Walking & Bicycling

Carol Hawthorne

What’s the issue?Body weights have increased by approximately 10% in the

past two decadesDuring this same period, the presence of overweight

adolescents (ages 12-19 years) has more than doubled and more than tripled for children (ages 6–11 years)

Data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth indicates that the presence of overweight children in the south has increased by 6.2% annually between 1986 and 1998 a significantly higher rate than other US regions

20-45% of their recess time they are engaged in physical activity

Why are our children becoming more obese?Hectic lifestyles (both parents having to work)

Too busy to cook at homeBad nutritional habits

Processed foodsLack of safety (who can you trust these days?)Lack of parks or playgrounds within walking

or biking distanceSedentary lifestyles

Lack of physical activity

What research shows…Research has looked at physical factors,

biological factors, and behavioral factorsThe majority of their conclusions are that our

children are obese because of the LACK OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY!

WHY is physical activity lacking?Video gamesInternetTelevisionLack of supervision

(both parents working )

Lack of opportunities to be outside (safety)Lack of education about physical activity (this

falls on US!)

What’s lacking?SupervisionOpportunities to be outsideEducationNutrition

Hardest job: the children eat & act like their parents, if we don’t educate the parents then everything we are teaching in the classroom will be a losing battle

Why don’t children walk or bike to & from school?Safety & SecuritySchool PolicyInconvenienceToo far awayWeatherLack of knowledge

Chesterfield County

Crenshaw E.S.Claypoint Rd.

Hull Street Rd.

Thomas Dale H.S.

Thomas Dale H.S.

City of Richmond

Leigh St. Carver M.S.

Research…EDUCATE!!! In San Diego the city started a program called “Sidewalks to

Schools”Looked at all the city’s schools and gave them a grade on

their safety, location, population, transportation, & use of sidewalks

Started building newer schools within communities so the children could walk or bike to school

Another study was done to examine children's physical activity during recess and outside of school270 children (boys & girls) wore sealed pedometers for a

15 minute recess & 4 consecutive days after schoolAnalyzed differences between grades & gender

How do we get them active again?There are many solutions but the best solution &

less political solution is getting the children to walk & bike to their school, home, parks, friends, & jobs.

If we look to deep we get into political debates on who is to blame: the economy, the school board, the developers, the community, the teachers

Instead of pointing the blame we need to realize that creating opportunities for children to be active is what the main objective is & it is what we all are working for.

Solutions to the problem International Walk to School – Oct. 9, 2009TeamworkMore education

After school programs Informative meetings

More sidewalks Increase safety

Crossing guards, teachers, officersSchools built inside of neighborhoods

Biggest SolutionBECOME ACTIVE!!!

Be an advocate for safer streets & more physical activity for your children!

ReferencesChildren’s Physical Activity During Recess and Outside of School

(ERIC) Journal of School Health. Volume 76. p516-520. Dec 2006. Aaron Beighle, Charles F. Morgan, Guy Le Masurier, Robert P. Pangrazi

Demographic, Environmental, Access, and Attitude Factors that Influence Walking to School by Elementary School-Aged Children (ERIC) Journal of School Health. Volume 79. p255-261. Jun 2009. Ariel Rodriguez, Christine A. Vogt

Barriers to Children Walking and Biking to School (ERIC) CDChttp://www.walktoschool-usa.org/about/index.cfmhttp://cassiekleinsmith.files.wordpress.com/2008/09/

walking_school_bus_c.jpghttp://www.sandi.net/sandi/site/default.asphttp://www.rwjf.org/files/research/

20090519alractivetransport.pdf