Partnership brings fitness to Clair's House | Children Health Wizard

PANAMA CITY ? The girls of Clair?s House have a new option for getting physically active and fit thanks to a partnership between Children?s Home Society and Anytime Fitness.

Bryan Meeder, residential supervisor at Clair?s House, said the girls have been asking for exercise options and are excited about having them.

?The teenagers always voice that they would want some type of exercise environment, and it?s always tough to purchase your own; it?s expensive for quality equipment,? Meeder said. ?They?re all extremely excited. ? [A] lot of them have said this is what they have been waiting for.?

The agreement allows the girls of Clair?s House, a residential group home for kids between the ages of 12 and 18, to use the facilities at Anytime Fitness. Not only will having access to Anytime Fitness enable the girls to increase their fitness, Wendy Morgan, development specialist for the Emerald Coast Division of CHS, said gaining resilience and confidence will help them in the future.

?Many teenagers battle weight problems, which often make them victims of teasing, exclusion or outright bullying. The girls at Clair?s House have already been victimized, many of them for most of their lives by abuse, abandonment, or neglect. They are already in counseling to deal with these issues,? Morgan said. ?The girls already have enough to deal with without being teased about their bodies.?

Kara Darouse, gym manager for Anytime, said they were enthusiastic about this possibility when Meeder approached them.

?That?s why we were eager to get involved because childhood obesity. ? It?s our responsibility to teach kids health and fitness the same way it is to teach them reading and writing,? Darouse said. ?This is your body, it?s the only one you have and what you learn when you?re young versus waiting until you?re 37 and waking up and going, ?Now I have a problem,? ? Darouse said.

The girls will have full access to Anytime Fitness and group training sessions are in the works to teach them how to use the machines and what they need to do to be in better health. One of the classes the girls can take is the new Hip Hop for Teens class.

?I think it?s the perfect time to bring the girls in, at the beginning of this, so everyone is new and will start off on the same foot with it,? Darouse said.

She added that she hopes this will lead to more local children getting excited about physical fitness and their health. Morgan said the environment in the gym was important for them, too.

?We wanted a good, safe, family-friendly environment because we work so hard to give them that. We want to keep that going as much as possible,? Morgan said.

Article source: http://www.newsherald.com/news/house-100486-panama-brings.html

Source: http://www.childrenhealthwizard.com/partnership-brings-fitness-to-clairs-house

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