Is Getting Healthy a Hopeless Cause for Adults?

By , SparkPeople Blogger
Last week while I was watching our local morning news show, one of the country’s leading pioneers of fitness, Dr. Kenneth Cooper, was giving an interview regarding the rise in childhood obesity, especially here in Texas. While I applaud his effort, I was taken aback when he stated he was giving up on trying to change adults, therefore, he was now focusing his attention on the next generation, our kids.

At first I was a tad angry--here was the “Father of Aerobics” stating he was giving up the fight for adults to get healthy. How could he? After all he was the first to coin the term aerobics back in the late 1960s. He was the one who led the crusade to get us all off the couch and moving and now he was abandoning the cause he worked so tirelessly over the years to change.

But I must admit, the more I thought about this, the more I believe Dr. Cooper may be on to something. He and countless other health and fitness professionals have given the world the knowledge and the tools for well over 40 years now on how to get fit and healthy, and it is up to us, as adults, to implement these ideas into action. Maybe he believes that before this next generation gets set in their ways, he can help influence them much earlier than he could with adults.

We must all learn to accept the obstacles of losing weight and getting fit in a society riddled with fast food restaurants on almost every corner and where every day conveniences keep us from getting in the activity we need. We need to demand more from our schools to get physical education reinstated and healthier food options in the cafeterias. We, as adults, need to be role models for our children so they can see how it is to live a healthy life. We have to be willing to put as much energy into getting fit as we do in all other aspects of our lives. If we fail to take action now, we will all pay the price in the future. This is once again where SparkPeople comes into play. The tools are available, it is up to each and every one of us to use them.

I am pleased to hear Dr. Cooper hasn’t given up entirely on wanting to change the country’s health and fitness direction. I think by tackling our kids and their weight issues, parents will be forced to change, too, therefore, this will be a win, win situation for everyone. And maybe this is just another approach to get us ALL to change.

Even so, I am not willing to abandon the ship. It took me 43 years to finally learn the concept that diets do not and will not work. It is up to me to decide I deserve to be healthy, however, I am glad to know SparkPeople is crusading to get the world fit and healthy even if it is one person at a time!

Do you believe getting the world fit is a hopeless cause? Are you willing to commit or recommit yourself to being healthy? Will you commit yourself to getting your kids healthy?