I went to a birthday party for a 1 year old this weekend.  There were children of all ages there, ranging from 12 months to 12 years.  What struck me about the whole experience was the adults hovered by the food, interested in eating and drinking, while the children played with each other.  The playing consisted of running up and down the stairs, playing hide and go seek, and what appeared to be some game involving a ball.  They didn't stop moving.  The older girls were heavier, and would probably be considered overweight, but that didn't stop them from participating; quite the contrary.  They seemed to be instigating some of the chasing games.  

According to a recent article in the LA Times, 1 in 3 children is considered overweight.  The thing is, kids want to move.  So why are our children getting heavier and heavier?  Is it because of diet?  Or is it because of external sources, such as TV, game boys, and computers?  If we take these away, kids will amuse themselves in a much more traditional mode of play.  

Not only are children getting heavier.  I think we have all seen newspaper articles suggesting diseases related to obesity may soon be the number one killer of adults.  Recent data from the CDC suggests 30% of all adults are considered obese.  Obese is defined as 30 pounds or more overweight.  What are we going to do?

The obvious answer is we need to start moving more and eating less.  Unfortunately, moving more is associated with work.  While I was watching the children play this weekend, I couldn't help but ponder the fact that as a child, movement is synonymous with play.  As we become teenagers, this starts to shift and we see movement as work.  It loses it's allure, and it becomes easier to find things to do sitting down that occupy our time.  We need to change our perspective a little bit so once again movement is the equivalent of playing, it's something that is freeing and feels good.   Maybe then we would be more likely to WANT to do it.  I can't help but notice how many people will find every reason possible not to exercise, when it should be something we look forward to.  We should celebrate the fact we can move and our bodies are healthy.  We need to find modes of exercise we enjoy so we can start to get healthier as a nation.