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State officials want to make sure Floridians aren’t loosening their belts and packing on the pounds this fall. As Matt Galka tells us, the department of Health will ramp up their healthiest weight efforts this fall, and numbers show we are on the right track.

Jennifer Santa Cruz is trying to make exercise part of her daily routine.

“Bring up the cardio, trying to get fit,” she said as she went for her daily walk outside.

That’s exactly what the Department of Health wants to hear. They are reminding people about their Healthiest Weight Florida initiative this fall.  Surgeon General Dr. John Armstrong says only 36% of Floridians are at a healthy weight.

“What concerns me even more is that on that trend, by 2030, six out of 10 babies born could be obese or overweight before graudating high school. That’s not the future anybody wants for our state,” said Dr. Armstrong.

But there’s hope.  Since the program started last year, Florida has made strides in the right direction.

:We are bending the weight curve in Florida. Currently, the obesity rate in Florida is nearly 2 percentage points less than the United States. We are the healthiest weight state in the south,” said the Surgeon General.

Experts say the solution to the problem is an easy one. Something as simple as a five minute walk per day can help.

Dietitian Katie Snyder sees patients every day about weight loss. She replaced her chair with an exercise ball to show clients how easy it was to burn a few more calories.

“Even if you put your shoes on and you walk down to the driveway to get your mail, that’s something.” she said.

Since the program started, Florida has moved into the top 15 for healthiest weight states in the country. If you want to see how you’re area is doing, you can go online to www.floridacharts.com and click on “Healthiest Weight.”