I'm sure you've all heard about the "Saint" Jamie Oliver and his work on healthy eating and school dinners. He has single-handedly taken on the government and some of the toughest of dinner ladies in the country and made us aware that we are what we eat. So why can't we have someone like Jamie to campaign about the nation's fitness?
We have all seen headlines like "Fat Britain" and "Are we turning into a nation of couch potatoes?", but how effective are these stories in changing our attitudes. It has become trendy to look at the unhealthy eating habits of the nation, but campaigning to make the nation fitter or to encourage people to exercise seems a thankless task.
I'm not going to criticise Jamie Oliver because he has achieved a lot, but is a balanced diet the only thing we should concentrate on? Sure, healthy eating is only half the equation but why are we so scared to even mention the word exercise? Sport needs an ambassador like Jamie Oliver who can force changes that will create a fitter Britain for the future.
Things have got so bad that scientists believe that if young people continue to have little or no exercise, then they may be shortening their life expectancy. It seems far too easy for young people to get into the lifestyle of fast food, Xbox and TV.
Let's face it - most of us will find it hard to refuse junk food. We see fast food stores on every high street, we see the adverts on TV and in magazines, is there anywhere in the world where you can escape junk food? If we had the same amount of advertising for exercise as we have for junk food maybe we wouldn't be facing problems of obesity?
Unfortunately, exercise is no longer a regular part of everyone's day. There just seems to be so many obstacles in the way. You are either told that you can't play on the streets because it's too dangerous, or you have to pay quite a bit of money to use a sport facility. We just can't win!
The lack of funding for sport facilities makes going swimming, running or playing football an unsatisfying, second class experience. Compared to trying out the latest video game, watching the new series of "Jackass" or swimming in a dirty, over chlorinated pool - what would you choose?
If only there was an ambitious sports representative who could take on the government and change people's attitude to exercise. The current minister, Tessa Jowell, Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport may not have the qualities or personality to drive a campaign, but she can make changes for the better.
Making leisure facilities cheaper and more accessible would be a good incentive for young people to get involved in sport. Another way would be to encourage children from an early age to form healthier habits which they are more likely to stick with throughout later life. And even though we have the Olympics Games in 2012, shouldn't we be doing more to promote sport and general exercise?
Many people with great potential, who could do well in 2012, could be lost in the struggle to gain funding. It is worrying that the government is spending such vast amounts of money on building an Olympic stadium yet they seem to have forgotten the people in this country that are going to be needed to fill the arena.
Young athletes have to pay membership to join clubs and compete in events on top of the inflating prices of kits and other essential equipment. Some athletes with true ability cannot fulfil their ambitions because the government is not financially supporting them.
So please Saint Jamie when you feel like you want to start a new campaign to work on please consider sport and physical exercise - please!
About the team
This story was produced by Grace Bonner and edited by John Monaghan. It was published by Reach for the Sky website.
