A Wave Of Exercise
When
The Exercise
US (Exercise United States) program will always take
place in September in honor of National Childhood Obesity Awareness month. The seventeenth annual
Exercise US day will take place on September 25, 2025. Please visit the
sign up page to get your school or organization involved.
Time
All
times zones in the United States were considered when the program was
created. You have the option of signing up for a 15 minute time slot
that works best with your school or organization. The program will
start at 8:00 a.m. eastern time, and end at 3:00 p.m. pacific time.
Sign Up
Sign up
for a time slot of your choice. The program last for 10 hours, which
totals 40 different time slots (15 minutes each) for your school or
organization to enroll. Go to the sign
up page to register. There is no charge to participate.
New Books
Len Saunders is now introducing his new books from his "An Adventure In Exercise" book series starring Joey the Kangaroo and Spunky the Monkey. Click
here to visit the books home page, and to learn how you can receive a special discount on your purchase.
Exercise Coast To Coast For 10 Hours
Exercise US
The
official date has been set regarding the seventeenth annual Exercise US program which is now scheduled for September 25,
2025. Due to many requests, the event has been moved from October to September in honor on National Childhood Obesity Awareness month. Feedback
from around the country has been outstanding, as the schools and organizations
involved loved the concept. We
hope that this years event will be just as successful! Thank you to all schools
and organizations involved in the Exercise US program throughout the years, as your support made the program a big hit. If you are new to the program this year, read on to learn more.
To register, simply click the 'sign up' link at the top of the page.
Please check out our new testimonials page, where you can share your Exercise US stories, videos, or testimonials.
Quotes Referring To The Exercise US Program
"..... a 10-hour exercise extravaganza that aims to instill healthy habits and a fondness for fitness from a young age" ~ MSN
..... an "ambitious project" ~ US News & World Report
"..... looking to build awareness of the importance of exercise and eliminate childhood obesity" ~ USA Today
Introduction
Childhood
obesity has been on the rise, as approximately 1/3 of the youth in the
United States are now considered overweight. Many reliable media
sources are stating this may be the first generation of children whose
life expectancy could be lower than their parents'. According to The
Washington Post (May 17, 2008),
"The average 10-year-old girl weighed 77 pounds in 1963; today, 88. The
10-year-old boy weighed 74; today, 85." Sadly, physical education in
the schools is being reduced, and recreation programs have taken
serious financial cuts. Sedentary lifestyles among children seem to be
peaking as technology is replacing exercise. Is there any hope on the
horizon? According to The Associated Press and CBS, (May 27, 2008), "The percentage
of American children who are overweight or obese appears to have
leveled off after a 25-year increase, according to new figures that
offer a glimmer of hope in an otherwise dismal battle." Now is the time
to motivate our children about the importance of leading a healthy
lifestyle and to lead the fight against childhood obesity. The
Department of Health & Human Services offers The Physical Activity Guidelines
for Americans on their web site which shows the importance of
physical activity towards maintaining good health.
In 1987, physical education teacher Len Saunders of
New Jersey participated in the historic youth
fitness exchange with the former Soviet Union. The Soviet
children took the United States fitness test created by The President's
Council on Physical Fitness and Sports (now named The President's Council on Fitness, Sports, and Nutrition). The children of the United
States took the Soviet fitness test. At the time, experts were stating
that the Soviet children were far superior to the American children
when it came to being physically fit. By the completion of the test,
90% of Saunders' students passed the Soviet test, far exceeding the low
expectations for the American children that was suggested by the
national media. Since then, Saunders has successfully created dozens of
children's health and fitness programs
that have motivated millions of children to exercise which includes Project ACES
and PACES
Day. Now, in the next chapter, Saunders is going to introduce
the Exercise US program.
How Does This Program Work?
The
concept behind the Exercise US program is
to motivate children to become physically fit and healthy by making
fitness fun. Children will enjoy the concept of participating in 10
continuous hours of fitness from coast to coast. Schools or
organizations that sign up will partake in 15 minutes of exercise at
their location. When their 15 minute time allotment is over, they have
completed their portion of the program. At that moment, in a new
location, the next exercise session will begin, which could potentially
be in a different state. The program will begin at 8:00 a.m. eastern
time, and finish at 3:00 p.m. pacific time.
For example, at 8:00 a.m. (Eastern Time) during the first time slot of this program, schools on the east coast will start to exercise. These schools will exercise for 15 continuous minutes, ending at 8:15 a.m. Promptly at 8:15 a.m., new schools will begin to exercise until 8:30 a.m. Then at 8:30 a.m., more schools will start exercising and conclude at 8:45 a.m. This pattern will continue for 10 hours, finishing with schools on the US West coast at 3:00 p.m. (Pacific Time). In total, there 40 potential time slots that your school can sign up for during the 10 hours of the event.
Please visit the sign up page to secure your spot in history. More than one school or organization may sign up for each time slot. This program can be done with your entire school population, or to make it simple, use one class. This program is a great way to highlight your school's physical education program or your organization's youth fitness program.
Expansion Worldwide?
If the Exercise
US program proves to be successful, the next step will
be to try and accomplish a similar program worldwide. The thought of 24
hours of continuous exercise is very exciting to think about! The
program could start on the eastern coast of the United States and start
traveling west hitting each time zone around the world.
Is there interest in Canada.....click here.