HOGGAN education project featured in The Salt Lake Tribune
West Jordan, UT (07 October 2005) – Teens fit right in at fitness room Murray High students get in shape in a volunteer effort
By Elisabeth Nardi
The Salt Lake Tribune
MURRAY - Topher Nadauld finds it hard to fit a workout into his busy schedule.
"I just don't have time," the Murray High School senior said.
That's why Nadauld is using 30 minutes of class time to get in his daily dose of exercise - he's taking an advanced weight training class. And now, thanks to a new fitness room, he's able to lift weights and get his heart rate up.
"I like that I can see how many calories I am burning," he said while marching on an elliptical trainer. "I like that it gives you the momentum to keep going - and I can listen to music."
Murray High's new fitness room opened at the beginning of the school year and is already a favorite among students. The room has cardio equipment, including four treadmills, stationary bikes, elliptical machines and some weight-lifting resistance machines. A stereo system plays the latest teen hits as students sweat.
The room is part of an effort by the school, the Murray School District and a West Jordan company to address the growing child obesity problem in Utah. The incidence of childhood obesity has increased dramatically from 1993 to 2002 nationwide and in Utah, where one in four children is an unhealthy weight, according to an August report from the Utah Department of Health.
Plus, the U.S. Surgeon General says this generation's children might be the first in U.S. history not to exceed the average life expectancy of their parents.
Combating obesity is quite an undertaking, but providing fitness equipment to students is a step in the right direction, said Jenny Grosh, project coordinator for the grant that helped pay for the equipment.
The money came from leftover funding from an $800,000 Physical Education for Progress grant, which provides funds to schools to improve their physical education programs. Hoggan Health Industries gave a discount and provided the equipment, which is worth more than $75,000.
Ryan Hoggan, chief development officer for Hoggan Health, said his company wants to help area schools.
"Some of our employees have children in these schools," Hoggan said. "This starts students on a healthy lifestyle."
His company's equipment is specifically designed for schools. Easy-to-use durable machines use resistance dials to increase or decrease weight.
That feature is important for schools because students aren't embarrassed if they can't lift as much as their friends and they can go at their own pace, said Wade Meier, Murray High athletic director.
Because physical education isn't mandatory in Utah high schools, teachers hope the new room will interest students in taking weight-lifting as an elective. Already, the room is being used every hour, either by classes, athletic teams and even special education students, Meier said. Special needs teachers use the equipment to help their students do physical therapy.
"It gives them some options where before they had none," Meier said.
The equipment has also helped physical education department officials get closer to their goal of making sure students get at least 10 minutes of cardiovascular exercise a day. By the end of the semester, they hope to have students doing cardio for 30 minutes, said Lisa White, physical education teacher at Murray.
"It's really been great," she said. "A lot of students can't afford gym or spa memberships and now they don't [need them]."
enardi@sltrib.com
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That's why Nadauld is using 30 minutes of class time to get in his daily dose of exercise - he's taking an advanced weight training class. And now, thanks to a new fitness room, he's able to lift weights and get his heart rate up.
"I like that I can see how many calories I am burning," he said while marching on an elliptical trainer. "I like that it gives you the momentum to keep going - and I can listen to music."
Murray High's new fitness room opened at the beginning of the school year and is already a favorite among students. The room has cardio equipment, including four treadmills, stationary bikes, elliptical machines and some weight-lifting resistance machines. A stereo system plays the latest teen hits as students sweat. 
