The Story of F.O.R.M. 

When I was in high school I weighed almost 300 lbs. I struggled with health for years. I was made fun of a lot, was prediabetic, had super low confidence, and horrible acid reflux. This went on for years. I took gym class and played all the sports, but I still struggled with my health. I finally decided that I was tired of feeling like that and kept it very simple. I started moving more and eating what my body needed (Nothing more, nothing less). I started practicing self-control in my eating and my cravings. I started focusing on recovery and stretching. I ended up losing over 100 lbs. Throughout that journey, God started showing me how he has made our bodies and how if we partner with that design and steward our body well we would be able and available to serve others better and to do all God has called us to. 

Once I started maintaining my transformation for a few years people started asking for help. They thought If I could change, they for sure could! So I got certified and started helping everyone who was asking for my help and the results were really great. This ended up becoming a fitness company called Glory to Glory Fitness with a staff of trainers. We were breaking down health into super simple frameworks for people and teaching them how to apply Biblical principles to think rightly about health. I ended up getting a full 4-year degree in health science so I could have the education and credibility to help more people. 

We continued to create systems and frameworks around how to keep health simple and people's results were still amazing. We were mostly helping adults in their 40's, 50's, and 60's. Even though things were going well it just felt like we weren't fixing the root issues of the problems many Americans experience in health. And then I read a study referenced on the CDC's website that said: "By the year 2030 it is estimated that based on current trends that 86.3% of adults in America will be overweight or obese on a BMI scale." And that really bothered me. That is a crazy stat! 

With each adult, we were helping it was the same story. No one ever taught them practical frameworks and habits for healthy living while they were in school. They learned some random facts about the body or played sports, but once they graduated, got a full-time job, had kids, and weren't young anymore they didn't understand how to be healthy in any season. And one day I felt like God spoke to my wife and me and said: "The way to fix the health of our nation was to equip and empower the next generation.". He put a vision on our hearts to create a curriculum that would break down health for students and help them build a solid foundation of habits while they are young so they can sustain those habits in any season. Not just teaching them the facts, but teaching them how to THINK RIGHTLY about their body and how to take care of it. The Bible teaches that transformation comes by the renewing of the mind. 

So we took the simple frameworks we were teaching to adults and created a curriculum for kids that teaches them those principles of healthy living. Yes, there are facts about the body that cover all the standards, but we focus more on progressing in the application so the students actually apply what they are learning rather than just learning more and more information. Sometimes the more information we give the less students apply. So we packaged animated lessons, movement sessions, nutrition challenges, and devotional guides in a turn-key platform that not only is engaging and fun for students but also takes work off of the amazing teachers we work with. Everything in our curriculum is Biblically based. And not only do we give schools these resources, we actually partner with them to implement, lesson plan, and support them all throughout the year to ensure the resources are actually being used to their fullest.

It has been amazing what God has been doing with The F.O.R.M. Curriculum since we started! We get to work with amazing teachers and constantly add relevant content and resources that teachers ask for. And we are so humbled that He is using us to accomplish his vision for the health of the next generation so they can be raised up and do all God has for them. He has given us the vision to change the way health education is done for the better in America. To give every student access to quality health education materials so they can build a solid foundation in their health. Will you partner with us in that mission?

-Ashton Tate | Founder