Schwarzenegger and Clinton join forces to combat child obesity pion was elected governor in 2003.
Earlier this year, Schwarzenegger was named co-leader, along with Clinton, of the Alliance for a Healthier Generation, a partnership between the ex-president’s William J. Clinton Foundation and the American Heart Association.
The men made a quick trip to the school’s gym where students were busy lifting weights, running the treadmill and cycling. They did not take questions from reporters.
Schwarzenegger, dressed in a gray suit and aqua blue tie, gave a boy some pointers on weightlifting.
“Remember to exhale,” the governor told the student. During an assembly attended by administrators, teachers and students, Clinton praised the school for the quality of its physical fitness program and urged other schools to follow its example.
“There are very few schools in America that have the kind of physical facilities we saw in your exercise room,” said Clinton, who wore a dark suit and magenta tie.
“I walked into that weight room today... and I just was screaming inside, `This is what every child in America deserves. And if we did it, we would turn this problem around in no time."’
Schwarzenegger agreed: “You are doing really extraordinary work here to exercise and to eat well and stay fit... and the rest of the country should do the same thing.”
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on September 20, 2007. Read the original PDF.