If you went on a diet and lost a pound a day, would you consider it a success? Would you be highly motivated to stick with your diet until you reached your ideal body weight? My bet is that you’re answering yes, yes, a thousand times yes!!!
Frequent progress is inevitably a strong motivator, whether you’re a dieter, a stock market investor who’s trying to generate regular, predictable dividends, or kids in Tri-Town YMCA’s Operation Pull Your Own Weight program who are learning to do conventional pull ups and in the process to naturally immunize themselves against obesity for life. Simply stated the formula is “Frequent Progress = Big Motivation.”
In this light, Chuck Pickerill, Program Director for Tri Town YMCA oversees Operation Pull Your Own Weight, a uniquely practical childhood obesity prevention intervention that began as part of their after school curriculum in February of 2010. The most recent edition began last September, and includes 33 kids (20 boys and13 girls) at Manor Hill and Pleasant Lane Elementary Schools in Lombard.
Documented Progress Generates Motivation
In Pickerill’s words, “When we started the program we planned to generate weekly progress with each student. What we’ve witnessed however is twice our projected progress. The kids workout twice a week and every one of them has made a little progress (by adding another rep, or raising the straps another inch) every single time they’ve worked out. When kids tackle a difficult task like pull ups and succeed week after week in front of their friends, the motivation just builds exponentially. Needless to say we have no shortage of motivation when it comes to learning to do pull ups.”
Pull Ups and Obesity Prevention?
Now you may be wondering what exactly do pull ups have to do with childhood obesity prevention? The answer is nothing, except for the statistics confirming that for kids who can perform at least one conventional pull up, the odds of being obese are between zero and zilch. That is to say, you can’t have 30% body fat or a 30 BMI score and still do a pull up.
“So if kids can develop the ability to do at least one pull up and maintain it – through good eating and exercise habits – they’ve naturally immunized themselves against obesity for life,” said Pickerill. And that’s a pretty big achievement in our view.”
So what else can we say about the kids participating in Tri Town Y’s OPYOW program? For starters it was originated and financed under the auspices of a local not for profit group known as Healthy Lombard, a village-wide initiative focused on eliminating childhood obesity, promoting healthy living, which hopes to expand its presence in a variety of other DuPage County venues. “We’re ecstatic over Tri-Town’s success with OPYOW” said Healthy Lombard Founder Jay Wojcik. “Every child in DuPage County should have access to this simple, obesity preventing experience.”
Additional Data
Furthermore, 19 out of 33 participants have logged over 20 workouts with the highest being four students in the 25 and 26 workout range. 14 of the 33 participants have raised the bar four inches, 6 have raised it five inches, and two have raised it 6 inches.* “For most kids this age,” Pickerill said, “when they’ve raised the bar 12 inches they’re out of leg assistance and they’ll be doing conventional pull ups. At the pace these kids are improving we expect about half will be able to do at least one conventional pull up by the end of the school year. And the other half will be well on their way.”
“Once they’ve arrived they’ll also be naturally immunized against obesity for life as long as they eat and exercise in ways that allow them to maintain the ability. So, if you want your kids naturally immunized against obesity for life,” he said, “make sure they can physically pull their own weight. It’s just about that simple.”
Four Students to be Honored
Four Tri-Town OPYOW students will be honored for their efforts at the Healthy Lombard Fitness February celebration on February 3rd. “This is proof,” said Wojcik “that OPYOW is making a legitimate difference. OPYOW really does walk the walk rather than just talk the talk,” she added.
*On the average it takes most kids approximately 60 workouts to complete the process, which is effectively about one school year’s worth of workouts.
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