Fit Kids: Simple ways to get your kids active
By: John Kucko
Updated: February 20, 2009
It's a program run by the YMCA. Flag football for kids; boy and girls, from all backgrounds, designed to get them off the couch and on the field.
"It's a program, through the YMCA USA, and actually the NFL gave us a grant to start the program, and it's really open to everybody," said Kevin Fitzpatrick, who runs the Eastside YMCA. "So again, every kid plays every position, every kid gets a chance to be on offense, to be on defense, to be a quarterback, and to really experience all the different things that are there."
Fitzpatrick is fully aware of how childhood obesity has exploded the last two decades, and how good health habits start at home.
"Whether its in the pool, whether it's in the gym, whether it's in the adventure center, just coming, being active for 20, 30 minutes a day with their family, and having something where they're fun," said Fitzpatrick.
Village Sports in Fairport is designed to give kids that "backyard" experience, an intimate setting where they can get much needed physical activity.
"When we were kids, all the love of the sports that we developed and my friends developed was by playing informally outside with their friends," said Glenn Connors of Village Sports. "Nowadays because of the concerns parents have for the security of their kids they don't put them outside anymore. As a result, all that creativity they developed by playing the games on their own, all the sandlot games, is all gone."
Case in point: activity centers compete with couches, gymnasiums giving way to gamepads, and the video game generation. It's a lazier society.
"You see kids, day in and day out, they come to the YMCA that you want to say 'Let's get active,'" said Fitzpatrick. "Is transportation an issue? Is money an issue? We try to break down all of those barriers, but it's really getting to the root of it in high school gym, when they cut some of it out, do they have to have it as an elective. It's really what is society looking to do to try and combat this problem."
