Fitness Book

Parents tend to take it for granted that children get enough exercise. We think they get enough playing on the playground for the 15 minutes they go outside. We assume that when they go over to play at Skippy’s house that they’ll be running around for hours. But in this digital age, that may not be the case. Studies are showing that children are more sedentary than ever. The days of running to the neighborhood ballpark on a Saturday afternoon to pick up a casual game are over. Parents are leery of letting their kids roam alone, unsupervised. They are less likely to allow time for unstructured play (which can involve a healthy game of chase with the dog).

 

Instead, kids are staying indoors more and more to play video games, watch a DVD or TV. This sedentary lifestyle is contributing to more and more childhood obesity, which can lead to serious health problems such as diabetes.

 

Health Benefits

 

According to the American Heart Association, exercise can help kids

• control weight
• reduce blood pressure
• raise HDL ("good") cholesterol
• reduce the risk of diabetes and some kinds of cancer
• improve their psychological well-being, including gaining more self-confidence and higher self-esteem, especially for kids who seem uncoordinated or are obese  

You don’t have to take your kids to the gym and make them get on a treadmill. Nor do you need to have them lift weights. Rather encourage an active lifestyle that includes 60 minutes of moderate to vigorous exercise per day, broken up into 15-minute increments at a time. That may seem like a lot, but it is essential to their development of endurance, strength, and flexibility.

 

Motivation

 

“That sounds good,” you say, “but I can’t peel my kid off the couch! All he seems to care about is killing bad guys on his Nintendo.” Motivating kids is an art. Keep the following three things in mind (courtesy of the Nemours Foundation) when motivating kids to get active.

1. Choose the right activities for a child's age. If you don't, the child may be bored or frustrated.
2. Give a child plenty of opportunity to be active. Kids need parents to make activity easy by providing equipment and taking them to playgrounds and other active spots.
3. Keep the focus on fun. Kids won't do something they don't enjoy. Praise them when they score a point or run up the stadium stairs. They will feel accomplished, good about themselves, and they will keep striving for that next physical goal.

Activities

What activities can kids engage in that will get them out of the house and running around in a way that won’t cause chaos in your household? Here are some ways to keep your child active:

• The easiest way to keep your child active in a structured, supervised environment is to enroll them in sports. There are so many different sports to choose from, and one is sure to peak your child’s interest.
• Provide them with access to a jungle gym where they can play with their friends, under your supervision. This can be in your backyard or at a park where they can run, jump, roller blade or even swim.
• Limit their video game and DVD time to one-hour increments, no more than twice a day.

And above all, when trying to get your kids to exercise, be a good role model and be active yourself. This will make a greater, and more lasting, impression on your kids. And if fitness is a part of your family’s daily routine, a habit of exercise will be planted that could last a lifetime.