OTTUMWA — Wildwood Elementary School’s sixth-grade students had just finished running, and now they had to work through stations designed to improve fitness in other ways.

Lt. Gov. Patty Judge happened to be standing by a station that would strike fear into many would-be athletes’ hearts. But this student wasn’t intimidated in the least. He hopped up and immediately hauled his chin over the bar.

“Let’s see you do it again,” Judge said, half encouraging and half challenging.

The boy looked over. His face shifted to a half-hidden grin. No problem. Up and down. No sweat.

Judge cheered and clapped, genuinely enthusiastic about the show. She just hopes he can still do the same in 10 or 20 years. It’s not easy.

“I started working out at a gym with a trainer, and I thought he was going to kill me,” she said later. “I haven’t done this in years.”

The class wasn’t the dodgeball you might remember from your own school days. That’s a good thing as far as Judge is concerned. The problem with that game is that once you get hit, you’re out. That usually means standing off to the side while the game continues.

Judge wants the state Legislature to pass the Healthy Kids Act. The act sets a goal of 30 minutes of activity per day for school children, but it is not a mandate. Supporters say the state’s schools can accomplish that goal without having to radically restructure days or extend school hours.

The visit to Wildwood was part of a two-day swing by Judge and Gov. Chet Culver to try and drum up support for the legislation. They see it as a lost part of the national debate on health care.

“The problem that we’ve had for a long time is when people talk about health care, they’re not talking about the things I saw here today,” Judge told the students.

Part of the equation is removing soda and sugary snacks from schools. Judge brought that up during her comments, asking students what they thought should replace them.

The answers came slowly at first. Judge leaned forward, resting her arms on the podium. The answers started coming a bit faster as the students opened up.

Judge met with educators and got a boost from an activist before going to the gym class. Some were questioning whether spending levels stay the same when students see healthy drinks instead of Coke in the machines.

Ken Daley of the Iowa Association For Health, Physical Education, Recreation And Dance said there is a slight dip initially, but spending recovers quickly.

“Do not be afraid of the very initial shock,” he said.