Childhood obesity rates are rising at an alarming rate. According to CDC, about ⅓ of children are either overweight or obese. This is a problem that could easily be fixed by getting our children into a fit and healthy lifestyle at an early age. It’s not as hard as you think. Below I offer some tips to help get you started. Most of these tips will even help you get fit and build a stronger relationship with your child.
Tip 1: Integrate the Playground Early
This tip may sound like common sense but a lot of parents forget this simple activity. With the the rise of children playing with iPads and other devices, kids aren’t going outside. They are staying inside playing on devices. When your child is at the age they can go outside and play, let them. Getting your child into playing outside is easy and a great way to start fitness at a young age. As children get older it’s harder to get them interested in going outside to play, so it’s best to start early.
Tip 2: Limit Your Children
Screen time is the best place to start. Children who spend a lot of time in front of the TV tend to have a higher chance of becoming obese and displaying aggressive behavior. A great way to limit your child’s screen time is to monitor and limit the time they are allowed to watch TV and use their devices. Always enforce these rules and eventually your child will begin to get used to the limits. Additionally, keep TVs and computers out of their bedrooms. This will push your child to watch TV in the family room which limits screen time and also helps build relationships with other family members.
The next thing to limit , is the kind of food you let your children eat. If you want your child to have a healthy diet make sure you are limiting the amount of sugar and processed foods they are consuming. A great way to start with this is to buy less of these foods. If the foods aren’t around children can’t get them. They may be able to get them at friend’s house or school, but allowing one less place makes an impact. You can also start to incorporate healthier snacks into your pantry and child’s lunch box. Additionally, limiting these foods also helps you yourself cut back.
Tip 3: Make Working Out A Family Affair
This is the tip that most people say they never have thought about, but it is the easiest of all of them. Go outside and play with your children, toss the pigskin around a bit or even throw some hoops. The goal here is to make exercise or playtime a family affair. Additionally, at The F.I.T.T. PIT you can bring your children when you workout; we have a kids room for them to play while training is going on.
No matter how old your children are these tips can help ensure that they start a healthy lifestyle. Children who are active are less likely to become obese, develop diabetes, and weight problems in the future.
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