EVANSVILLE, Ind. -- The University of Evansville men’s soccer team and ProRehab, a private physical therapy practice with locations in Evansville, southwest Indiana, and western Kentucky, have teamed up to address obesity on a local level with the HEALTHY BODIES, HEALTHY MINDS program. 

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports a dramatic increase in obesity in the United States over the past twenty years; roughly 33% of adults in the U.S. are obese. A nationwide poll conducted in 2011 by the Gallup Group found that 37.8% of Evansville, Indiana residents were considered obese; this is was the highest percentage in the nation. 

”Obesity is a terrible condition that has had an adverse effect on health all over the United States, and nowhere more so than right here in Evansville,” said UE head coach Mike Jacobs. “Our goal is to negate this terrible distinction of being ‘the nation’s most obese city’, and to educate our young elementary school students and their families in the process.  We will rid our city of this problem one elementary school student at a time, and help teach children and families how to make healthy lifestyle choices.”

The HEALTHY BODIES, HEALTHY MINDS program is modeled after the successful reading program, Score With The Aces, also created by a collaboration between ProRehab and the University of Evansville that has been administered through the Aces Soccer Camp. The HEALTHY BODIES, HEALTHY MINDS program fits into school wellness programming and creates a user-friendly approach for teaching healthy lifestyle strategies to elementary school students.

The program launched on February 1, 2012 and will run through April 15, 2012. Students are rewarded for reaching daily goals that related to diet, exercise, and reading. Meeting specific goals will offer unique prizes: members of the Aces will come into the classroom to discuss good lifestyle habits; students will receive HEALTHY BODIES, HEALTHY MINDS t-shirts; and students will receive a free ticket voucher for upcoming Aces games.

“Stressing the HEALTHY BODIES, HEALTHY MINDS concept will encourage good lifestyle habits now and in the future,” states Andrea Baumann, ProRehab Physical Therapist and co-owner. “ProRehab is extremely proud to have a hand in helping out the community. This local initiative is not only addressing issues in Evansville, but we hope it can be replicated in other locations throughout the U.S.”