Did you know that May is National Physical Fitness and Sports Month? Started by the President’s Council on Fitness, Sports and Nutrition in 1983, during the Reagan Administration, this advocacy month is aimed at encouraging Americans to adopt healthy lifestyles.
Throughout the year, the council promotes resources and initiatives on eating healthy and staying active, including exercise and nutrition guidelines, school breakfast programs, the Let’s Move! campaign and the #0to60 campaign to increase physical activity. And the Move Your Way campaign provides a special opportunity to highlight healthy living, and to help raise awareness.
Additionally, the Biden Administration continues to support the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s “Active People, Healthy Nation” initiative, which provides local governments, schools, and community organizations with a blueprint to help 27 million Americans become more physically active by 2027. They also support the Department of Health and Human Services’ “Move Your Way” campaign, which informs Americans about the newest guidance on staying healthy through physical activity.
National Physical Fitness and Sports Month is a time to highlight the importance of staying active through sports and other fitness activities. Celebrate this observance by promoting the importance of 60 minutes per day of physical activity for kids (and 30 minutes per day for adults) and providing opportunities to be physically active at school and at home, such as:
- The President’s Council on Fitness, Sports and Nutrition recommends getting off the bus or subway one stop early to work in extra steps.
- According to CDC researchers, less than 15 percent of U.S. adults eat enough fruit to meet the daily federal recommendations. Try adding some fruit to your morning cereal, oatmeal, or yogurt.
- Incorporate National Bike to School Day into your plans, which also takes place in May.
- Encourage families to participate at home. Check out Game On’s Family Activity Points for 40+ tips for an active family.
- Offer intramural sports or pick-up games at school and encourage students and families to attend.
- Bust out those hula hoops and jump ropes and compete with your family members for longest hoop record or best jump rope trick! These may not be official sports, but they’re a great way to get moving and have fun with your family!
- Catching a little TV? Not a problem! Participate with your family and see if you can hold a plank for an entire commercial break or spend the breaks running in place for a quick and fun family workout.
- Compete with your family in an Olympic Style event! Who can run the fastest sprint or jump the furthest?
- Try a new sport together! Frisbee, badminton, croquet and bocce ball are all easy sports to learn and play in your yard.
Did you know that aerobic exercise alone leads to only modest losses in body weight? Exercise programs for improving body composition should include both aerobic exercise and strength training. We can all come together, feel better, and live longer if we stay active, exercise, and keep moving. It makes us healthier, and that is good for our families, our economy, and our Nation.
To find out how to get moving, go to the Department of Health and Human Services Move Your Way website.
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