13 WTHR - Indianapolis News |Fitness for kids
Dave Patania/WTHR Sunrise
A recent Time Magazine report estimated that over 37% of American youth are obese and the global rate is increasing as well. With physical education programs in public schools being one of the first cuts being made in attempts to cut costs and the recent trend in schools making deals with soft drink and snack food companies to fund other programs, this 37% obesity rate is sure to climb even higher in the near future.
With that in mind, I am going to answer "yes" right now to any and all who ask me if they should let their children exercise. Believe it or not, I get hundreds of e-mails from parents who literally ask me if it is ok to let their kids lift weights, exercise or play certain sports. I am young and when I grew up, everyone I knew was outside playing sports, jumping rope, climbing trees, riding bikes and skateboards all day.
Nowadays, kids spend most of their time talking to each other while sitting down at computers, watching TV, and playing video games. Most of the bike riding, skateboarding and sports are being played on video games rather than in parks, fields and local neighborhoods. With the state of the American youth's diet & activity patterns, parents should be lining up to get their kids involved in any activity or sport that will keep their kids moving! Parents of today are busy and feel totally comfortable letting their kids be pre-occupied with all of the high tech toys because they themselves are too lazy to take the time to drive them to ball games and keep them involved in activities. The alarming amount of child obesity and lack of exercise is nothing more than a reflection of the habits of their parent's period!
If you yourself stay active, take your nutrition seriously and stay involved, your kids will mimic those habits and at least fulfill basic requirements for diet & activity. Simply put, if you make exercise a priority and consistent presence in your life, so will your kids! If not, the result is the deplorable situation we currently face right now with our youth's diet and activity patterns. Hey Parents! Get serious about changing "your" habits and you will win half the battle against these horrible statistics.
Kids respond and positively adapt to exercise much in the same manner as adults because yep, you guessed it, they are human, so follow the basic guidelines of fitness on WTHR.com and adjust accordingly depending on your child's specific situation. If you keep them active each week with numerous activities that keep their bodies lean, strong and coordinated, you will go a long way in preventing them from being part of the alarming statistics associated with diet & activity related illnesses, disease and death when they become adults. This is not a scare tactic but rather a wake up call to be proactive and do whatever you can to feed your child healthier foods and keep them active.
GUIDELINES
· Lead by example and encourage your kids to exercise at least 3 times or more per week for 30-60 minutes. With children, it is best to get them involved with fun activities/sports that incorporate their large muscle groups such as swimming, dance, gymnastics and traditional sports such as baseball, basketball, football, volleyball, soccer, tennis, softball etc. Just make sure that the sports/activities incorporate cardiovascular conditioning as well as skill, balance, flexibility and coordination development.
· As with any type of activity, be sure to get your child regular medical checkups just to be on the safe side. From there, be sure start your child out slow and let them slowly progress to higher forms and levels of sport or activity. A gradual progression is the key to proper safety and skill/conditioning development. There is nothing wrong with having your child involved with high intensity types of training and activities, just make sure that they slowly work up to it.
· If your child is in a skill dominated type of activity such as golf or archery, be sure to have them participate in another activity such as cycling, jogging or swimming 2-3 times per week to ensure proper heart and lung conditioning.
· To avoid boredom and quitting, encourage a few different activities that your child can rotate to provide variation and spice to their activities.
· Take the time to talk with your child about the importance of keeping them active and that you want them to find some sort of activity that will keep them in good physical condition. I have parents who have "alternative" kids, who weren't interested in traditional sports but they succeeded in getting their kids active by working with them to find something that fit their kid's style and personality. Sports such as snowboarding, BMX (bicycle motocross), skateboarding, rock-climbing, hiking, inline skating, waterskiing/wakeboarding, cycling, field hockey, lacrosse and rowing etc., are all great ways to stay active and have fun.
· If you are a busy parent, then keeping your kid involved may be very helpful to you. This is because if your kid is involved in a sport or activity he/she loves, it is a great feeling knowing that when you at work or busy, your child is involved in an activity that keeps them occupied, out of trouble, having fun and motivated to achieve.
