![\"\"](\"http:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/jsuflash\/files\/2011\/04\/3028392866_8687ccbdbe.jpg\")
<\/a>Derrick Walton<\/strong> Jackson State University will host its 5th Annual Walter Payton \u201cSweetness\u201d Fight Against Obesity 5K Run\/Walk this Saturday, April 2, 2011 at 8:00 a.m. There will also be a 1 Mile Fun Run at 9:00 a.m. for children, ages 5-18.<\/p>\n The Run\/Walk, is sponsored by the Walter Payton Recreation and Wellness Center, and its primary purpose is to help fight health-related issues such as obesity and cardiovascular disease by being physically active.<\/p>\n Mississippi is considered the most obese state in the country, according to www.healthyamericans.org, and the Mississippi State Department of Health reports that nearly 7,487 Mississippians died of heart (cardiovascular) disease in 2009. The obesity rate was 42 percent among Blacks, 29.3 percent among Whites, and 25.6 percent among Latinos.<\/p>\n \u201cThe event is a great opportunity for Mississippians to commit themselves to a healthy lifestyle,\u201d said Nyoki Morton, assistant director for marketing.<\/p>\n For individuals like Jeremy Wallace, Saturday\u2019s event can be a start to making a difference.<\/p>\n Wallace, a staff member for the Walter Payton Center, said: \u201cI like to work out, be healthy and run. It goes towards my future goals and career, and it\u2019s what I like to do.\u201d<\/p>\n All proceeds from this event will go to Camp Tiger Tails, which allows elementary and middle school students an opportunity to participate in the summer wellness program.<\/p>\n The Run\/Walk is named in honor of famed NFL and JSU alumnus Walter Payton, and is sponsored by the Center that also bears his name on the JSU campus.<\/p>\n More than 400 individuals participated in the \u201cSweetness\u201d Run\/Walk last year. This year that number is expected to increase. Asia Tingle contributed to this story.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Derrick Walton Staff Writer Jackson State University will host its 5th Annual Walter Payton \u201cSweetness\u201d Fight Against Obesity 5K Run\/Walk this Saturday, April 2, 2011…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"editor_plus_post_options":"{}","editor_plus_copied_stylings":"{}","_mi_skip_tracking":false},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/jsuflash\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/244"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/jsuflash\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/jsuflash\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/jsuflash\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/jsuflash\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=244"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/jsuflash\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/244\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/jsuflash\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=244"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/jsuflash\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=244"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/jsuflash\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=244"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nStaff Writer<\/strong><\/p>\n
\nThose who missed the March 25 registration deadline can still participate in the Run\/Walk by paying $15 on the day of the event.<\/p>\n