Child Fitness - Benefits for Both: Fun Activities That You and Your Child Can Do Together

Child Fitness

Benefits for Both: Fun Activities That You And Your Child Can Do Together

By: Corey James

Family fitness is a subject that is most important to parents, especially in this day and age. An increasing number of children are obese, and if no intervention is made, 80% of them will stay overweight as adults. Obesity can also adversely affect their self-esteem. Currently in the United States, 4.7 million children ages six to seventeen and 58 million adults ages twenty to seventy-four are overweight. The President's Council on Physical Fitness claims that approximately forty percent of children ages five to eight are at risk for heart disease in at least one area, including obesity, inactivity, high cholesterol, and high blood pressure(keepkidshealthy). And, according to a 1990 report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the lack of physical activity among children and teens is the single biggest factor in rising childhood obesity rates (parentinglinks). An important way to help your child with weight loss, maintaining a normal weight and develop healthy habits is to encourage him or her to participate in regular physical activity. This can include participating in a physical education class in school or extracurricular sports at school or in the community.

As you can see fitness for kids is vital. With today's society children rarely get any exercise in their daily regimen. Many factors are believed to play a role in the rising numbers of sedentary, overweight children: the conveniences of modern living, easy access to video and computer games, the view that physical activity is work rather than fun. However, television viewing was found by the American Heart Association's Children's Heart Health Conference to be the number one contributor of inactivity and obesity among our country's youth. A third of children watch five or more hours of television. daily. With these numbers, it isn't surprising that the prevalence for obesity has risen to an equal rate with television viewing. Physical activity-exercise-is the key. Experts believe that introducing your child to physical fitness at a very early age will help ensure that the child will continue to be physically active as he grows older (healthierus). Other benefits of promoting exercise from an early age include increased self-esteem, superior motor fitness, and higher academic achievement as children reach school age.

In order to do this, begin by scheduling a regular time for physical activity each week. Take turns selecting an appropriate activity for the family to do. Make sure that the activity fits each family member's special needs and preferences. Finally, help each person find an activity that makes him or her feel successful. Use positive rewards such as a hug or an uplifting note rather than criticizing or threatening a child. Base the rewards on the process of exercise, not on a competitive goal. Each week, log the family's activities in an Activity Diary. This can include the name or description of the activity, whose idea it was, where it took place, everyone's reactions, the weather. Personalize the diary to fit your family's desires and