For A Better Us

The Jacksonville Jaguars Foundation pledged $500,000 to name the gymnasium in the new Winston Family YMCA and continue its support of the Willie Galimore Community Center pool in St. Augustine.

“The team’s investment in the new Winston YMCA and recommitment to the Galimore pool is part of a wider partnership the Jaguars organization has with the First Coast YMCA to support the health and wellbeing of our community, particularly for children and families,” said Peter Racine, President of the Jaguars Foundation. “From playing basketball inside the gym to learning how to swim and everything in-between; throughout Northeast Florida, the First Coast Y strengthens our community by providing safe spaces for health and fitness programs for adults and children.”

Programs and activities offered at the gym in the new Winston Family YMCA will contribute to the YMCA’s goal to provide new and innovative opportunities for youth by directly impacting 5,000 Westside, Downtown and East Jacksonville children through healthy habits curriculum. The Jacksonville Jaguars Gymnasium will be a 7,800 square foot indoor gym featuring a full basketball court, two short courts and one volleyball court. It will be open year-round and will host youth, adult sports leagues, as well as open gym games, and other programmatic offerings such as group exercise and child care activities.

This gift will also continue The Jaguars Foundation’s support of the Willie Galimore Community Center pool, which is operated by the the St. Augustine YMCA. Since 2013, support from the Jaguars Foundation has allowed the Y to waive pool entrance fees for all guests and extend the pool’s hours. The Galimore pool serves nearly 4,000 swimmers in St. Augustine every year.  In addition, the Y has provided swim lessons to more than 500 children at the Galimore pool over the last three years.

“With this gift, The Jaguars Foundation is supporting much more than a gym and a pool,” said Eric Mann, President and CEO of the YMCA of Florida’s First Coast. “The foundation is helping create environments where children in our community can learn, achieve and begin to develop a healthy lifestyle.”

The new Winston Family YMCA is on schedule to be complete in August 2016. Naming opportunities are still available. For more information, contact Eric Mann at 904.265.1780 or emann@FirstCoastYMCA.org.

First Coast YMCA honored for efforts to prevent childhood obesity

Photo courtesy: Healthy Jacksonville Childhood Obesity Prevention Coalition

JACKSONVILLE, Fla., Sept. 21, 2015 – The Healthy Jacksonville Childhood Obesity Prevention Coalition (HJCOPC) honored the YMCA of Florida’s First Coast with the 2015 “Heart of the Community” Organizational Leadership Award. The First Coast YMCA joined 14 other local organizations recognized as Duval County Health Heroes at the “Celebrating Healthy Kids and Active Communities Awards Breakfast” hosted by the HJCOPC Friday, Sept. 11. The annual gathering commemorates National Childhood Obesity Prevention Awareness Month and provides a forum to honor 15 local organizations and individuals for their commitment to helping children grow up healthy throughout Duval County.

“Obesity puts our children at risk for heart disease, diabetes and other chronic conditions that they shouldn’t have to worry about.” said Eric Mann, President and CEO of the YMCA of Florida’s First Coast. “In an effort to strengthen our community and help all children achieve and lead healthy lives, the Y is committed to providing direct services, adopting policies and standards, and creating environments that combat and prevent childhood obesity.”

The Y helps to prevent childhood obesity through its before and afterschool programs, which feature the evidence-based program designed to promote healthy eating and increased physical activity, Youth Fit For Life (YFFL). In partnership with Americorps members, the Y provides participants with a 12-week program that includes three weekly nutrition lessons and physical activity to more than 2,700 children ages 5-13 participate each year. In 2014, 66 percent of participants entered the program with a BMI indicating a healthy weight, while 18 percent were overweight and 16 percent of participants were considered obese. By the end of the program, participants considered to be at a healthy weight increased by 7 percent, while the number of overweight or obese participants decreased by 4 percent and 3 percent respectively.

“We are seeing measurable changes that add up to a better quality of life for the children and families in our community, said Jennifer Martin, Vice President of Healthy Living, YMCA of Florida’s First Coast. “By integrating programs and standards that help to prevent childhood obesity into Y programs and services, we are effectively working towards our goal of building a healthier, stronger First Coast.”

Each year, more than 6,000 children benefit from Healthy Eating and Physical Activity (HEPA) standards implemented in Y summer and after school programs as well as YMCA Kidzones, and Tiger Academy, the YMCA’s charter school. HEPA standards create a healthier environment by targeting areas including healthy eating, physical activity, role modeling and family engagement.

The First Coast YMCA creates an environment supportive of childhood obesity prevention through a variety of programs and events. Y vertical gardens projects, a program that served more than 70 youth at the 21^st Century Summer Camp at Jacksonville Heights and continues to grow across Northeast Florida, teaches students about plant biology and nutrition as they build and engineer vertical tower gardens. Each year, thousands of local children participate in Y youth sports – a starting point for developing healthy habits. As the partner of the First Coast Kids Triathlon, the Y trained 255 young athletes at local branches to compete with more than 2,500 at this year’s event. Annual events including Healthy Kids Day, which reaches more than 5,000 local parents and youth, and the Back to School Bash, which provides families with services including sports physicals, nutrition education and other programs, offer resources to improve the health of the entire family.

ACE’s Top Ten Reasons to Hire a Personal Trainer

Motivation – Personal trainers wear many hats, serving not only as coach, but as an educator, confidant, role model and a major source of motivation and encouragement as well.

Consistency – Do you find it difficult to stick to your program? Scheduling regular appointments with a personal trainer helps eliminate any excuses you might come up with for not exercising.

Safety – Unsure about how to use the chest press machine at the gym or how to perform walking lunges without hurting your knees? A personal trainer will show you how to exercise safely (including which exercises to avoid) and instruct you on the proper and safe use of exercise equipment.

Individualized Instruction – What works for one person, may not work for another when it comes to choosing an exercise program. A personal trainer will develop the most effective program for you based on your fitness evaluation results and personal goals. Beginners in particular benefit from instruction on how to perform specific exercises and program planning.

Effective Workouts – Today’s hectic lifestyles mean you don’t have time to waste on ineffective exercise routines. Personal trainers help maximize your time by providing workouts designed to meet your goals quickly and efficiently.

Supervision – Personal attention during exercise is the primary function of personal trainers. Need someone to spot you while you do pull-ups? Looking for feedback on your running form? No problem-that’s what your personal trainer is for-to observe, assist and, if necessary, correct as needed.

Sports-specific Training – Many amateur and professional athletes work with a personal trainer during the off-season to prepare themselves for in-season competition. Whether you want to shave some strokes off your golf score or beat your brother-in-law at tennis, a personal trainer can tailor your program to your sport of choice.

Injury Rehabilitation – Injuries and accidents can prevent you from participating in your favorite activities. An experienced personal trainer, however, can make the road to recovery a smooth one by recommending exercises that emphasize overall muscular balance to prevent future injuries.

Special-needs Training – Research confirms that individuals with health challenges such as diabetes, asthma, osteoporosis or heart disease benefit greatly from regular physical activity. These conditions, however, can make exercising safely a challenge. Many personal trainers are experienced in designing programs that address the special needs of these and other conditions.

Ego Boost – It’s a fact-feeling good makes you look good, and vice versa. Not only can your personal trainer help you achieve your health and fitness goals, they provide you with positive feedback on your performance and bolster your confidence to take on new challenges.

Source:
http://www.acefitness.org/updateable/update_display.aspx?pageID=575