Did you know that over 67% of Americans either overweight or obese? Well, believe it or not, as of late 2009, it's a proven fact. America has shown a weight gaining trend since fast food has arrived, and these numbers will continue to increase unless something is done to stop it in the near future. Lucky for us, the answer is right in front of our faces. No, I'm not talking about getting rid of all fast food chains around the country. What I'm talking about is much less drastic, that most kids from grades K-12 participate in every other day, known as Physical Education.

With the growing obesity problem here in the United States, it only makes sense for schools to increase the time that kids participate in physical activity per day. For most schools across America, Physical Education, also known as Gym, is a class that goes on for about an hour every other day. If schools across the country can simply change this to a daily class, the amount of exercise kids get will double, along with a drastic decrease in childhood obesity. A good Cardio workout is considered raising your heart rate for about 20 minutes per day, and doing this only 2-3 times per school week simply isn't good enough.

While talking to my peers about this issue, many of them stated that the activities that we partake in throughout the class aren't always very energy consuming. For example, sports like Golf don't give you a very good workout, so they shouldn't be taught in a Physical Education class. Gym should be limited to sports such as basketball, tennis, badminton, and other activities that require intense movement and a good amount of energy to be used.

While talking to teachers on this issue, many suggested taking more drastic measures, such as shutting down fast food restaurants across the country. I disagree with this, however, because although its important to eat healthy, I believe people can have a balance, and with the right amount of exercise, you should be able to reward yourself with a bit of fast food. If America simply increases the amount of time that children participate in Physical Education, the growing weight problem will disappear sooner than we would have ever imagined.