The Million Calorie March

By Charlene Shirk First Coast News

JACKSONVILLE, FL -- He plans to walk from Jacksonville to Boston to help kids everywhere lose weight. Gary Marino was nearly 400 pounds when he realized crash diets weren't going to help. Through education he learned how to live a healthier lifestyle and keep fattening foods at bay. Marino wants to stress the importance of health education and physical fitness to others through his upcoming walk he's calling "the million calorie march".

Nutrition Educator Alice Jaglowski says the effort is a great way to bring attention to the problem of obese children in Northeast Florida. "Nearly 60 percent of our population is overweight or obese."

Gloria Gresham and her 12-year-old daughter Alyce both attend an obesity prevention program through the Duval County Health Department. It was a picture of friend sent to Gloria that motivated her to lose weight. "I got this picture last summer... and I looked at it and I said oh my God." The picture was of Gloria's rear from behind. She has it taped to her freezer.

She realized at that time that her daughter was also overweight. "All the information we're getting about children and obesity and diabetes and everytime she's got an ache or something I go ahhh does she have diabetes?" Alyce admits her weight makes her feel bad about herself so she is excited about the classes she and her mom have been taking together. "It's helped me to change my eating habits and eat more foods, a different variety of foods and look at food labels and stuff."

That's what Marino is hoping to spread to other families. He wants people to grasp the need to exercise and eat healthy. He plans to walk fifteen miles a day for eighty days. He hopes his walk will raise money to provide scholarships to obese children to help them attend weight loss camps, and to obtain educational DVDs for parents to help them set a healthy example.

Marino is scheduled to leave from Nemours April 5th. There is a fundraising kick-off event the evening before. His doctors say Marino will also benefit from his efforts. They predict he will lose another sixty pounds.

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