May is National Physical Fitness and Sports Month. Regular physical activity in childhood is vital to promoting long-lasting health, and for women, being active every day helps to lower their risk of developing chronic conditions such as type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure and depression. (Visit our National Women’s Health Week page for resources to promote healthy behaviors among women and our National Mental Health Month page for resources to learn and educate about the importance of mental health for overall health and wellness.)

There are a number of resources WIC staff can use to educate on and promote physical activity among participants, and help them add or increase the physical activity in their lives, including:

Healthy Tips for Active Play (in English and Spanish) that WIC agencies can download.

Team Nutrition resources for kids and families:

• Move, Play, Have Fun and Summer Food, Summer Moves to help the families be more active
• Interactive games and activities for kids, such as Blast Off and Track and Field Fuel-Up
• A coloring worksheet and maze

CDC’s Physical Activity page that offers:

• A downloadable copy of The Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans, which includes the recommendations for pre-school-aged children and pregnant and postpartum women
• An interactive Data, Trends and Maps tool that provides information for each state on the behaviors and health status of its population, as well as information on the number of WIC children classified as obese or overweight
• Free, downloadable fact sheets and infographics

The Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion site (also available in Spanish) that offers an extensive list of links, resources and information such as:

• A page dedicated to Physical Activity for People with Disabilities
• The Move Your Way Campaign, which includes interactive tools, videos, posters and more, many resources available in Spanish