WEIGHT TRAINING FOR KIDS
Yes, kids can weight train! As long as they are supervised by someone who knows what the heck they are doing, they won't get seriously hurt!! I highly recommend that you take the time to get your child instructed on the proper way in which to lift weights and perform resistance movements.
This is important for proper muscular development, muscle conditioning and injury avoidance. Kids as young as 6 years old are now being taught how to perform resistance movements. No, they are not doing bench press competitions but rather fun oriented movements that show them how to properly position heir bodies as they perform specific movements. This has taken place in Gymnastics' centers across the country for years. There are also a lot of new family fitness centers that offer programs for young children.
There are now trainers well versed in working with children and these sessions take place in padded areas where the children learn how to do push ups, pull ups etc., on kid sized pieces of equipment. There are also programs that have actual fitness machines designed especially for kids that are arranged in a circuit and the instructors play kids music, blow a whistle and move the kids through all the machines in 30-60 minutes time. Check in your local area for such programs. If none exist, have a fitness professional at a local gym or hospital show your child the basics of training with weights and resistant exercises/machines.
INJURY PREVENTION
Even though the state of our youth is in poor condition, the kids that do participate in sports and activities are doing so at much higher levels of frequency, duration and intensity. There are now countless sport camps designed to help kids jump and run higher/faster than ever before. However, at the younger age groups and basic levels, our youth are not taught the fundamental skills of proper movement and body positioning.
It is these fundamental skills/techniques that are usually at the core of most injuries in kids as they age. This is especially true for the female knee. There is a high incident in severe knee injuries in highly active females. The good news is that it doesn't have to be that way and there are a number of great programs out there that are designed specifically to teach kids the proper way to jump, run and move while playing sports. These programs have gone a long way in preventing many severe injuries. Search your local area for more information on such programs and camps.
Do's and Don'ts
· Do get your kid checked out by a doctor and consistently monitored
· Do keep your child closely monitored by a fitness professional. Exercise equipment is not playground material and kids should never be in a gym or exercise area without supervision
· Don't let your children have weightlifting competitions to see who is strongest or do all-out lifts. This is not necessary until they are at least 14-15 years old, participating in a sport that requires such methods and closely monitored by a qualified instructor
· Do teach them the importance of proper lifting and breathing technique while lifting weights. The goal is not how much they can lift but rather how well they can lift!
· Do teach kids that proper nutrition is just as important as the exercise or sport itself that they participate in
· Do teach kids the importance of a proper warm up and stretch before they exercise and a cool down and stretch after they exercise. This helps to prepare their body for exercise and better recover from exercise when finished. It is also yet another tool in avoiding injury
· Do teach kids the importance of proper rest and recovery such as taking a days rest in between lifting sessions etc.
· Do teach kids the importance of drinking plenty of water before, during and after exercise and sports. WATER, not sugary sport drinks...WATER!
· Don't teach a kid that having an injury is a sign of weakness and that they should tough it out. If they are hurt, they should be encouraged to feel comfortable seeking help. Bumps and bruises happen and kids can play through that but be sure to learn and teach the difference between basic pain and outright injury!
Dave's BONUS TIP:
· If you are a parent who over-does it by pushing your child in sports and/or lives vicariously through your child....please relax and lighten up! This is not to say that you shouldn't encourage your child to achieve and succeed but let them do it in activities and in a manner of "their" choice. I absolutely believe that if a child agrees to or wants to join an activity or sport, that they should see it all the way through, work as hard as possible and give it their best effort.
However, if they are playing a sport and people hear and see you/the parent screaming/jumping around more than your child, you need to relax and remember that you had your time and it is now your kid's turn to enjoy their activity. Don't ruin it by yelling, screaming, complaining and pressuring your kid to do what you did or didn't do when you were their age. Life is too short for that. If you feel the need to put that much passion into that particular sport, get up off of the bleachers, join the same sport for adults and do your screaming and jumping around there! Relax, sit down, grab a bottle of water, a protein shake/bar and enjoy watching your kid participate in a healthy activity or sport! Lead by example..not just words!!
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