I’m one month in another three-month commitment I’ve made with myself to do Weight Watchers (more on that later). One of the things the program always seems to reinforce with me is how much more important diet seems to be than physical activity with respect to weight loss. I’ve been active for quite some time, but until I really change what I eat, I find it hard to lose weight.
Having said that, I still think it’s very important that we teach kids to be physically active for any number of reasons. That’s why I think programs to encourage such behavior are a good idea. Unfortunately, a recent report from the RWJF shows that we aren’t doing a great job of that in school:
A significant number of obese or overweight children are in urban areas, are from minority populations, or are poor. And schools that serve those kids, overwhelmingly, have no recess. We need to focus efforts there.
