Florida Pushes for Healthier Lifestyles

Florida's governor is even joining the battle of the bulge.

Angela Salerno, WCTV

Raa Middle School students in Tallahassee are off to a good start when it comes to staying healthy.

Christian Davis is a seventh grader at Raa and said, "I think it's a fun activity for the morning instead of walking around and not doing anything."

Raa is one of nearly 20 schools in Leon County participating in the CHP Champions Program. The course is putting students on the right track to a healthy life style.

Lacey Langston is an eighth grader at Raa and said, "It makes me feel stronger, we are lifting weights and building muscle."

Gov. Crist applauds the program, but says he would like to see physical education become a mandatory requirement for the state's elementary schools.

"We want to have physical education in every class every day, and we are striving towards that," said Crist.

Some children participate in extra curricular activities and sports after school, but for others CHP is their only activity of the day.

"I don't have gym, this is the only thing we do", said Langston.

Dick Hosford is a gym teacher at Raa and said, "We do our BMI stuff and we noticed the kids need to understand it's a life long venture, and a healthy life style starts here."

It’s a healthy lifestyle that hopefully will follow these kids throughout their lifetime.

The plan still requires legislative approval, but if passed, physical education classes would become mandatory starting July 1 in public and charter schools.