MADISON, Wis. -- A fitness program designed for low-income and high-risk kids will be expanded this fall.

The YMCA KidzFit program will be part of the Gompers Elementary School After School program, WISC-TV reported.

YMCA officials said the program also will be run out of the new YMCA, which is under construction in Sun Prairie.

Huegel Elementary School was the site for the pilot project that began last fall. Sharon Baldwin, YMCA program development director, said that Huegel was selected because of the high percentage of lower-income and at-risk children.

The KidzFit program is incorporated with the YMCA After School program and gets kids involved in physical activities like jumping hurdles and agility drills. Field testing of the 45 participants show the program is having results, organizers said.

"When you watch them jump over hurdles, jump through cones, anything like that, they're quicker," said Justin Schott, KidzFit program director.

The field testing shows improved fitness among all 45 kids. For example, 68 percent of the kids bettered their times on the one mile run/walk by 10 percent. Nearly 19 percent improved their run/walk times by 35 percent, WISC-TV reported.

"The sky's the limit for this program with the results we've seen right now," said Schott.

The YMCA said the growth of the program will depend on grant money and local partnerships. But Baldwin would like KidzFit to expand to three sites each year.

Baldwin said one of the partnerships that shows promise could be with UW Children's Hospital. The UW would provide health assessments that would back up the results shown in the field testing.

In addition to the activities during the After School program, the YMCA gets parents and caregivers involved with a newsletter that includes healthy eating tips and a calendar of activities, WISC-TV reported.

Families are also invited to attend a family dinner where they learn healthy meal options.