Maryland native to urge Americans to get outside,eat smart Three-time Olympian Dominique Dawes already practices what she preaches. At 33, she still looks like the gymnast who was a member of the gold medal "Magnificent Seven" team at the 1996 Summer Games in Atlanta. She teaches gymnastics and tours as a motivational speaker. On Aug. 11, Dawes and the other members of the 2000 women's gymnastics squad will be awarded the Olympic bronze team medal, which was stripped from the Chinese team for using an under-aged athlete. Fit and poised, the Silver Spring native and University of Maryland graduate has been sworn in to co-chair with quarterback Drew Brees the President's Council on Fitness, Sports and Nutrition. Although she doesn't have her marching orders yet, she already knows the message, one she has lived by since age 6, when she began gymnastics.

Question: So what about this job intrigued you?

Answer: I'm still learning what I'm going to do, but I know I'm going to be a very positive spokesperson for not only the Let's Move initiative -- which was started by [first lady] Michelle Obama to combat childhood obesity and to educate kids on the importance of physical fitness and realizing that it's fun -- but also on the nutrition component. I'll also get involved in ensuring that adults in this country are becoming more physically fit and are watching what they're putting in their bodies.

Q: The first lady put you through your paces on that day [June 23] that you were sworn in. She looks pretty physically fit herself and you do, too.

A: Michelle is so fit. She came from Chicago and she's used to jumping rope …She came over to my group of D.C. kids while we were jumping rope … she just started skipping so quickly. Michelle not only talks the talk but she walks the walk with her Let's Move initiative …I love jumping rope …and I do about 20 to 30 to 40 minutes of jumping rope a day because that's how we warmed up during my Olympic years. So it's pretty easy for me. I'll put on my iPhone and I'll listen to some Pandora and I'll just have a great time.

Q: What is the challenge to getting kids outdoors again? For years, parents just opened the door and kids went out to play and came in at supper time. How do they overcome the inertia?

A: I believe there's a number of challenges for parents. Today is a new day and age and there's safety concerns, understandably, and so parents are reluctant to say, 'Go outside and play. Just come in when it gets dark.' We want to ensure there are safe parks to go to and not only the parks, but the pathways and transportation to get there. Maybe kids aren't interested in organized sports. We're going to try and come up with creative ways to get kids and parents and families and communities more involved.

Q: So how will the council go about introducing a new generation to the foreign concept of being outdoors and participating?

A: The Let's Move South Lawn series, which Michelle started, is a great idea. It really got kids out, on a lawn, in this case, the South Lawn. A number of [physical education] teachers from the metropolitan area volunteered their time and showed kids different activities, either speed and agility work -- which is fun to do and could be beneficial to a young athlete in the making -- but team-building exercises and nutrition exercises, so many fun things for kids to learn not only about competition or teamwork or nutrition but also to work on their physical health. This South Lawn series is perfect for parents to take and do in their own backyard with their kids or for communities to do at parks or for schools that are lacking in physical education to do during or after school hours.

Q: It's hard for families, especially in cities and close-in suburbs, to find this kind of space and also to remember what the activities are. Will this information be up on line for parents to access?

A: Right now, they can go to fitness.gov for more information. Also, they can go to letsmove.gov to get tips. But they can also go to their local boys and girls club, go to the local YMCA and YWCA. They've got organized activities already going on.

Q: How do you make the outdoors cool?

A: You probably make the outdoors cool by not trying not to focus on being cool. When I was a young kid, I was not considered cool; I was not considered trendy. I was not anything anybody desired to be like. For young kids, I want them to be empowered and educated on the importance of getting out and setting goals and working toward those goals -- either in athletics or the arts or academics -- and understanding that their physical health and what they put into their bodies is truly important to helping them reach their full potential …When I was a young person, if I had been striving to be cool, I never would have been a three-time Olympian because it wasn't always cool to always be so disciplined, to wake up at 5 o'clock every morning and look tired at school and to work hard and put your dreams in front of a lot of things. I would tell kids [today], 'Don't try to focus on being cool or being in or being trendy for that year or that week, even. Really focus on your dreams and your goals. If you focus on those things, you will care about what you put in your body and how it affects you physically and emotionally, you will care more about feeling physically fit and not necessarily how you look, but how you feel.'

Q: It's a tough cycle to break.

A: If you go to a kid and say, here's an apple, here's some fries, which do you want? They'll say, 'The fries.' As an adult, I want that, too. I want the fries. I eat the fries. I eat the burgers. I eat unhealthy foods. It's all about proportion. But I also realize that this apple is going to make me feel better; it's going to give me more energy; it's going to make my mood brighter. You have to fool kids that way, to kind of get them to focus on their dreams and goals and then they'll make those smart choices.

Q: That's what resonated with the First Lady's speech last week. She said, 'A life without burgers and fries is depressing.'

A: Oh, it's very depressing. I agree. I agree …You should be able to have everything, but I think, as Michelle probably mentioned, moderation is key and also making sure you have more healthy options than unhealthy options. Do I love Wendy's? I love going to Wendy's, but I'm not going to go to Wendy's every day and have a Frosty and fried chicken sandwich. I'm going to go to Wendy's and get that Dasani water and that grilled chicken and maybe fries one day. Maybe the next week I will splurge and get a Frosty or a little dessert …The thing is making sure we don't tell our kids, 'No fries, no fast food, no, no, no, no, no.'

Q: You look terrific.

A: Thanks. It takes work.