Keep myself physically strong

One of my personal saints, H. L. Mencken, said it best:  "There is always a well-known solution to every human problem--neat, plausible, and wrong."

Exhibit A in simple solutions are the "no tolerance" policies in schools regarding pocketknives.  It happens every year--a Scout goes on a camping trip, leaves a knife in his pocket or day pack, goes to school, the knife gets found, and he gets suspended as if he were a member of the Crips or Bloods.  In cases such as that, no tolerance equals no sense. 

Exhibit B is the new Scouting policy for overweight leaders and boys.  The "Annual Health and Medical Record" sounds innocent enough--a new medical form--but the devil is in the details.  Here's a paragraph from Scouting magazine (my emphasis added):  "The Annual Health and Medical Record, which takes effect in January 2010, restricts participation in high-adventure activities based on standardized height/weight ratios. For wilderness outings where health care is 30 minutes or more away, Scouts deemed too overweight won’t be allowed to participate."

This is, so to speak, huge.  And it is wrong.

Like the rest of American society, Scouting is afflicted by obesity.  That same article in Scouting has some sobering statistics:  "Body-mass index (BMI) data collected from applicants for the 2010 National Scout Jamboree show that 41 percent of the youth were overweight or obese; among the adults, a staggering 77.5 percent were overweight, obese, or morbidly obese. But Scouting is determined to raise the bar by encouraging responsibility."

This ban on participation in wilderness trips is not the way to do it. 

First, a little background.  Body-Mass Index (check yours here) calculates a number based on your height and weight.  Mine is 24.4.  Here's how I fall into the categories--barely normal.

• Underweight = <18.5
• Normal weight = 18.5-24.9
• Overweight = 25-29.9
• Obesity = BMI of 30 or greater

There are a variety of reasons why BMI doesn't always work.  How about a guy six foot, one inch tall and 228 pounds?  According to the BMI categorties, his BMI is 30.1  Obese, just barely.  Who is he and what kind of shape is he in?  He is Chris Stewart, who plays right wing for the Avalanche hockey team in Denver.  

Here are the charts Scouts will use to determine who can go on the wilderness trip and who stays at home.  (Charts obtained from the excellent blog, Boys and Girls.com.)

A big lure of Scouting is getting into the outdoors, going into places that challenge you--Scouts as well as leaders.  Going on a tough trip and conquering it teaches people lessons they never forget.  It gives the participant a sense of accomplishment that he can draw on for the rest of his life.  And if an adult or a boy struggles because of being overweight, what better reminder will he get that he needs to get in shape?  A tough trip can be a life-changing experience.  Contrast that with a troop that, because of this new policy, scales down trips and never goes anywhere challenging.  What is the point? 

Let me be clear.  No responsible leader wants to take an obese boy and put him on some sort of Bataan Death March. Nor do we want to sign up a leader or a parent who is likely to hold up the column or, at worst, have a heart attack and die.  In my experience, boys and leaders have a pretty good sense of what their limits are, and they will self-select out of something they believe is over their heads. 

That's the way it should be.  And what about the general toughness of the Scout or leader?  Toughness is not just weight ratios.  I've seen boys and men who easily fit the ideal BMI, but I wouldn't want them on any hard-core wilderness trip. They don't have the physical or mental stamina to make the trip.  Right now, my troop is making plans to go to the deserts of Utah in March and Alaska in the summer.  Both places will be way further than 30 minutes away from a hospital.  We will carefully describe the trips, see who applies, and discuss if we need to tell someone to back off. 

We know our people, and will make the best decison for them and for the Troop.  That's why the decision as to who can go on a trip needs to be made on the local level--not some orders from headquarters.