According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, childhood obesity levels have increased three-fold in the past 30 years. Summer time provides kids with additional time to run, play and stay active, all of which can help fight obesity and lead to weight loss. Choose activities that you can do as a family so that your child sees you making activity a priority. For your child to lose a pound of fat, she will need to burn 3,500 more calories than she consumes. This means that in addition to the calories she burns through games and activities, you also need to make sure she's eating a healthy, well-balanced diet.
Marco Polo
Head to the pool or local swimming hole and play traditional water games like Marco Polo with your kids. In this game, one child starts out as "Marco." Marco must keep his eyes closed throughout the game, but whenever Marco calls out "Marco!" all the other players must respond by saying "Polo." Marco follows the sound of the voices of the other players and tries to tag another player, who then becomes the next "Marco." According to Discovery Health's activity calorie burn calculator, an 85 lb. child who swims recreationally for an hour will burn over 230 calories. Fuel up afterward with healthy foods, and your child may see weight loss over the course of the summer.
Kickball
Walk to the local park or school grounds after dinner for a family kickball game. Even if you don't have a full team, you can play with "ghost" runners or ask your kids to invite their friends. Designate fielding players and "batting" players. The fielders roll a playground ball to the batters, who kick the ball and try to run the bases. Played very similarly to baseball or whiffleball, you can use rocks or landmarks to designate bases and boundaries. After three outs the teams change roles. Thirty minutes of playtime for an 85 lb. child results in 135 calories burned. Add the time it took to walk to and from the field, and your child could burn closer to 200 calories.
Tennis
Hit the local courts with your children for a family game of tennis. If you are concerned that your children have never played before, keep in mind the benefits of trying a new activity. The website Helpguide.org states that learning new activities helps children and adults learn perseverance while also providing a sense of self-assurance. Work with them to gain the hand-eye coordination to simply hit the ball back and forth across the net before getting into the skills of serving and placing the returns. An hour of simple tennis can burn almost 270 calories on an 85 lb. child.
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