Obama could be agent of change for your belly

<p>Inside a gym at the Sonoma County YMCA, a game of pickup basketball is going at full tilt.</p><p>Guys in knee braces or on artificial hips elbow it out against junior college students and fitness trainers. It’s mostly friendly, but expletives fly as bodies sprawl across the court.</p><p>“Am I cut?” one man asks after he’s hit hard in the face while driving to the basket.</p><p>Such colorful diversity of talent and backgrounds is a hallmark of pickup basketball. But not until Barack Obama ascends to the highest office in the land will such games take place at the White House.</p><p>Obama, who plans to install a basketball court at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave., is a fitness fanatic who runs, lifts weights and spins on a stationary bike. He’s so committed to his workout regimen that on his first morning in Hawaii for a family vacation he went to a gym for a 45-minute workout.</p><p>Some believe Obama will inspire a nation to dust off its collective sneakers and get in shape. If the busiest man on Earth has time for a daily workout, what excuse is there for the rest of us to not do the same?</p><p>“I would be out here no matter who’s the president, but the fact we share that bond and he likes to take time off for exercise, that’s a positive and healthy thing,” said Kim Batchelder, a 45-year-old natural resources planner for the Sonoma County Agricultural Preservation and Open Space District and a regular at the YMCA basketball games.</p><p>Batchelder said he sees parallels with the type of leader he hopes Obama will be and the president-elect’s prowess on the court.</p><p>“He understands that he can’t do it alone, that he’s going to have to pass it off,” Batchelder said. “It’s the same thing as if you were a point guard. He’s got to see the whole field and delegate.”</p><p>Obama works out for about 90 minutes every day, alternating between weight lifting and a cardiovascular rotation that includes a stationary bicycle, elliptical machine and treadmill. On the campaign trail, aides convinced gym owners to open early or stay open late to accommodate the candidate.</p><p>Obama’s first year in office coincides with a Sonoma County plan that seeks the long-term goal of making the county “the healthiest place in California.” Dubbed “Health Action: A 2020 Vision,” the plan encourages access to healthy food, physical activity and prevention-based health care.</p><p>“I think it’s good timing,” Ellen Bauer, the program’s manager, said of Obama’s upcoming tenure. “I’m very excited. There’s a lot of new attention to what seems so basic.”</p><p>Bauer said she’s reminded of when President John F. Kennedy issued his famous call for Americans to get fit. He wasn’t just concerned with obesity and blood pressure. At a time when tensions with the Soviet Union were high, Kennedy feared Americans’ unhealthy habits amounted to a national security risk.</p><p>That legacy lives on. New physical activity guidelines issued by the government last year place an emphasis on people getting 150 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity each week.</p><p>Santa Rosa architect Marc Matulich achieves that by playing basketball at the YMCA three times a week, despite having had both of his hips replaced.</p><p>Matulich, who voted for John McCain, said he hopes Obama delivers on his efforts to stimulate the U.S. economy for “selfish” reasons related to playing ball.</p><p>“If he puts people back to work, they won’t be coming here and I’ll have more playing time,” he said. “It’s crowded here with all these guys.”</p><p>Obama’s preferred sport is a change from presidents who have favored golf or other genteel pursuits. Having the nation’s first round-ball enthusiast in the White House could resonate on playgrounds and in gyms in neighborhoods where positive role models are sometimes hard to find.</p><p>Mike Singh, a 23-year-old regular at the YMCA, said he donated $20 to Obama’s campaign for a contest in which the candidate played the winner in a game of hoops. He didn’t win.</p><p>“I’d probably beat the president because of my size,” the fitness trainer said. “He’s tall, but he’s scrawny.”</p><p>Health advocates lament Obama’s smoking habit. But David Brown, chief executive officer of the Sonoma County YMCA, said Obama’s struggle with the addiction is something that a lot of people can relate to.</p><p>“He appeals to the everyman,” Brown said.</p><p>For those who will be inspired by Obama’s example to start working out, fitness trainers caution to take it slow and get cleared by a doctor before starting a new exercise program.</p><p>Leslie Graves, the YMCA’s fitness director, said people should not expect to have a toned physique similar to Obama’s overnight.</p><p>“Obama had a long, arduous two-year road to get to the presidency,” she said. “That’s roughly how long it takes an out-of-shape person to become a specimen of health. So put your expectations in line with that.”</p>