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www.MOSTmag.com || FITNESS MAG A ZINE || 11child that%u2019s interested. I would also advise parents not to push their kids too hard%u2026make it fun and they%u2019ll enjoy it for a lifetime!FMM: How much of your current fitness training involves, or is related to dancing? DD: I%u2019m constantly switching up my fitness routine because I get bored doing the same thing every day, so taking a dance class is a great way to break it up. I%u2019ll occasionally take a class at the Edge studio in Hollywood, a Zumba class at my gym, or I%u2019ll pop into a ballet class every once in a while. Now I%u2019m just waiting on a call from Dancing With The Stars!FMM: As the daughter of a professional athlete has your parent impacted your fitness goals or career interests? DD: Playing sports, competing, and working out was just a way of life in my house growing up. I attribute a lot of this to my dad%u2019s background as an athlete and a coach. I grew up playing softball, volleyball, tennis, and dancing competitively, so sports and fitness continue to be a big part of my life today.FMM: As a literacy advocate, and writer/producer of the education video for literacy and learning disabilities, %u201cA Journey of Gifts%u201d, how do you think our nation could comprehensively eliminate the literacy problems we have today? DD: There are a couple things from my experience that I think would make a big impact. First of all, education funding, cutbacks to education are wreaking havoc on school systems and children in the United States. The education a child will receive in one school system is vastly different from another all based on funding. Every child deserves a good education and a hopeful future, so we need to put more emphasis on education in the U.S. and stop cutting programs that help students excel. Second, we need to value our teachers more so we don%u2019t lose them to more lucrative careers. And third, I think parental involvement is huge! Being aware of your child%u2019s progress in school and taking action if a child is struggling is extremely important. There are after hours study groups and special education available in most schools to assist a parent.FMM: You were a member of a professional USO Dance Team. What are some of your best experiences or memories from the time you%u2019ve spent performing for our troops? DD: I traveled and performed with the USO for three years, which was such an incredible opportunity. I got the chance to visit military bases all over the country and overseas as well to give back to our American soldiers. I have so many amazing memories from my time with the USO from getting to know our soldiers, to learning how to shoot a grenade launcher, to riding around in a Chinook helicopter over friendly fire (didn%u2019t sound very %u201cfriendly%u201d to me ha-ha). But one memory that stands out in my mind is when I traveled to Bosnia shortly after the September 11th terrorist attacks. Security was VERY tight and everyone was on edge at the airport, so some of my friends and family tried to talk me out of going on this tour because they were worried about my safety. But I felt an overwhelming need to go and be there for our troops in some small way at this time. On the last night of this trip my group performed at a military base for several hundred soldiers and at the end of an hour-long show we concluded our performance dancing to %u201cGod Bless The USA%u201d. It was such an emotional moment that I found myself almost in tears while performing on stage and when I looked into the crowd of soldiers, their eyes were filled with tears as well. This trip and experience made my love for my country and my admiration for our military even stronger and I will always remember that moment.