June 8, 2009

On Thursday, June 4, the Pitt Panthers collaborated with the Pittsburgh Steelers, American Heart Association, Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh UPMC and other partners to host the first annual "Healthy Family Training Camp" at the UPMC Sports Performance Complex. Nearly 150 local families were provided fun ways to be heart healthy. Pitt student-athletes from the football team facilitated fun obstacle courses. Their interaction with the families helped demonstrate the importance of incorporating physical activity and heart healthy living into daily routines. There was laughter and excitement, while kids ran through cones and hurdled over bags. The families rotated through other activity stations including a healthy foods demonstration, health and safety fun wheels, CPR training and a relay race where parents dressed in football gear and raced other parents.

The program was developed by the American Heart Association to combat the epidemic of childhood obesity, where nearly one child in three is overweight. Furthermore, overweight children and teenagers are more likely to have risk factors associated with cardiovascular diseases including high blood pressure, high cholesterol and type-2 diabetes.