A Scout is skinny

Be Prepared.

That's the motto of the Boy Scouts.

"Be prepared for what?" someone once asked Baden-Powell, the founder of Scouting,

"Why, for any old thing." said Baden-Powell.

The training you receive in your troop will help you  live up to the Scout motto. When someone has an accident, you are prepared because of your first aid instruction. Because of lifesaving practice, you might be able to save a nonswimmer who has fallen into deep water.

But Baden-Powell wasn't thinking just of being ready for emergencies. His idea was that all Scouts should prepare themselves to become productive citizens and to give happiness to other people. He wanted each Scout to be ready in mind and body for any struggles, and to meet with a strong heart whatever challenges might lie ahead.

Be prepared for life - to live happily and without regret, knowing that you have done your best. That's what the Scout motto means.  

Are the Boy Scouts prepared for this?

Too fat for the Boy Scouts?

Julie Deardorff

May 11, 2009 The Chicago Tribune 

The Boy Scouts of America has been criticized for not openly embracing gays, atheists and agnostics. But now the Scouts may rankle another group: The obese. 

Under new requirements set to take effect next January, children and adults must meet height and weight standards for certain "high-adventure" or extreme events, such as a 15-mile trek, for which medical care might be more than 30 minutes away. That means a 6-foot-tall Scout or volunteer, for example, must weigh 239 pounds or less. 

Some say the guidelines, which are designed to protect the health and safety of participants, are long overdue. It's an effort to "watch out for the health and safety" of the Scouts and volunteers, not to restrict participation, said BSA spokesman Deron Smith. Moreover, the policy won't affect most regular activities.

But some self-described obese volunteers feel betrayed by the standards, according to comments on scouting Web sites.


And at least one weight-loss expert questions the logic. 

"Why not insist on ... something that would actually measure cardiovascular fitness?" wondered Dr. Daniel Kirschenbaum, clinical director of Wellspring in Chicago, which runs weight-loss camps, after-school programs and academies throughout the country. "Studies on obese adults show about 9 percent are in pretty good shape from a cardiovascular standpoint." 

Scott Tollefson, who said his 6-foot, 3-inch son weighs 265 pounds (5 pounds over the limit) with 5 percent body fat, has a better idea: Hold the national leaders to the same standard.

"There would be a lot fewer pudgy SUV riders in attendance [at the National Jamboree] if we did," he posted on boyandgirlscouts.com.