Promoting Physical Fitness in Clubs!

National Physical Fitness & Sports Month, which is observed each year in May, provides our Club members with the opportunity to celebrate and promote physical activity and the benefits of sports participation. Thanks to our corporate partner, Humana, Club members are exposed to numerous opportunities to live a healthy lifestyle.

Boys & Girls Clubs of the Tennessee Valley instills in our members the importance of maintaining health and well-being through physical activity. Getting active helps youth with so many things, including improving fitness and increasing overall health, both physical and mental, as physical activity has been shown to ease symptoms of anxiety and depression.

Our Healthy Lifestyles program encompasses a wide variety of programs, aimed at giving Club members the tools needed to live a healthy life. Programs include:

Intramural Sports: Youth sports can help kids and teens get active and develop leadership, time management, and relationship-building skills. Club members have the opportunity to participate in a variety of intramural sports, including co-ed football and co-ed basketball. Clubs also offer opportunities for members to attend various sports clinics and camps throughout the school year and during the summer. Club members also enjoy lessons for dance, gymnastics, swimming, soccer, yoga, baseball/softball, rock climbing, fitness, and more.

• 84% of members participated in a sport, fitness, or recreation activity over the past year
• Club members participated in the Covenant Kids Run Challenge – 810 Club members logged 10,793 miles during the challenge, which equals an impressive 411 marathons!

Cooking and Gardening Clubs: Members participate in cooking classes that teach the basics of preparing nutritious and healthy meals while learning kitchen safety. Several Clubs also have gardens on site and Club members plant, tend, and harvest the gardens. Our Cooking Clubs and gardens teach members about nutrition, as well as how to grow and prepare foods. These programs lead to increased food access in areas of scarcity.

• 270 Club members participated in a Cooking Club this year

SMART Moves: This age-appropriate education and prevention program is delivered to youth ages 6 – 15, focusing on teaching youth key social and emotional learning needed to prevent risky behaviors in the future, build positive self-esteem, and foster resiliency.

• 100% of participants reported knowing how to make choices that are good for their health and future

Member Emotional & Social Health (MESH): This program promotes social and emotional skill development, addresses Club youth mental health needs, and works to support youth who have experienced trauma to help them thrive. The team is comprised of four licensed social workers and several social work interns from the University of Tennessee.

• 100% of youth surveyed after interventions reported increased mental health (more “happy days”)

We would like to thank Humana for providing our Club members with unique opportunities to stay fit and lead a healthy lifestyle for life!