In 2013, one in five kids aged 12-17 reported a height and weight which classified them as either overweight or obese, according to a survey conducted by Statistics Canada.

Obviously there’s no single factor to blame for the astonishing rise in childhood obesity over the last 10 years: the rise of the technological age, poor knowledge/habits around food, and what we’re going to talk about today, confusion over just exactly how much exercise is required to create healthy, vibrant, energetic kids.

For most of us (myself included) change can be really difficult and scary to deal with.  I almost feel like I’m an expert in change by now, after subjecting myself to all of the following changes in the last 6 months:

• Quit my job.
• Flew LITERALLY halfway around the world.
• Moved into a new house in new city.
• Started a new job.
• First Canadian winter First time being COLD!
• First Christmas away from family.
• And now I’m moving again.

By now we’ve all heard at some point that good spinal posture is important – from our parents, teachers, and coaches, there seems to be a general consensus that having ‘proper’ posture is good for us.

What you may not have heard before is WHY having a slumped over posture is a serious health problem.

At the core of our bodies is a forgotten organ called the spine. Made up of 24 moveable bones and 23 spongy discs, it is held together by over 220 specialized ligaments, made moveable by 120 muscles and, most importantly, it protects the most vital system in the human body – your Nervous System.