Photos: Minnesota Vikings' Asher Allen Talks Nutrition, Fitness at Cedar Park Elementary

students on Thursday got a visit from Minnesota Vikings cornerback Asher Allen, who spoke to the student body about the importance of healthy eating and being active.

The assembly rewarded students for their success with the Fuel Up to Play 60 program—a collaboration among the Midwest Dairy Council, National Football League and U.S. Department of Agriculture—and was meant to motivate them to continue to make healthy lifestyle choices, according to a press release.

While the school already was participating in Fuel Up to Play 60, it recently .

About 95 percent of the school's students are active in the program, Cedar Park physical education teacher Patty Banwart said in the press release. Recent events included a poster contest to spread the word about Fuel Up to Play 60; creating a commercial; and writing skits about nutrition and physical activity to be presented to the student body, the release says.

A recess running club was started to increase student activity during the day, and nutrition lessons are built into that; students also have participated in monthly themed fitness day activities, and in wellness days that included taste tests, according to the release.

Apart from emphasizing the importance of a healthy lifestyle, Allen also helped recognize students who won the poster contest and a breakfast recipe contest, and even sported a milk mustache for part of the festivities in recognition of the importance of dairy to a balanced diet.

Post-assembly, he took questions from fifth graders, who learned all sorts of things about Allen. He used to play basketball and participate in track and field in school, he said, and his best friend on the Vikings team is safety Husain Abdullah.

His favorite junk food (when he lets himself stray from healthy eating)? Sour Patch Kids candy, he said.