Public Health Column: Get Fit! Program begins March 7, includes eight-week YMCA pass
Genesee County Health Department Public Health Column
Are you actively taking the necessary steps to live healthy? If not, now is a great time to start if you want to make a difference in the quality and quantity of your life. Take a few moments to learn why your family should register for the FREE Get Fit! Program by March 1.
The Healthy Children and Families Coalition is offering this eight-week family-based program that makes exercising and eating right fun and realistic.
Families who register will also receive a YMCA pass to use the facility in Batavia for free throughout the duration of the program! There are also chances to win prizes throughout the program that further encourage healthy lifestyle choices.
Enroll your family today by visiting www.GetFitWNY.org or calling 585-344-5420!
Classes will be held on Thursdays, 6 to 7:30 p.m. from March 7th -- May 9th at the Pembroke Primary School, 2486 Main Road in East Pembroke, and also at Pembroke Intermediate School, 58 Alleghany Road, Corfu (for two classes only -- March 21 & 28).
There will be no class on April 18th and April 25th. Hurry, limited spots available.
Throughout the program, families will bond together through exercising, sampling healthy food choices, discovering simple and great tasting recipes, as well as learning how to eat right on a budget. Exercising is made fun with different activities each week including yoga, taekwondo, and parachute games.
The Get Fit! Program aims to battle the obesity epidemic locally. Sixty-six percent of adults and 37 percent youth in Genesee County are either overweight or obese.
But the weight problem is nationwide. And being overweight or obese contributes to your risk of developing heart disease. According to the CDC, heart disease is the leading cause death in the United States. Excess weight, even 10-20 pounds, increases a person’s risk of heart disease, stroke, Type 2 diabetes, hypertension, certain types of cancer and other medical ailments.
According to the Surgeon General, overweight adolescents have a 70 percent chance of becoming overweight or obese adults. This increases to 80 percent if one or more parent is overweight or obese. For the first time in history, it is possible for children to have a shorter life span than their parents.
The increased cost of nutritious foods, larger portion sizes, increased consumption of processed foods (typically having higher salt concentrations), and decreased physical activity are the fuel in this out of control “fire.”
The Get Fit! Program is made possible by the Genesee County Health Department, the Genesee County YMCA, Rochester Regional Health at United Memorial Medical Center, the City of Batavia Youth Bureau, Oakfield Family Medical Care, Insight Grants Development, Alexander Central School District, Pembroke Central School District, and the Rotary Club of Batavia.
