By Debby Woodin

dwoodin@joplinglobe.com

Jason Zurba says that enjoying life should be the motivation to improve fitness, not worrying about weight or waist size.

That’s why Zurba is willing to help anyone who wants advice on how to shape up an exercise or eating plan, not just his customers at Powerhouse Gym & Fitness Center, 530 S. Northpark Lane.

He likes to encourage people to do something — even just a walk around the neighborhood or lifting some hand weights at home — to move around.

“What we ask them to do is to find something important to them: their grandkids, playing golf with their friends, hunting. If they get up, we can help them enjoy that more. We tell our members to not focus on the weight, don’t make weight the goal. The goal is to be able to play with the grandkids an extra hour without being sore, or play golf without having your back hurt. The focus should be on having a better life.”

It’s no secret that obesity is the new health plague. Missouri ranks 13th among the 50 U.S. states for the number of residents who can be classified either as overweight or obese, according to a study done from 2006 to 2008 by the Trust for America’s Health. It found that two-thirds of the state’s 6 million residents could be ranked in one of those categories.

That’s an example of why the Missouri Foundation for Health has provided a grant of nearly $300,000 for local health advocates to promote exercise and nutrition.

The Jasper and Newton Counties Community Health Collaborative and The Alliance of Southwest Missouri, which involves area health departments, hospitals and other agencies involved in health care, will be working through city governments, churches, schools and other organizations this year to encourage area residents to eat more fruits and vegetables, and walk or exercise however they choose.

They will do that through a campaign called LiveSmart.

Ashley Micklethwaite, the grant and community benefit manager at St. John’s Regional Medical Center, and Tammy Blaylock, an employee of the Alliance and the coordinator for LiveSmart, presented a plan this week to the Joplin City Council for encouraging area residents to “eat right — move more,” the motto for the initiative.

Micklethwaite said Jasper County’s number of sedentary residents is higher than the state average and, in fact, higher than many other states. She bases that on a survey from the Missouri Department and Senior Services.

She said the message of LiveSmart is that people can do no-cost or low-cost exercise as easy as a walk in the park. The organization also will help form groups to encourage participation. People also should eat five fruits or vegetables a day.

“You can do this, and we’re going to help you with some tips,” she says is the LiveSmart message. “We’ll help you do this with other people, communities who want to do this at your church or at your business.”

The easiest way to exercise for many people is simply to walk, Micklethwaite said. But those who don’t move much at all have to muster the desire to start.

“My biggest concern is with people who are not active,” she said. “It’s easy to fall back on excuses like ‘I can’t afford it,’ or ‘I don’t have time.’ You need to make the time. Thirty minutes. Cut out one TV show. And anybody can afford to walk on a trail or walk around their block.”

People who haven’t walked much or those with health problems may not be able to walk 30 minutes at first. “You might need to start slow,” Micklethwaite said. “Some people might need to walk for 10 minutes three times a day to add up to that 30 minutes.”

But, exercise doesn’t have to be more complicated or taxing than that to help a body.

“The health benefits of walking are tremendous, what it does for your physical health as well as your mental health,” she said. “It makes you feel good all over.”





Walk on

LiveSmart will encourage people to walk on the trails at city parks or indoors at Northpark Mall.

Family outings so the kids can play while the parents walk can be done at Cunningham Park, where a trail around the parking lot and swimming pool is a quarter of a mile and takes an average of 542 steps, according to the LiveSmart information. Another trail there around the playground and tennis courts is one-third of a mile and takes 700 steps.

Leonard Park at Fifth Street and Turk Avenue has an asphalt trail that is a quarter of a mile.

Trails at both parks are lighted.

Parks are open 7 a.m. to 11 p.m.