Want to play sports but you just don’t have the time to join a League? Alan here, with some easy ways to set up your own informal sporting events. Sometimes, when I’ve slacked off on my exercise, I know its time to get outside, but exercising alone can be boring, right?

Well, it just so happens that in the 21st century, technology has made it easier than ever to communicate with friends to throw together a pickup game of basketball or soccer.

A couple days in advance I find a school or park to play at and text anyone who might be interested in playing. I then follow-up with an email to anyone who didn’t respond to the text.

You’d be surprised at how many people will show up to these gatherings, because people are bound to invite their own friends. One time, I decided to set up a game of basketball at a local school. I invited nine people on a Thursday to play Saturday, but when I got to the school that day, I found 16 other people ready to play! The original people I had invited told their friends, and more people showed up. We had such a good time we set up three more the next week.

If all of your friends are out of town, check out this directory to find events happening near you or find a park or school to play at.

Comment, tell us about your experiences, and how you set up your own event. And don’t forget to drink plenty of water because it can get pretty hot, especially over the summer.

My mother recently got a new membership to a gym and even at middle age, strives to be in the best shape of her life and exercise even for the smallest amount of time every single day. This brought about some questions in which I asked myself, “How much more different could her generation be from mine?” In modern times, everything is easily accessible through the internet, fast food and takeout (with free delivery) is only one phone call away and simply getting out for a nice walk or running errands is just something people seldom do these days.

While high schools make physical education a requirement for their school curriculum, a lot of students hardly exercise independently once that requirement is fulfilled. As I approach my college years, I dread the “Freshman 15” in which Freshmen in college gain weight their first year due to their inability to eat the right foods in addition to the amount of food available on or near college campuses. I hope to not fall victim to this “Freshman 15” and learn to make the right eating and exercise choices.

Although going out to be active may not sound too appealing to most people, it’s not as difficult as it sounds. No one expects you to run a triathlon or swim Olympic miles every day! Even the smallest of things can make a difference. Going out for a jog a few times a week, walking your dog, or enjoying the fun summer sun with friends is a great way to start! Opting for a walk to school instead of driving there is not only a healthy choice but helps to save the environment as well. There are literally countless ways for you to start being healthy right this very moment!

Here are some cool sites that you can visit with more information on how to be active and stay healthy starting right now:

You can always visit the "Get Moving" portion of Youth Space.

And you can visit the "Eat Healthy" portion of Youth Space aswell.

Some additional sites include:

http://kidshealth.org/teen/food_fitness/\

http://kidshealth.org/parent/nutrition_fit/center/nutrition_center.html?gclid=CNz_g_jQp6ICFRNZiAod6CweRA

http://www.teengrowth.com/

http://www.hify.org/ 

Now, what are you waiting for? Stop reading and go outside and be active!

By: Sam  

How do you usually get to work? By car?  Walking?  Public transportation?  Hey everyone. Nimo here again.  Today, I'll be blogging about the 16th Annual San Francisco Bay Area's "Bike to Work Day" on Thursday, May 13, 2010.

On this day, you and many other participants will celebrate bicycling as a means to not only get healthier, but also to save our environment and reconnect with the community that you live in!  There are many activities for individual and group cyclists.  You are not alone on this day!

According to the website (http://www.youcanbikethere.com), there will be "incentives, raffles, challenges and energizer stations on Bike to Work Day."  Click here to view a map of Bay Area energizer stations.

If you don't feel comfortable riding your bike to work by yourself, why don't you gather up a group of people to participate in this activity with you?  For all those competitive cyclists, now's your chance!  You and your group can compete with other participating groups.  Whichever group travels the most days by bicycle wins the GRAND PRIZE!!  Appealing, is it not? For more information on the group cycling, click here. 

Are you ready for Bike to Work Day?  Mark your calendars, put on your helmets and hop on that bike!

For more biking information, go to http://bicycling.511.org/.  

