Yesterday for my psychology of women class, I had to write a detailed plan promoting social change for young girls and/or women. When I began to write it, I was just concerned about following the prompt and getting a good grade on the assignment. But as I continued to lay out my plan for social change, ideas kept popping into my head...realistic, legitimate, do-able concepts. This plan was really coming together! Once I was finished, I realized that this was definitely something that I could accomplish, whether it be sooner or much later, and that was an exciting feeling.
I decided to post a copy of my plan for a fitness/nutrition/positive club for young girls:
Healthy, Happy Women are the Prettiest:
My Social Action Plan
I once read a quote that said, “Happy girls are the prettiest”. I definitely believe this but I would agree even more if it said, “Healthy, happy girls are the prettiest” because I feel that good, positive health is so important to a person’s happiness and overall value of life. My goal and dream is for the United States to have healthy individuals be the norm rather than what it is right now: 34 percent of adults are obese, while 17 percent of our children are obese (www.nytimes.com). These numbers are staggering and that is why I want to start a club for young girls and women to gain knowledge about nutrition, fitness, positive body images, and to gain healthy perspectives of themselves and of their lives.
I will begin this process by creating folders with healthy recipes that I have been accumulating and various fitness regimens for different ages, fitness levels, and body types. It is important to distinguish between distinctive fitness and workout intensities so that you know at what level each young woman is and how much they will be able to progress. I will consult with my brother who is a certified personal trainer and do extra research to make sure that what I am planning will work correctly for my girls, as well as talking to my boyfriend who has a great deal of knowledge on these subjects. This also may include a visit to a physician and/or nutritionist to be sure I am on the right track.
Using my own computer programs, I will create flyers and pamphlets to place around my college campus as well as local middle and high schools, mall stores, movie theaters, and other popular teen hangout spots. My mother is an elementary school teacher so her job is a great way to advertise not only to young women in her class, but also girls they may be related to or friends with, about my club. Another great vehicle is my uncle who is the Chula Vista City Attorney. He attends most (if not all) local meetings and conventions, and I would definitely use his profession as a way to get the word out and promote my cause throughout my community. It is one thing to hear information from an authority figure, but another to hear it from your peers, so the fact that I have many younger cousins (mostly girls) is perfect for this situation. I would inform them of my club’s specifics so they could discuss it with their friends and classmates to further get the word out to yet another group of young women.
After the initial paperwork is completed, I will proceed to looking for a workout space, possibly beginning with using my own house. Although the area does not have a huge amount of room, there is a kitchen, which would definitely be beneficial for the days when focusing on nutrition. I already have sufficient equipment to begin the workouts, such as dumbbells, gloves and a punching bag, jump ropes, yoga mats, bicycles, a bench press, rings, and resistance bands, but more equipment would not hurt. This leads me to buying extra equipment such as an elliptical machine and I will then continue to accrue more and more as my project develops.
At a basic level, my club will not require a tremendous amount of money, but as we grow, there may be a need to expand and financial aid may be necessary. Other than a large piece of workout equipment (such as a treadmill or elliptical), I feel that the food would probably be the majority of expenses. However, once I go through teaching my members about easy and potentially inexpensive ways to cook healthy meals, the money concern may not be as high. Also, it will certainly be a group effort where I buy certain ingredients to share with the group, and each of the other members bring other items so that we can all learn and share, and save money while we are at it.
Although the focus would be on fitness and nutrition, this group would not only be for overweight girls, but for girls of any shape, size, color, socioeconomic status, and lifestyle. My club would also be sure and focus partially on the idea of good versus bad body images, positivity for one’s self, and overall optimistic and encouraging attitudes. This will be a place where girls can go to be supported and supportive of others, learn about healthy eating habits, exercising, and basically learning about themselves.
/R. Angelina
