The children at the Boys & Girls Club sat huddled close together on the floor Wednesday, each with a leg stretched out.
“Switch legs, guys,” said Health and Wellness Center intern Maggie Roe as she put out a different leg, leaned into it and asked the children about a different stretch. “Does everybody know how to do the butterfly?”
The boys and girls, all ages 6 to 9, were participating in the Healthy Kids Club, a program of The Medical Center’s Health and Wellness Center that focuses on physical activity and healthy nutrition for children. The program usually costs $10, but the center teamed with the Boys & Girls Club to offer scholarships for the children. Roe teaches two separate classes – one with 19 children and the other with 34 – for about an hour twice a week.
“These are the essential years to develop those good habits of exercise and nutrition,” Community Wellness Manager Jenny Golden said. “We want to be able to teach good values at an early age.”
The children started the six-week program last month. For the first three weeks, they focused on exercise, including stretching, aerobics and strength training. During the last three weeks, they will learn about nutrition, including the food pyramid. They do challenges to get them interested in what they are learning and receive T-shirts at the end of the program.
“They’re so enthusiastic. They’re willing to learn,” Roe said. “They’re always curious about what we’re going to learn.”
Boys & Girls Club Executive Director Pam McIntyre said the program is going well.
“Obesity is a big issue in Kentucky and other states,” she said. “This is a good way to partner with another agency that will provide that education for us. We’re happy to be doing that.”
Since starting the Healthy Kids Club, some of the kids said they have taken what they have learned outside the classroom.
“I like to swim, run and play tag with my brother and sister,” 8-year-old Emme Chappell said. “(At Healthy Kids Club) I get to work out with my friends, and it’s fun to do with them.”
Myrycal Reed, 7, said she has learned to do push-ups and sit-ups, which are harder. Her favorite exercise is the toe touch.
“You can make your legs all the way straight,” she said as she demonstrated one. “You bend down like that.”
Madison Rather, 6, said she is used to exercising because she does cartwheels, backbends and flips in gymnastics, but also enjoys doing the exercises in the class.
“We’ve been doing this,” she said as she stretched her arms. “I used to do cheerleading, too.”
Roe said the children are usually eager to tell her about their healthy habits.
“They’ll say something like, ‘I exercised today. I did 17 laps around the gym,’ ” she said, laughing. “I love doing this. I hope they’ll learn skills they’ll keep throughout adulthood.”
Golden said organizers are happy Healthy Kids Club has been successful.
“We enjoy working with groups of children,” he said. “Any other group that is interested, we’d be happy to help provide the program.”
— For more information, call the Health and Wellness Center at 745-0942.
