| News & Know How | First Person CBI Spends 10 Minutes on the Line with


Robin Schepper C


Robin Schepper is the executive director of the Let’s Move! program. A media and communications consultant for 20 years, she has worked on four presidential campaigns; the 2004 Olympic Games; the 1998 G-8 Summit; and the 50th anniversary of NATO. She is the cofounder of Pyramid Communica- tions, a public-affairs firm based in Seattle, Washington, and of Wayfinder, Inc.


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For complete information on the Let’s Move! campaign, log on to www.letsmove.gov.


an you tell us something about the history of the Let’s Move! program? What are its principal goals? What sorts of activities does it promote? What sort of progress has it achieved? Is there a role that health clubs could play?


By now, everyone probably knows that the seed for Let’s Move! was planted when Michelle Obama took her daughters to see their pediatrician a year or so ago. Based on BMI measurements, the pedi- atrician recommended a change in diet and more exercise for the girls. This was a wake-up call for the First Lady. She realized that childhood obesity was probably an issue for many American fami- lies. So, one year ago, she launched Let’s Move!


Today, almost one in three children in the U.S. is either overweight or obese. Unchecked, many of these children will eventually develop diabetes and other health problems. So, by 2030, we’re determined to bring the obesity rate back down to 5%, which is where it was before it began to climb steadily in the late ’70s.


The Let’s Move! team focuses on five different areas: giving children a healthy start; empower- ing parents and caregivers; providing healthy foods in schools; improving access to healthy affordable foods in communities; and getting children more physically active. One of our jobs is to cross-pollinate programs within federal agen- cies to leverage resources most effectively. For example, our Chefs in Schools program is part of the Department of Agriculture, and Let’s Move! Outside is part of the Department of the Interior (National Parks).


We’re also working to increase the number of schools participating in the Healthier U.S. School Challenge, a voluntary program to improve nutri- tion in school lunches and increase the level of physical activity. To date, we have 800 schools participating, and we’re on target to sign up 1,000 schools each year. At the municipal level, the First Lady has sought the help of city mayors through Let’s Move! Cities and Towns; thus far, some 300 have signed on…


But CBI is probably most interested in what we’re doing in terms of exercise. One of the obstacles to exercise is the built environment, which makes it


difficult for children to walk or bike safely in their communities. In the 1970s, 70% of children walked or biked to school, but now it’s the reverse. Working with the Department of Trans- portation’s Safe Routes to School Program, we’re trying to get more kids walking and biking again.


Another program we’re promoting is the Presi- dent’s Active Lifestyle Award (PALA). It’s a six-week activity program that encourages chil- dren to perform 60 minutes of exercise, and adults, 30, five days a week. After completing the six-week program, participants are eligible to receive an award from the president. Our hope is that, after the six weeks, families will continue to exercise. Studies have shown that it takes 21 days to develop a habit, and we’re trying to make it easy.


Let’s Move! has also teamed up with Major League Baseball (MLB) and the Walt Disney Company to develop public-service announce- ments for radio, print, and television. In addition, we’re working with the Ad Council on a major consumer campaign that should beome available next month.


We’d love to collaborate with the members of IHRSA. I’d encourage health clubs to open their doors for after-school programs that would allow students and teachers to exercise in a safe environment, free of charge. Clubs that would like to use our Let’s Move! logo can simply log on to our Website and click on the Let’s Move! “Logo and Usage” page. As long as you’re not selling anything, and there’s no commercial gain involved, you can co-brand with us and use our logo. For example, a club could set up a Let’s Move! Youth Clinic.


The obesity crisis took a long time to develop, and it won’t be solved soon. But I’m very confi- dent that we’ll win this battle, because this isn’t a bipartisan issue—it’s a nonpartisan issue.


” —| – John Halbrooks, j.halbrooks@verizon.net www. ihrsa.org | JANUARY 2011 | Club Business Internat ional 29


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