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Piloxing: Making Exercise Fun for Youth in Houston

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Watch out, Zumba – Piloxing is the hot new way to stay healthy while having fun!

Founded by a former dancer, Piloxing combines standing Pilates, boxing, and dance to tone the body and burn fat. To intensify the workout, weighted gloves are usually worn and exercises are done to 145 beat-per-minute music. Piloxing gained popularity quickly, and there are now more than ten thousand certified instructors in over fifty countries.

To test the trend, campers at the 2015 BOUNCE (Behavior Opportunities Uniting Nutrition, Counseling, and Exercise) summer camp, in Houston, Texas, tried Piloxing for the first time.

“It was hard but cool,” said Kyla Carrier, 12. “You get to have fun while working out.”

The BOUNCE camp was founded in 2005 by Dr. Norma Olvera and her research team at the University of Houston and is held annually to empower Hispanic and African American girls, aged 9 to 14, to live healthy lifestyles. Campers and their parents are exposed to physical activities as well as nutrition and self-esteem counseling during the multi-week-long camp.

After exercising vigorously all week at BOUNCE camp, Melissa Chible, 11, especially appreciated how “Piloxing helped with soreness.”

“I do Zumba a lot,” said the volunteer Piloxing instructor Olga Hernandez, “but Piloxing is able to provide that extra challenge I need.”

To find out more about BOUNCE, visit http://bounce.uh.edu.

Today’s post was written by a new guest blogger, Joyce Chen, who is President of the Teen Board of The Oliver Foundation, a Houston-based 501(c)(3) non-profit operating foundation dedicated to the prevention of childhood obesity.

Texas Healthy Choices Grant Recipients Make Impact on Kids

We always love when we can showcase a long time partner organization such as The Oliver Foundation, a Houston-based 501(c)(3) non-profit operating foundation dedicated to the prevention of childhood obesity. In fact, they were integral players in the creation and development of our OWG Shorts!

In this case, we are sharing how the Texas Recreation and Park Society (TRAPS) implemented nutrition and healthy lifestyle programming in Deer Park ISD and McAllen ISD park and recreation agencies via Healthy Choices grants from The Oliver Foundation. The program started in the after school programs but then transitioned into the summer day camps. Deer Park ISD shared that they have been quite impressed with how much the kids are eager to participate in WISERCISE on a daily basis and how creative they are with the different activities. They are also incorporating food tastings into their lessons, which is always a favorite! Congrats to the grant recipients and a huge shout out to the staff who is helping to create healthier kids!

Look how much the kids at in both locations are enjoying the program below:

Texas Healthy Choices Grant1 Texas Healthy Choices Grant 2 Texas Healthy Choices Grant 3 Texas Healthy Choices Grants 4 Texas Healthy Choices Grants 5 Texas Healthy Choices Grant 6Texas Healthy Choices Grants 7

Standout Houston Teen Fights Childhood Obesity

For years we have worked with The Oliver Foundation, a Houston-based 501(c)(3) non-profit operating foundation dedicated to the prevention of childhood obesity. In fact, they were integral players in the creation and development of our OWG Shorts! So we were thrilled to recently hear about an incredibly talented and impressive young lady on their teen board, who is working hard to fight childhood obesity.

Bradlee Few - HoustonBradlee Few is a rising senior at The Kinkaid School in Houston, Texas. Bradlee is fully engaged in academics, sports, service, and she is an avid writer. She has enhanced her academic experience by studying abroad in France and China. She is a third year member of both varsity cross country and track & field. For the 2014 season she was selected by her cross country and track coaches as a team captain. Bradlee has served as an Admissions Ambassador for the last two years representing Kinkaid to prospective families through tours and open houses; and she will also begin serving as a Deans Ambassador in the fall. She is the president and co-founder of the Bite of Kinkaid Club, a foodie club focused on exposing its members to world cultures through cooking, eating, and service. Bradlee is also a member of several organizations including National Charity League where she most recently was the President of the Houston Memorial Chapter class of 2016, The Oliver Foundation Teen Board focused on ending childhood obesity, the Nordstrom Fashion Board and Jack and Jill of America, Houston Chapter. Bradlee has also recently received the Girl Scout Gold Award for her work fighting childhood obesity.

Read this inspiring article to see how Bradlee was led to fight childhood obesity head on, watch her video called Tipping the Scale and stay tuned for the launch of her website to coincide with the video all with the hopes of advocating, informing and helping people to become aware of childhood obesity and what they can do to stop it.

We support your tremendous efforts Bradlee and we look forward to following you along the way!

 

How to Set Up a School Health Advisory Council

SIR Rebrum Idea copyAfter speaking with some new co-workers the other day, it dawned on me that not everyone knows what a “SHAC” is. That’s SHAC not SHAQ. I do believe everyone knows what a SHAQ is – that excessively large athlete who played basketball in size 22 shoes. A SHAC on the other hand is a School Health Advisory Council and something that is required by law in Texas. Every independent school system in Texas must have a district SHAC and the majority of members must be parents who are not employed by the school district.

The law has definitely evolved over time. Changes have been made along the way, but the main focus has remained the same – provide healthy school environments for students, staff and community members and teach and promote wellness through healthy lifestyles.

  • So aside from parents, who should be on a district SHAC? Many different people! Consider community organizations, law enforcement, local businesses, and universities, especially those who are health focused. You will also want to have some key district stakeholders including those over the eight areas of coordinated school health. Don’t forget diversity! You want to have parents from different ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds.
  • What can a SHAC do? SHACs can survey the needs of the district and make recommendations to the school board around health and wellness. Because there is a parent voice represented at the SHAC, it is easy to gather a list of needs and develop goals around those areas. It is recommended that members join subcommittees for each of areas of coordinated school health and those subcommittees tackle a goal for the school year. These goals can be focused on mental health programs, physical education programs, nutrition programs, and many others.
  • Do you have a SHAC in your school district? If you live in Texas, you should! If you are unsure you can contact your district and ask – often times they exist but are poorly advertised. Want to get involved? Great! Usually SHACs are looking for new members, especially parents. So if you are looking for a way to get involved with the health and wellness of your child’s school or your community, consider joining!

Stephanie KellamToday we feature Guest Blogger Stephanie Kellam, who is the Coordinator of Health and PE at Fort Bend Independent School District (FBISD) in Texas. She promotes fitness and nutrition-related wellness initiatives throughout FBISD by partnering with community organizations and school nurses, teachers, and administration to help educate children and their parents about the importance of developing lifelong healthy habits. 

Texas Programs Help Fight Childhood Obesity

Stephanie KellamToday we feature Guest Blogger Stephanie Kellam, who is the Coordinator of Health and PE at Fort Bend Independent School District (FBISD) in Texas. She promotes fitness and nutrition-related wellness initiatives throughout FBISD by partnering with community organizations and school nurses, teachers, and administration to help educate children and their parents about the importance of developing lifelong healthy habits. 

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