Childhood Obesity Awareness Month Puts Kids’ Daily Movement in Focus

As national attention increases on children’s physical activity, fitness expert Amy Burton highlights an overlooked PE challenge for millions learning at home.

PALMETTO, FL, UNITED STATES, September 16, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ — As the nation observes National Childhood Obesity Awareness Month, recent research provides a snapshot of overweight and obesity among U.S. children and adolescents. A 2026 JAMA Network Open study using health records from more than 6 million U.S. youths found that approximately 36.5% of children ages 6-11 and 38.5% of adolescents and young adults ages 12-19 had overweight or obesity.

The Physical Activity Gap

At the same time, relatively few children are meeting recommended physical activity levels. Federal physical activity guidelines recommend that children and adolescents ages 6-17 get at least 60 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity every day, yet only 20%-28% meet that recommendation.

The numbers come amid increasing national and state attention to children’s physical fitness, physical education and opportunities for movement during the school day. A 2026 peer-reviewed analysis published in the CDC journal Preventing Chronic Disease found that 74% of states required zero to less than 60 minutes of physical education per week for elementary students. While PE is only one part of a child’s total daily physical activity, the findings underscore how much movement may need to happen outside a traditional PE class.

A Growing Need Among Homeschool Families

That challenge extends beyond public schools. An estimated 3.4 million U.S. students were homeschooled during the 2024-25 school year, representing approximately 6% of the school-age population, according to a 2026 analysis by the National Home Education Research Institute. For these families, the parent often becomes the PE teacher as well.

It is a gap fitness professional Amy Burton began seeing as she worked with homeschool families. Burton, a certified personal trainer and health coach, founded Shining Light Fitness, a faith-based online physical education platform designed to give families a practical way to make movement part of the homeschool day. Watch a brief overview of Shining Light Fitness.

Making PE Easier at Home

“Shining Light Fitness gives families a convenient, affordable way to increase physical activity, learn sports skills and build healthy habits at home,” Burton said. “Kids have access to a variety of coaches, styles of instruction and a diverse library of activities to explore, all in one safe, trusted environment. Parents no longer have to spend time searching for, piecing together, and vetting activities from multiple sources. We make PE easy.”

Shining Light Fitness provides age-appropriate workouts, sports skills instruction, movement games and family activities alongside character-development lessons and Biblical instruction. Families can follow a recommended weekly curriculum or choose activities based on their children’s ages, available time, space and equipment. Every workout and activity also includes a printable version, allowing families to reduce screen time and continue the activity offline.

Although designed with homeschool families in mind, Shining Light Fitness can also help children in traditional schools add physical activity after the school day. An annual subscription is $89 and covers an entire family. Shining Light Fitness is also an approved vendor in several state-funded education scholarship programs serving homeschool families.

“Kids don’t have to be great athletes to become active kids,” Burton said. “If we can make movement convenient, enjoyable and part of everyday life, we can help more children build healthy habits that last.”

About Shining Light Fitness
Shining Light Fitness is a faith-based online physical education and character-building program designed for homeschool families with children in grades K-12. The platform combines guided physical activities, sports skills instruction, movement games, character development and biblical instruction to help families make physical activity a consistent part of the school day. Its mission is to help children SHINE through faith, fitness and fun. Learn more at ShiningLightFitness.com.

AMY BURTON
Shining Light Fitness
+1 727-418-4396
amy@shininglightfitness.com
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Shining Light Fitness Overview | Homeschool PE Made Easy

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