Why Can't Adults Play Too?

   Obesity is a huge problem in America.  While a lot of this can certainly be attributed to the fact that Americans generally don’t heat healthy foods and our portion sizes are entirely too large, the fact that many Americans don’t get enough physical activity is also a major contributing factor.  While President Eisenhower and President Kennedy took steps toward implementing a nationwide fitness program for school-aged children, the main purpose was to ensure that young men would be “military ready.”  However, in the following years the focus switched from general fitness to success in international athletic competitions, particularly the Olympics.  After much debate, the Amateur Sports Act was passed in 1978.  While this act was supposed to support “amateur athletics,” the athletes that were supported were only those who would be competing at elite levels.  Since the sports act was enacted, the United States has certainly dominated the medal counts in most of the Summer Olympics.  However, this “elite” segment of athletes is a very small percentage of the adult population in the country.  With all of the focus on elite amateur athletes, the average working-class adult is ignored and is left up to their own devices to find ways to play sports or remain physically active. This is extremely unfair. School aged children are allowed to participate in physical education activities and sports teams through their schools.  In addition, they can participate in various little league teams or club sports teams.  But after children graduate high school and/or college and enter the workforce, the opportunities for physical activity become significantly fewer. In addition, those adults who can afford to join health clubs sometimes do not because they feel that they don’t have enough time to exercise. Because the opportunities to participate in cheap, readily available forms of physical activity, many adults simply do not.  This is a problem that must be rectified if Americans are to start living healthier lives. One potential solution would be for employers to allot time for employees to exercise or pay for a gym membership.  At higher levels of government, perhaps money could be set aside for exercise facilities at local parks. While these changes could be beneficial on a small scale, the focus must be placed back on the general fitness of all Americans if we are to make any lasting changes.