I leave you all with one love and happiness.  Get out there and ride!  God bless.

By: Nimo 

Hi.  My name is Ana and this is my second blog.  In this blog, I will be writing about different spaces where you can exercise.  Exercise is a good habit to have.  Why?  Because it helps you to be more relaxed and can also help you release the daily stress that you may have.  There are many ways to exercise, but the question comes down to where you'll be exercising – indoors or outdoors. 

Are you interested in learning about a topic but never see it?  Let us know what you want to see on the blog or top stories, and enjoy exploring different sections in yspacesmc.org.  Thanks! 

A fishbowl is a way to get people’s opinion on a certain subject. The way a fishbowl works is there is an inner circle and an outer circle. The participants sit in the inner circle and the observers sit in the outer circle. The participants are asked questions and the observers listen and learn.

The supporters that attended our fishbowl included members of the school board, parents, teachers, community leaders, food services department, and students. From the discussions, a few themes emerged: food content and presentation; mealtime environment; student awareness/knowledge, involvement, and access; and budget issues. After this series of fishbowls, our hope is that most of these issues get improved.

To get involved in the food projects, you can contact Brian Lau at 650-369-1411 x6492 or brian.lau@yfes.

By Seema and Dolores, Sequoia Youth Advisory Board

Not many people give the word self-esteem much thought.  I know I don't.  Hi!  Nimo here again.  In this blog entry, I'll be talking about self-esteem, the down side of low self-esteem and the benefits of having high self-esteem.

The definition of self-esteem is how a person feels about his/herself.  According to a survey of 90,000 students (grades 7-12) from Family First Aid, self-esteem helps people deal with emotional stress.  Higher self-esteem also lead students to be more successful later on in life and make good choices.  Just imagine, higher self-esteem = full ride scholarship to the university of your choice!  Did you know, "teen pregnancy statistics show time and time again that girls who engage in unprotected sex often have lower self-esteem than their counterparts?" 

Lower self-esteem can also lead to depression or suicide.  According to Family First Aid, teens experience low self-esteem because of their appearance, peers, parents and having unrealistic expectations.  By appearance, I mean self image.  Teens tend to have low self-esteem because they are concerned about how they look.  Teens tend to feel bad about themselves when they see that there is an"irregularity" about their looks.  Teens, what I've learned from an issue of Essence (on the cover, it starred Gabrielle Union, Queen Latifah, and Angela Bassett) is that if you have an irregularity in your body, you have to learn how to embrace it and make it your strongest asset.  Don't let it bring you down. 

Low self-esteem can also be caused by a teen's peers.  If a peer is putting down another student or making that certain student feel like an outcast, the outcome of that student's distress will be even greater.  So please, stop teasing someone else who looks different from you.  We are all the same inside. 

To the parents - continuing to put down your child will make them feel unloved.  Parents, lay off on how your child looks.  We know that you are merely trying to help us, but you continuing to put us down makes us feel as if we're not worthy - like we don't ever do anything right.  Unrealistic expectations set for your child tends to put the child's self-esteem down.  An unrealistic expectation is when you expect your child to succeed in being a doctor when in reality, your child would rather just go to an art institute or some other place that their heart desires - other than Harvard, Yale, or Standford.  According to Family First Aid, if parents and teachers expect too much, the student feels that since they're not living up to expectations, they are a failure and thus causing them to have low self-esteem.

Youth, self-esteem is an important aspect of your life.  If you're feeling depressed, suicidal or down, try talking to someone, contact the local resources listed below or call the Suicide Prevention Lifeline (it's anonymous).

Local resources:

YSpacesmc.org - Feelin' Good About Yourself section 

Youth & FamilyEnrichment Services (YFES)
Palo Alto Medical Foundation (PAMF)
Puente de la CostaSur
Family & Children Services
Peninsula Family YMCA

Suicide Prevention Lifeline:
1 (800) 273 - TALK

http://www.suicidepreventionlifeline.org/