If your child is overweight or obese, she is at risk for developing high blood pressure, high cholesterol and type 2 diabetes. To avoid these risks, your child needs to lose weight and keep it off. However, dieting isn’t her only option. Though your child should be eating more nutritious meals as part of her weight-loss plan, there are other things that will also help her lose weight.
No-Diet Weight Loss Plan
Step 1
Set a goal of losing one to two pounds each week. There are 3,500 calories in one pound of fat so your child needs to burn 7,000 extra calories each week—or 1,000 calories per day—to lose two pounds of fat.
Step 2
Give your child a watch with a pedometer to encourage more walking. A preferable amount is up to 10,000 steps, or about five miles, per day. Walking at a rate of 3.5 miles per hour burns 277 calories in a 160-pound person.
Step 3
Sign your child up for a sport of her choice at school or in the community. The sport should include a lot of movement, not long periods of standing around or sitting. Running sports, tennis, tae kwon do and cross-country skiing are high-octane sports that can increase calorie burning.
Step 4
Create an active family lifestyle. Cycle, play soccer, swim, hike, ski, roller blade, or play Frisbee together. Your child will become used to staying active and feel more supported in his attempt to lose weight.
Step 5
Limit your child's media activity each day to one or two hours, the American Academy of Pediatrics advises. Sedentary media activity, such as TV viewing, video games and computer use, is a major contributor to childhood obesity.
Step 6
Replace passive computer or video games with activity-oriented games such as Wii Fit, advises Cara Natterson, a pediatrician, author and blogger on the Huffington Post. Wii gets kids jumping, stretching, and running on the spot to burn calories and get fitter.
Tips and Warnings
- Change your habits and model healthy eating and fitness behavior for your child. According to Shape Up America!, any effort to treat just your overweight child, and not the whole family, will fail. It may also make your child feel stigmatized. Let your child care helpers, including babysitters, grandparents, or friends, know what you expect for your child’s nutrition and activities when he’s in their care.
- Make sure your child learns the proper technique for various sports or activities to avoid injury. If you think your child is obese, you should consult a pediatrician to have her BMI determined and monitored. You shouldn’t try to tackle your child’s obesity on your own. Watch for signs of bullying or teasing because children who are overweight or obese are more likely targets for bullies. Symptoms include mood changes, social avoidance, loss of interest in activities, asking for more school money, or refusal to go to school.
Things You'll Need
- Pedometer
- Aerobic sports or activities
- Family recreation time
- Wii Fit
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