Teaching children about incorporating exercise into their day will help them maintain a normal weight and healthy habits. Aim for an hour of physical activity each day to help keep kids feel less stressed; sleep sounder; maintain a healthy weight; build and keep healthy bones, joints and muscles; and feel better about themselves.
These days, many kids are glued to the television or computer and spend less time exercising. However, parents can limit the amount of time spent in sedentary activities and initiate exercise by setting a valuable example for their children by exercising together. Involving children with teams and sports helps keep them fit, as do evening family walks and after-school activities, such as dancing, biking, jumping rope and jogging. Exercise need not cost a lot; simply pick up a tennis racket and hit a ball against a cement wall, toss a basketball into a hoop at your local school or play a game of touch football in the yard or at the park. Parents should add a variety of activities to their child's exercise to ensure strength, flexibility and endurance. As a parent, it is important to be active and support your child's interests; all kids can be physically fit, and a positive outlook from a parent or guardian will benefit any child who is reluctant to exercise.
Add a variety of activities to your child's daily exercise regimen; keep activity time fun and age-appropriate so he will yearn to participate more. Start by incorporating stair climbing in lieu of an elevator and after-dinner family walks to keep the heart-pounding experience fun.
Healthy Heart
Being active leads to faster breathing, which in turn can make your child sweat and increase her heart rate. Giving the heart this boost on a regular basis will enable it to become more efficient in transporting oxygen to the body. Opportunities abound: Encourage kids to take a nature walk or hike, play hopscotch or roller-skate around your neighborhood.
Strengthens Muscles
When on the playground, be sure to have kids grab hold of the monkey bars and do some pull-ups and chin-ups for strength building. Have your child do push-ups and sit-ups during commercials of her favorite TV shows--better yet, do them with her. Hop on a family bike ride, play a game of tug-of-war or head to the water for a rowing exercise. All these activities help build strong muscles.
Flexibility
Touching their toes can be tough for many older people. But kids are quite flexible and can take pride in activities such as yoga and Pilates, gymnastics, martial arts and ballet that increase flexibility without feeling tightness or pain. Encourage flexibility and stretching before and after exercising.
Healthy Balance
Along with a healthy diet, which provides children with energy and fuel, exercise utilizes and burns these calories when kids are active. Encourage your child to eat healthy foods for energy, which will, in turn, be burned during their activities. Teach children the importance of a healthy diet to build strong bones and muscles, so they are familiar with the way a healthy, active body should function.
Feel Good Feeling
Endorphins, chemicals released by our brains, might make children feel better after sweating out a bit of exercise each day. Aside from exercise's health benefits, kids who are physically active often sleep better and are then better equipped to handle emotional and physical challenges inside and out of the classroom. Teach kids the importance of having a strong, flexible body and encourage an hour a day of exercise in a wide array of forms to keep them engaged. You also can work toward helping them master a sport, whether it's swimming, hitting a home run, scoring a goal or perfecting tennis form.
References
- Trim Kids: The Proven 12 Week plan that has helped thousands of children achieve a healthier weight: Melinds S. Sothern, T. Kristian Von Almen, Heidi Schumacher; 2003
- Fit Home Team: The Posada Faimly Guide to Health, Exercise and Nutrition The Inexpensive and Simple Way; Jorge Posada, Laura Posada, Bernie Williams; 2009
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