We’ve turned into a nation of couch potatoes. Television and video games may be the culprit, but the fact remains – if you aren’t getting enough exercise, you could suffer serious health problems as a result.
The Centers for Disease Control funded a panel of national obesity experts to review recommendations of more than 850 current studies on childhood physical-activity needs and found that many offered conflicting and confusing results. Most studies indicated children as well as adults should get at least 30 to 45 minutes of continuous activity a day. But kids aren’t like adults, who exercise because they know what’s good for them.
The new recommendations address that reality, suggesting that 60 minutes of activity in “fits and spurts” – the kind normally produced during a game of hopscotch or while you’re on second base waiting for the next hit – should meet your exercise needs during childhood.
Following these recommendations on exercise and eating properly can help you reduce the risk of chronic diseases. Besides controlling weight, regular exercise reduces the risk of heart attack, some forms of cancer, high blood pressure and diabetes.
So if you don’t want to look like my friend the couch potato, turn off the tube and round up some friends for a quick ball game. If they aren’t available, get permission to put on your helmet and ride your bike around your neighborhood. Soon, you’ll meet the new recommendations for physical activity, burn lots of calories and generally treat you body so it will serve you well for many, many years.
Use my design to make a couch potato to remind yourself to get up and move each time you look at him. I could have dressed him in a fancy outfit, but I wanted you to see what a couch potato really looks like.
Supplies you will need:
One pair of panty hose; two small beads; embroidery needle; black, red and beige embroidery thread; synthetic doll hair or yarn; fiberfill; scissors.
Cut one leg section of the panty hose 8 inches from the toe.
Stuff the center of the section with a small amount of fiberfill, pull the ends together at the back and sew closed.
Sewing from the back to the front, attach the beads with a few strands of embroidery thread.
Pull the thread tight so the eyes sit back in the head, giving the face a three-dimensional appearance.
To make the nose, pinch a small section of the hose and put fiberfill in the center. Sew around the bulge until it resembles a small ball. Use a running stitch to make the mouth, eyebrows and lashes. You may start the stitches from the rear to hide the knot, but keep the stitches on the surface of the face rather than taking your needle to the back with each stitch.
Sew a small amount of hair on the top.
For the body and legs, cut the other leg of the panty hose about 16 inches from the toe.
At the bottom-center of the toe, divide the hose into two equal sections, stopping about 6 inches from the toe end.
Turn the hose inside out and stitch seams in the two leg sections. Turn right side out and fill with fiberfill to look like a potato. Gather at the top and stitch closed.
For arms, cut two 4-inch sections of the hose, sew closed at one end and down the side, forming a tube. Fill with fiberfill, sew closed and attach to the body of your potato.
Attach the head to the body.
For more info
Read more about the new recommendations on physical activity for children issued by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention at www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/dnpa/physical/life/index.htm on the Web.
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