what's going on...
i noticed that very few kids (and virtually no adults) here seem to walk here - instead, it's not unusual to see five people on a motorbike - three on a bicycle... and most of the staff will wait 20 minutes for a moto (motorbike taxi) than walk a couple of kms.
as an obvious indication that i'm becoming a nagging old hag, i had a "when i was a girl we all use to walk to school, particularly if we lived less than 2km away" rant.
... then last night i happened to hear some statistics on child obesity in australia.
20-20% of australian kids are currently overweight.
aerobic fitness of children is reducing by about half a percent per year.
30% of australian kids have low fitness levels (60% have poor motor skills).
50% of obese teens become obese adults.
... and at the current rate, 80% of australians will be overweight or obese by 2020.
ok... i'm the first to admit i never liked sport as a kid (even less as an adolescent) and did everything possible to steer away from a "healthy lifestyle"... sports days were always just the perfect opportunity to skip school, i started smoking at 12, and gorged on junk whenever i had the opportunity (and still do for that matter)... and i'm STILL waiting for my "puppy fat" to disappear (as my mother promised it would when i was about 11)... but i was never "obese". that must actually take real effort.
how can i condescendingly lecture at the rural poor about the importance of maintaining an modest level of fitness when my country (containing some of the richest, most educated people and widest variety of food/fitness options in the world) has descend into blobhood?
ps: the irony of me (who holds perpetual cocktail-infused bumhood as a holy grail) having a fitness rant is not lost on me. :)
as an obvious indication that i'm becoming a nagging old hag, i had a "when i was a girl we all use to walk to school, particularly if we lived less than 2km away" rant.
... then last night i happened to hear some statistics on child obesity in australia.
20-20% of australian kids are currently overweight.
aerobic fitness of children is reducing by about half a percent per year.
30% of australian kids have low fitness levels (60% have poor motor skills).
50% of obese teens become obese adults.
... and at the current rate, 80% of australians will be overweight or obese by 2020.
ok... i'm the first to admit i never liked sport as a kid (even less as an adolescent) and did everything possible to steer away from a "healthy lifestyle"... sports days were always just the perfect opportunity to skip school, i started smoking at 12, and gorged on junk whenever i had the opportunity (and still do for that matter)... and i'm STILL waiting for my "puppy fat" to disappear (as my mother promised it would when i was about 11)... but i was never "obese". that must actually take real effort.
how can i condescendingly lecture at the rural poor about the importance of maintaining an modest level of fitness when my country (containing some of the richest, most educated people and widest variety of food/fitness options in the world) has descend into blobhood?
ps: the irony of me (who holds perpetual cocktail-infused bumhood as a holy grail) having a fitness rant is not lost on me. :)