It's About Fit Not Fat

Across the country, elementary girls are singing lyrics from the 3OH!3 song Don’t Trust Me: “Shush girl, shut your lips, do the Hellen Keller and talk with your hips.” Girls on the Run® is a national non-profit that addresses negative messages like this through afterschool programs that empower preteen girls to develop healthy bodies and attitudes.

Girls on the Run has 150 councils, each organizing programs at multiple schools in their county. Programs are led by volunteer coaches who follow a 12-week curriculum for girls who are either in grades 3-5 or grades 6-8. Each program session includes discussion topics that help break down body image stereotypes and build up self-esteem, as well as games that encourage physical activity to prepare the girls to participate in a 5K.

Girls on the Run targets girls as young as 8—when children become more susceptible to peer pressure and influences like the media. It’s the stage of development when appearance begins to matter more and girls begin comparing themselves to others. This prepubescent stage is also when children are still receptive to positive adult role models. Furthermore, introducing exercise earlier in childhood creates a love of fitness that is more likely to last into adulthood.

Elizabeth Sadlon, Board Chair of Girls on the Run of Los Angeles County, believes the program is effective because it is fun, rather than competitive. No one gets stuck on the bench, cut from the team or made fun of due to lack of coordination. Instead, all of the girls get the chance to participate in games that involve physical activity. “The girls have such a good time participating in each session’s activity that they don’t even realize they’re getting a workout,” Sadlon says. “By the end of the program, the girls finish a 5K and—whether they walk it or run it—they see that marathoners come in all shapes and sizes. I heard one girl sum up the program by saying it’s about fit, not fat.”

Girls on the Run teaches girls that, in addition to balanced exercise and eating habits, being fit is also about maintaining a balanced emotional state. Girls in grades 3-5 discuss 24 topics, including how to identify, deal with and express uncomfortable emotions like anger, sorrow and frustration. Girls in grades 6-8 discuss similar, but more advanced topics, like emotional eating and balanced eating habits.

“After learning to care for themselves,” Sadlon explains, “the girls learn to care for their friends and loved ones, then their community.” All of this culminates in the 5K, where the girls practice being good to themselves by setting a personal goal and doing their best to achieve it. It’s also an opportunity to be good to one another by helping each other finish the 5K and to be good to the community by becoming positive role models.

To find a Girls on the Run council near you, visit their Web site at www.girlsontherun.com.