According to Iowa State's "Guide to Healthy Kids" publication, almost one in two children in America is overweight or obese--that's three to four times as many children as were overweight or obese four decades ago. Clearly, weight loss exercise programs for kids have become a necessity, but before you focus only on your child's problem, take a good look at yourself and whether or not you're living a healthy lifestyle. As you work toward your child's weight loss, focus on family lifestyle changes and fun physical activity that keeps the focus on health, rather than your child's weight loss.
Family Exercise Programs
Before you do anything else, commit to activity as a family and focus on health rather than weight loss. The Weight-Control Information Network, or WIN, suggests planning family outings that involve physical activity, staying away from "adult style" exercise. Kids want to have fun while exercising, so take family bike rides, go camping and hiking, or play Frisbee at the park. If you can dedicate between 30 to 60 minutes towards family exercise each day, both you and your children will have the opportunity to achieve recommended levels of physical activity. Even if weight loss doesn't immediately occur, as your child grows, weight maintenance through exercise will effectively have the same result as weight loss in an adult. For instance, if your 4 feet 10-inch child grows to 5 feet tall, but weighs the same amount at both heights, she has effectively gotten leaner as she's grown.
School-Based Programs
Unfortunately many schools have completely cut or decreased the amount of physical activity required as part of their daily curriculum. As required programs fade, many non-profit organizations and motivated PE teachers take it upon themselves to add extracurricular physical activity programs before or after school. Research whether or not your school has a monitored after-school program that encourages physical activity. Many of these programs provide reward-based incentives for achieving a certain number of hours or miles of walking or activity, perfect for a child beginning an exercise program. As with other child-focused programs, unless your child is severely obese, the focus should be on health rather than weight loss. This focus will help your child associate nutrition and physical activity with positive experiences rather than feelings of inadequacy or failure.
Recreational Sports
Sports participation provides numerous benefits to children. According to the NYU Child Study Center, sports participation improves psychological well-being, engages critical thinking skills, enhances social skills like teamwork and friendship, and, of course, increases physical activity levels. Not all children have a natural athletic inclination, so you don't want to throw your child into a situation that he's uncomfortable with, but encourage him to try a number of different sports to see if there's an activity he would like to pursue. For instance, he may not want to play basketball, but maybe an individual sport like swimming or martial arts would engage his interest. Find a beginning recreational program that focuses on skill development and fun rather than competition.
Because sports often involve movements and exercises that involve power, strength, flexibility and quickness, your child may experience enhanced coordination and muscle tone. As muscle builds, so will her metabolism, which can help contribute to weight maintenance or weight loss.
References
- Weight-control Information Network: Helping Your Overweight Child
- NYU Child Study Center: Sports and Kids: Pathway to Healthy Development or to Unhealthy Competition?
- Iowa State: "Guide to Healthy Kids"
- BCM: Your Child's Weight: Help Your Child with Successful Weight Management
- Action for Healthy Kids: School Programs
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