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May 12, 2004Get Moving, Get Healthy
Record-Eagle/John L. Russell Maggie Daniels of Petoskey conducts a clinic on walking prior to taking members of Let's Get Moving Northern Michigan on the TART trail in Suttons Bay. Fun, prizes, good health are rewards for taking partEverything is easier when you do it together. At least that's the premise behind Let's Get Moving Northern Michigan, an at-your-own-pace fitness program that encourages participants to log 100 miles in 100 days while competing for fun and prizes.Developed in 2002 by the Fitness Council of Northern Michigan, the summer-long program drew 3,431 participants last year who walked, cycled and golfed their way to better health. This year some 18 counties, 11 hospitals and 46 communities across the region are expected to take part, said Elizabeth Gertz, executive director of event partner North Central Council of the Michigan Health and Hospital Association. As its name implies, Let's Get Moving is more about physical activity than about "exercise," said Ed Pienkosz. Participants log miles not only for walking but for canoeing, bowling, yard work and many other activities, based on an aerobic mileage equivalency chart. "People don't see gardening or housework or playing with your children as physical activity and they really should," said Pienkosz, director of community education and wellness for Munson Health Care. "There are individuals that will go dancing, play basketball, dog walk, swim - all of these activities that are outside of walking that (are) included in this program." Participants receive a log book at registration, then record their daily physical activity in it to earn miles. At the end of 100 days, the miles are totaled in a variety of categories. The three cities that log the most mileage for their size will receive a plaque from the Governor's Council on Physical Fitness, Health and Sports. Pienkosz said prize drawings and friendly competition between individuals, teams, age groups and communities - Alpena has challenged Traverse City to earn more miles - plays a big part in the program's success. "There is a need for many people to have an externally motivating factor," he said. "And then once they see the results - I feel better, my clothes fit better - the internal motivating factor kicks in." Leelanau County kicked off its event Saturday with a walking workshop followed by a community walk on the Leelanau Trail. Coordinator Anita Smit said the program promises spirited competition between Glen Arbor, Leland, Northport, Suttons Bay and Empire, the only community in the county to participate last year. "I'm hopeful that we'll have 50 or 100 people at the kick-off and then I hope that people will tell their friends, because this is something they can participate in all summer," Smit said. Grand Traverse County also is joining the program for the first time this year, thanks to dozens of coordinating agencies and sponsors. The event begins this Saturday at the Civic Center with registration at 7 a.m. and a community walk at 9 a.m. Participants who drop off their weekly log coupons at designated sites will be eligible for random weekly drawings for prizes ranging from T-shirts, pedometers, bicycles and Rollerblades to golf, dinner, spa and resort packages. Pienkosz said the goal is to get people moving more consistently, especially those who are new to exercise. "Becoming an educated health care consumer is easy, putting it into practice is the challenge," he said. "We know here in Traverse City that you see now a lot more people out cycling, running, Rollerblading, out on the TART Trail, on the road. But we know we have a small percentage of very active people but we have a large percentage of inactive or irregularly active people. That's the group we are hoping will participate. "Hopefully people will take it beyond the 100-day program and incorporate physical activity regularly into their lifestyle." While this is the third year Petoskey area residents have joined in the program, Liz Horrom is hoping to double the participation there by targeting hospital employees, area students and senior citizens, and by focusing on a team "challenge" approach that pits employees against employers and Rotarians against Kiwanians. "We're using the team concept to see if we can get more people involved and it seems to be working," said Horrom, of the Community Health Education Center in Petoskey. She said this year's event - timed to conclude during Petoskey's Summer Festival Aug. 21 and 22 - has drawn everyone from Girl Scout troops and local chapters of the Red Hat Society to Emmet County employees and North Central Michigan College administrators. Some companies are even using the event as employee wellness programs. Staff from at least two businesses are participating while training for upcoming triathlons. "It's growing bigger even than I can imagine," she said. Last year, 500 people registered in the Petoskey area. Only between 250 and 275 completed 75 miles or more, Horrom said. "I think that people lose interest because it is a 15-week program. The goal is to try to get people to change their behaviors and it's really hard to do that. And that's why we went to the team approach, to encourage people to challenge each other." According to the American Medical Association, 64 percent of Americans are overweight or obese, resulting in 300,000 preventable deaths each year. Pienkosz said Let's Get Moving can change all that. "We know that if we get five or 10 people to participate and take on a more active lifestyle, we've accomplished our goal," he said. For more information about the program, visit the Web site, www.lgmnm.org.
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