Healthy Habits for our Children

Watching the children as they ran merrily through the park I was surprised to see several of the children seemed kind of chubby. Some rather alarming statistics are emerging about the growing numbers of children who miss out on exercise and a healthy lifestyle. Small wonder. Television and video games take so much time out of many a child's day. One study found that one-quarter of U.S. children spend 4 hours or more watching television daily. Too many children just don't get outside and play very much.

The health benefits of moderate and vigorous physical activity are not limited to adults. Physical activity among children and adolescents is important because of the related health benefits (cardiorespiratory function, blood pressure control, and weight management) and because a physically active lifestyle adopted early in life may continue into adulthood. Even among children aged 3 to 4 years, those who were less active tended to remain less active after age 3 years than most of their peers.

A recent study over in Europe found that school aged children who did just 15 minutes of cardio or aerobic exercise during the school day were less likely to gain too much weight. Bottom line - they were not as likely to get fat!

How simple a habit? Don't we owe it to our children to teach them a healthy lifestyle. Perhaps if we lead by example we can more readily gain their buy-in. We all win when our children get a little exercise each day. If we do it with them - its even more of a win win situation!

Make it fun. Encourage them to have fun!

Aerobic exercises help you and your children increase your cardiorespiratory fitness.

Here's a few examples of activities that you can do with your little ones to help you improve your cardiorespiratory fitness:

• Bicycling
• Swimming
• Skating (Rollerblading)
• Running/Jogging/Walking/Hiking
• Soccer
• Full-court Basketball
• Tennis or Badminton

Allow your child to try a variety of sports or outdoor activities in order to find some he or she likes. Look for programs hosted by a local parks and recreation department. Free or inexpensive Summer camps offer children lesson in basketball and other fun games or activities.

The health benefits of physical fitness are both physical and mental, lowering your risk for many diseases, while helping to increase longevity and improve your self-esteem and ability to manage stress. You'll be more productive and safe at work, and school.

If your family is like ours - and TV time too often exceeds a couple hours of the day - now is the perfect time to start some new healthy habits. Get outside this Summer and start getting in shape fast!