Youth street dance at Family Fitness Days in San Diego, Ca

When we first launched the Be Active Your Way Blog, we aimed to create a space where professionals could share successes, ideas, and lessons about physical activity promotion. We successfully accomplished this through regular guest bloggers discussing promotion strategies, but we have decided it is time to kick it up a notch. We want to increase information sharing about successful strategies to promote the Physical Activity Guidelines.

We know that the readers of this blog (you!) are active in promoting physical activity in a multitude of different ways in a diverse array of settings. It’s time to share information about these programs and how they address the tough task of promoting physical activity. How do your programs do it? What are the barriers? How do you know that your hard work is paying off? How could others implement programs similar to yours?

Starting this week, we will feature weekly Program Spotlight blogs. These blogs will give you the chance to see how your peers are fighting the fight. We hope that these blogs will give you a chance to see the innovations of others and apply what they have learned to your own work. Each blog will include information about barriers that were faced, ways the programs are evaluated, and tips for how to implement similar programs.

We encourage you to get involved with the Program Spotlight blogs. Comment on the blogs about programs you like to show your support or better yet, if you have a program you would like to share with the community, let us know! Leave us details about the program in a comment below, and we can get back to you about how your program could possibly be spotlighted one week.

‘Tis the season of New Years resolutions.  In honor of the holiday, we examine some of the potential barriers to meeting physical activity goals, as well as strategies for overcoming those barriers:

• Self-assessment:  Barriers to exercise (Source:  American College of Sports Medicine).  After completing this brief survey, users receive response-based tips on tackling their individual barriers to physical activity.

• Negative emotions outweigh intent to exercise at health clubs (Source:  ScienceDaily)  Recent research on emotional barriers to physical activity in normal weight vs. overweight subjects.

• Home gym for less (Source:  WTVQ.com)  Tips on creating a home gym with a limited budget.

How have you worked around barriers to physical activity in your own life?  Share your story and help others stick to their resolutions!