WELLNESS ENCOURAGED IN GREENWOOD
Tuesday, February 17th, 2009 -- 11:27 AM
A Greenwood woman is hoping to help her community get in shape.Jana Schmitz, 34, says she used to play plenty of sports in high school, but like most people, she couldn?t seem to find the time or motivation to exercise in adulthood.
That changed last year when she completed a half-marathon, and the training was good for her physical and mental health, and turned out to be a great family activity, too.
So, she decided to approach the city with ideas. The first step was to convert the city?s Health Committee to a Health/Wellness Committee.
She then contacted some county officials, who were able to draw up detailed maps of Greenwood?s recreational resources.
"The ski trails are already established in the city of Greenwood, so we just made the map," Schmitz said. "It's (also) a hiking/biking trail. We sprayed those in the fall so all the weeds are down."
The maps have been posted at the [url=http://greenwoodwi.com/maps.php]City of Greenwood website[/url].
Now, Schmitz is drawing up some simple city street routes so people know how far they?re walking or running.
Schmitz, a mother of four, says her whole family is involved.
"We take the kids out on bike rides. They think it's fun. That's the thing: if you can encourage the kids it's not a chore to go exercise, maybe they'll continue throughout their life," she says.
In May, the group will hold a free hiking event; at that time, they?ll partner with the school to offer health information to participants.
If you would like to help, or participate, you can contact Jana at 267-3286; or city hall at 267-6205.
Feel free to contact us with questions and/or comments.