Heart healthRegular physical activity can lower your blood pressure and cholesterol levels and can reduce the risk of illnesses such as Type II diabetes or heart disease.

Bone supportExercise is a good way to build strong, healthy bones and can help slow the bone loss associated with getting older.

Sense of well-beingBeing in good shape can give you more energy, reduce anxiety and depression, improve self-esteem, and help you better manage stress.

Social lifeStaying active can be a great way to have fun, make new friends, and spend quality time with family.

Physical appearanceYou look better when you're in shape. Staying active helps you tone muscles and maintain a healthy weight - and can even improve your posture.

Studies show that…

Youth receiving additional physical activity tend to show improved attributes such as increased brain function and nourishment, higher energy/concentration levels, changes in body build affecting self esteem, increased self-esteem and better behavior which may all support cognitive learning.

The increased energy levels and time outside of the classroom may give relief from boredom resulting in higher attention levels during classroom instruction (Linder 1999).

•Children are 40 % less active than they were 30 years ago.

•The average Canadian child watches more than 26 hours of television and spends up to 30 hours sitting in school each week.

•Only 766 out of more than 15,800 Canadian schools have been formally recognized for quality physical education on a daily basis.

•Play habits have become more passive with new technology. Children are spending a great deal more time on computers and playing video games.

• Many students are transported to school and to other places for convenience or safety reasons.

Type 2 “Childhood” Diabetes:

Once almost never seen in adolescents, now accounts for as many as half of all new diagnoses of diabetes in North America. Diabetes is a major risk factor in the development of heart disease, blindness and kidney failure.

Rising Blood Pressure:

High blood pressure levels have been found to occur about 9 times more often among obese children and adolescents than those who are not obese.

• Elevated Cholesterol:Studies show that overweight children are 2.4 times more likely to have elevated cholesterol levels.

• Asthma Symptoms:A large study in England and Scotland of children aged 4 to 11 years showed that the level of overweight was a factor related to symptoms of asthma.

Heart Disease Risk:

Higher risk factors for heart disease seen in children and young adults were shown to be related to a greater amount of coronary artery calcification, particularly in overweight children.

Social Isolation:

Teasing about body weight has been consistently associated with low body satisfaction, low self-esteem, more symptoms of depression, and thinking about and attempting suicide.

TOTAL FITNESS Includes being:

1. Physically Fit - the ability to do a task successfully without undue

fatigue

2. Intellectually Fit

- the ability of a person to use and improve his/her mental abilities and education experience

3. Emotionally Fit

- is the ability of a person to satisfy the following needs:a) a sense of individual worth

b) a feeling of acceptance or belonging

c) self-confidence

4. Socially Fit

- is the ability to get along well with other people