Make fitness priority, take one step at time Published Nov. 27, 2006 By Lt Col Craig Christenson 71st Medical Operations Squadron Vance Air Force Base, Okla. -- A frog was hopping around the farmyard, when it decided to investigate the barn. Being somewhat careless, and maybe a little too curious, he ended up falling into a pail half-filled with fresh cream. As he swam about attempting to reach the top of the pail, he found that the sides of the pail were too high and steep. He tried to stretch his back legs to push off the bottom of the pail, but found it was too deep. The frog was determined not to give up, and so hour after hour he continued to struggle. He kicked and squirmed and kicked and squirmed, until at last, all his churning about in the cream had turned it into a big hunk of butter. The butter was now solid enough for him to climb onto and leap out of the pail. OK, it is a nice little story with an obvious message, but why am I re-telling it here? Part of it has to do with some observations I made over the holiday season and part has to do with observations I made at our last group run. To put it simply, far too many people are out of shape. While standing in an extremely long check-out line while holiday shopping at a local department store a few weeks ago, I started looking around at the other poor saps that also waited until the last minute to do their shopping. The one thing that hit me was that the far majority of them were overweight. And I am not just talking a couple pounds. A significant number of people, sometimes entire families, were morbidly obese and in poor physical condition. OK, I hear you saying, "Well that was a civilian store ... what do you expect?" Then I thought back to the last group run we had. I am by no means a marathon runner, but I was dismayed to find I was lapping people half my age. As I reviewed the fitness scores of my squadron members, I was surprised at not only the number of people who have failed, but also the number of people who just barely squeaked by. According to the Center for Disease Control, more than 50 percent of American adults do not get enough physical activity to provide health benefits. Twenty-five percent of adults are not active at all in their leisure time. Regular physical activity substantially reduces the risk of dying of coronary heart disease and decreases the risk for stroke, colon cancer, diabetes and high blood pressure. It also reduces symptoms of anxiety and depression and is associated with fewer hospitalizations, physician visits and medications. Traditionally, many people see the New Year as a new beginning and make resolutions to better some aspect of their lives. Losing weight and getting in shape usually top that list. Many people start out with good intentions, but after a couple weeks they fall back into their old habits. When setting your goals, first of all, ensure they are attainable and not set too high, and just like the frog in the story, remember consecutive goals that move you ahead in small steps are the best way to reach a distant point. I challenge everyone to make fitness their priority. If you do, you will feel better about yourself, you will look better, you will have more energy, you will reduce stress and anxiety, you will increase your quality of life, and most of all ... you will be healthier.