Extraordinary Health Magazine EHMagazine Vol 37 | Page 23

WHY EVERYONE WANTS TO BE ON #TEAMSHADSQUAD
Heroes thrive on helping others attain success. They blaze trails to light the way. They guide the lost.
They work hard to become heroic. Rashad Jennings wasn’t supposed to become this Rashad—Rashad
the television and sports show personality, bestselling author, NFL running back, the winner of Dancing
with the Stars—the origin of Rashad Jennings was the polar opposite of his outcome.
By his own definition, Jennings was a
chubby kid with asthma, glasses and
failing grades. To witness his evolution
from boy to man is to marvel at how he
beat so many odds, yet remains gracious
in the extreme.
“When I wake up every day, I am
thankful because I know I am not done
yet and I just want to open all the gifts
that God gave me,” said Jennings.
“When we are tuned in to how we live, we can’t help but
change other people’s lives.”
And there are gifts aplenty to share, especially through the
Rashad Jennings Foundation. The Reading Challenge motivates
students to read as many books as possible within a set time
frame and passing a reading comprehension assessment.
Students can enter to win dream prizes like NFL game tickets,
signed merchandise, gift cards and the prize all the kids want
most: a motivational SKYPE session with Jennings.
This is the fifth year for Jennings’ camp 180 Youth Football Camp
in his hometown of Lynchburg, Virginia. A whopping 500 children
ages six through 17 learn the fundamentals, form and technique
from a coaching staff that includes former NFL players plus high
school and recreational coaches. The cost is free to the students,
who learn how Jennings overcame his boyhood challenges by
holding himself accountable for his own life.
Jennings is also a fierce advocate for literacy. His debut book,
THE IF IN LIFE: How to Get Off Life’s Sidelines and Become Your Best
Self became a New York Times bestseller and continues to inspire
readers to keep the faith that greater things are coming. His book
ARCADE AND THE TRIPLE T TOKEN is part of his middle-grades
series called the Coin Slot Chronicles.
“I work out at least four-to-five times a week and am active
every day, so moving my body and getting the blood flowing
is everything, especially having grown up overweight and
asthmatic, wanting to play in the NFL I had to put in a lot of work
and dedication.” said Jennings. “I want to be the granddad at 80
running around with a bright smile on his face still in tune with
the generation and health-wise.”
Jennings eats gluten- and dairy-free and tries to keep it organic,
both to feel better and to keep his mental acuity in tip-top shape.
Jennings dispels the myth that healthy eating is more expensive
than junk food.
“Eating junk is more costly because of the medical bills you’ll
have later on,” said Jennings, who watched his father suffer
from advanced diabetes and lose both of his legs to the disease.
“I don’t like to have clutter in my body and mind, and I look at
it like walking into a clean house—nobody wants to walk into a
cluttered home.”
Spending time in the hospital for his asthma when he was a child,
Jennings learned to push past difficulties and extend further than
limitations imposed upon him by others. His father’s smoking
exacerbated his respiratory condition, but eventually father and
son struck a deal: Mr. Jennings would quit smoking and his son
promised to never begin. They have kept their word to each other
even after all these years.
“Still, my doctors told me I shouldn’t run or play football,
because they said my lungs were weak—but I’m a logical thinker
and as a kid I thought, if my lungs are weak, I have to get them
strong,” said Jennings, who started running anyway. “I actually
outran asthma.”
Part of his message to young people is to say ‘yes’ to the positive
aspects of life, even when the world seems to be saying ‘no’.
“I write every night before I go to sleep and I write a lot about
opposites; I love opposites,” said Jennings. “Instead of thinking
how to avoid something, instead think of why you would say yes
to the life you want, yes to what you need.”
Physical activity is of critical importance to the record-setting
running back who played with the Jacksonville Jaguars, the
Oakland Raiders and the New York Giants.
Extraordinary Health ™ • Vol 37 21