Durant teaching kids _ and himself _ to eat better

DEL CITY, Okla. – Kevin Durant wants kids to get out, play and stay healthy. He also understands that some of the things that might keep kids from doing it are some of his favorite hobbies, too.

Representing the NBA's "Fit" team, Durant and Oklahoma City Thunder teammate Morris Peterson visited a middle school Friday to teach dribbling drills, lead layup lines and deliver a message about eating healthy and exercising.

"I think the biggest difference about me is how I eat," said Durant, who's leading the NBA with a 27.9-point average after becoming the league's youngest scoring champion a season ago.

"I still eat junk food here and there. I could be a little more disciplined, but I think that I do a good job — or a better job — of learning what to eat in the morning and afternoons, for dinner. I'm still learning right now, but I think I'm getting better."

Durant is trying to break his fast-foot habit and starting to like salads as a healthier alternative.

"I eat some here and there, but I've cut out a lot on burgers. I used to eat them like every day," Durant said. "I'm playing every day, I'm getting older, so I've got to make sure my body is holding up for years to come and thinking about the future."

Durant said he was an active middle-schooler but he also can relate to the attraction of today's technology that might keep kids inside and in front of a computer or television screen. He's a frequent poster on Twitter and enjoys video games, too.

"I wanted to be in the gym all day. I just liked running around. I would go outside just to run around," he said. "This day and age with the computers and the video games and Twitter and Facebook, it's a little different. I'm sure if that was out around my time, I would have been doing the same thing but luckily it wasn't."

Durant encouraged kids to get an hour of exercise every day.

Or, more simply, his message was: "Get out of the house and have fun, basically. That sums it up. Just running up and down the block or playing basketball outside or playing touch football. Just get out of the house and have fun."