Commentary
Success Breeds Success
Rick Osbourne
Multifaceted,
complicated, and confusing are the kind of terms most experts currently use to
describe the 21st Century childhood obesity dilemma. Arguably there
are genetic, environmental, economic, sociological, and psychological factors
that play a role in an issue the Attorney General of the United States has recently called "an
epidemic, a pandemic, and a terrorist threat from within."
A Two Factor Dilemma
On the
other hand, when reality bashes in the door, all these complications can easily
be boiled down to TWO FACTORS that we all understand. They are exercise and
nutritional habits. In other words, there's not one American child who can't
beat obesity by sufficiently raising their physical activity level and eating
less/better.
Boiled Down to One
Basic Challenge
Childhood
obesity prevention then can be boiled down to ONE basic challenge. Namely, how
can we MOTIVATE kids exercise more and eat less/better? The fact is, even if
their genes, environment, economics, social network or their psychological
state make it harder for some children, any child who exercises enough and eats
right will successfully avoid the 21st Century obesity trap.
And One Answer
That being
the case, what motivates kids? The answer is, success always breeds success,
and kids are no exception to this rule. Like an investor who experiences
regular returns on his financial investment, kids who experience documented
returns (in the form of regular progress) on their investments of time and
effort, are MOTIVATED to continue investing as long as it continues to pay off.
Consistently, high levels of motivation translate into persistence. And
relentless persistence is the key to success in anything, including childhood
obesity prevention.
Let's Focus on One
Example
Pull ups
for example, are very challenging for most kids today and they're impossible
for kids who carry much excess weight because of the increased workload. But,
if a bar is lowered to the point where the kid's feet are flat on the floor,
there are very few kids who are unable to jump and pull themselves (their
chins) up to the bar. This utterly simple technique is known as leg assisted pull
ups.
Inching Your Way Up
More
specifically the strategy is to lower the bar to a level where a participant
can EASILY do 8 leg assisted pull ups, and allow them do a set of 8 reps.
Working two days a week, say Mondays and Thursdays, the child comes back on day
two (Thursday) and you allow them to do 9 leg assisted pull ups. In workout
number three you allow them to do 10, in workout number four they do 11, in
workout number five they do 12, and in workout number six THE BAR IS RASIED ONE
INCH and the entire 8 to 12 routine is repeated all over, again and again until
the child has run out of leg assistance and has mastered the ability to do
conventional pull ups.
Small Increments of
Change
What I'd
like to point out in this example is the extremely SMALL INCREMENTS OF CHANGE, that
underwrite the extremely REGULAR EXPERIENCE OF PROGRESS, that translates into
consistently HIGH LEVELS OF MOTIVATION, that eventually leads to RELENTLESS
PERSISTENCE and eventual success at anything, including the ability to do pull ups.
Success Magnified
The value of this "experience in
success" can be magnified even further by conducting the activity in a
social setting with other kids participating too. Then as kids make
predictable progress workout
after workout, week after week, month after month, their success is
recognized
and celebrated immediately with high fives from fellow participants and
teachers who are supervising. It doesn't take long for kids to realize
that
successfully tackling a difficult task in public is FUN and they soon
begin to
look forward to their next opportunity to get stronger on the pull up
bar.
Motivation Imbedded
Into the Genetic Fabric
And as any
gym teacher will attest, once any child has mastered pull ups, they're
naturally IMMUNIZED AGAINST OBESITY FOR LIFE as long as they maintain the
ability, because people who can do pull ups are NEVER OBESE. But in the process,
it's all about three things, MOTIVATION, MOTIVATION, and MOTIVATION. And the
key to that vault is small, but regular increments of success, day after day,
week after week, that over time, accumulate like compound interest in a bank
and imbeds the mantra "Oh Yes I Can" deep into the genetic fabric of any kid
who's exposed to this life altering experience. May the all be exposed to this
kind life altering experience at an early age.
Rick Osbourne spent 17 years as a physical educator and
coach. He currently writes for a living, and serves as the Executive Director
of Operation Pull Your Own Weight, (www.pullyourownweight.net) an
informational web site that's dedicated to eliminating childhood obesity in one
decade. Osbourne can be reached at Osbourne.rick@gmail.com.