'You've Gotta Move'

Pecan Park Elementary students go walking. The "You've Gotta Move" DVD teaches kids about fitness.

Childhood obesity is not just an abstract concept to Catherine Carter Sledge.

It’s personal for the former Junior Miss finalist; she knows about the taunts and the embarrassment that come with being too heavy.

“I was overweight myself as a child and just through experiencing that and seeing firsthand what kids go through who struggle with that, I just kind of took that experience and overcame that. Now, I want to give back.”

She developed an exercise DVD, “You’ve Gotta Move,” geared toward kindergarteners through second-graders. It has five songs that are five to 10 minutes long, with choreographed dances.

It features Sledge and 16 children from around the state.

“It can be done in the classroom, and it was funded by the state Legislature,” she said. “We just finished the first year of it. ... All the teacher has to do is pop it into the TV or computer and play it for the kids. They can watch it and move along with the DVD at their desk.”

It’s fun, but it is a workout, she said.

The DVD is being distributed this summer, to be used throughout the state in public school classrooms beginning this fall.

A LIFESTYLE CHANGE

When Sledge was growing up, she was an active child.

“But for some reason — maybe I ate too much — I was just overweight,” she said.

She and her friends all decided to enter the Junior Miss competition in Hinds County, and “you have to do a talent and an interview and be in an evening gown, and do a fitness routine on stage,” she said. “I thought, ‘There’s no way I’m going to do that.’”

But they told her she could, and the group of friends all did it together.

“My family encouraged me and my dad and mom and sister all worked out with me and pushed me to become a lot more fit,” she said. “I lost weight and got healthy.

“I never thought I could win, but I did.”

She went on to place in the top 10 at the state Junior Miss competition and won a scholarship. And her platform, of course, was and continues to be ending childhood obesity.

Before creating the “You’ve Gotta Move” video, Sledge wrote a children’s book, “Anna’s Choice,” published by Quail Ridge Press, which was based on her own experience as a child.

“It’s my story but with different names,” she said. “I do readings a lot at schools and libraries, to children. I tell them at the end that it’s my story, and not just Anna’s story. They’re all surprised at that.”

It’s about encouraging each other, and making positive choices. They respond well to the book, she said, and they respond well to the video.

“It’s like a child’s workout DVD,” she said. “Like Taibo for kids. It’s interactive and fun, and a lot of curriculum points are incorporated into the DVD.”

There’s information about nutritious foods to eat, and learning objectives to help teach about food and math and reading.

“We have taken it to a couple of conferences with teachers and school administrators,” she said. “They’re really excited about it.”

For more information, visit http://www.healthyschoolsms.org/ohs_main/youvegottamove.htm, or view a video at http://youtube.com/watch?v=jipkItJxzWU.