lasting healthy habits without stigma or marginalization.
That would look like Logan Garcia, who even after a rigorous workout, bounded out the door to his first class of the day, a grin filling his flushed face.
Mission accomplished.
