Issue Date: March 30, 2008
A fitness challenge
By Dr. Tedd Mitchell
The first National President's Challenge is a call for Americans to be active for at least a half-hour (an hour for youths under 18), five days a week, for at least six out of eight weeks. As a member of the President's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports, I know this event will change the lifestyles of many people -- for good.
Sign up between now and April 3 at presidentschallenge.org. The event began March 20 but will last through May 15. Participants ages 6 and older can log their activity, and if they meet the requirements -- even by walking five days a week -- they can get a certificate and other awards from the President's Challenge website.
USA WEEKEND's FitSmart columnist, Jorge Cruise, is a challenge advocate, and I recently spoke with him. "People will get motivated for six weeks," Cruise says. "They'll adapt their lifestyles to the challenge. Once it becomes a part of their regular day, it will be easier to fit it in indefinitely."
Many folks' exercise resolutions fail because their focus flags after a few weeks. But the rewards are immediate: In addition to its very real health benefits, exercise can increase energy, improve the ability to think on your feet and reduce back pain, heartburn and restlessness at night. It makes you happier. If I could create a pill that did all of that, I'd sell out in no time.
Tedd Mitchell, M.D., president of Dallas' Cooper Clinic, writes HealthSmart every week.
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