Archive for June, 2006
Small amounts of exercise are better than no amounts of exercise. In fact, reports now say that exercising in smaller doses can be an acceptable workout. If you walk 10 minutes in the morning, another 10 minutes at lunch, then finish with 10 minutes after dinner, you may have satisfied your 30 minutes of aerobic activity for that day (depending on how fast you actually walked).
A report out of Boston ( link ) suggests “that even a small amount of physical activity can make a big difference in reducing those (heart disease) health risks. In fact, many of the detrimental effects of physical inactivity were reversed and in some cases improved. For all the time spent not moving around and sinking into an unhealthy physical state, an equal amount of time spent being more active boosted health back to normal. Experts looked at three levels of exercise: 12 miles of walking per week, 12 miles of jogging per week or 20 miles of jogging per week. The results showed that it wasn’t necessarily the group who exercised the most intensely that got the greatest benefit. The study found that just 12 miles of walking per week – less than two miles per day – reversed the negative effects of a sedentary lifestyle. The participants who had the greatest decline in physical health benefited the most from exercise.”
We learn from this that any exercise is good for you. Don’t be discouraged because you are not training for the marathon. To properly start an exercise program, you need to start slowly, and gradually build up to a harder regimen, whether adult or child. A healthy diet along with a proper exercise program greatly reduces the risk for heart disease, and guides you to a healthier lifestyle.
June 19th, 2006
by Len Saunders
It is funny how the fast food chains get such a bad rap when it comes to unhealthy cooking. Many are so quick to criticize these popular food chains for their harmful menus. Yes, they do play up to the children with all their ads and novelty toys, but they are not forcing the parents to take the children to their restaurants. Parents need to take a stand against these restaurants and just say ‘no’ to the children if they want to get a burger. Blaming the food chains is not the answer. Visits to these food chains are not entirely bad if done in moderation. We also need to realize that the fast food chains are not the only culprit with these unpopular menus. Many of your popular establishments have similar menus that need to be analyzed.
Is ‘eating out’ damaging our children’s health ( link )? Experts are “so appalled at the standard of restaurant food for youngsters that they fear their high fat, sugar and salt content is putting children’s health at risk, and suggest that parents are as much to blame as the restaurateurs, as they let their children eat turkey twizzlers and tinned sausages while they tuck into more expensive fare.” One expert was reported as saying “”There is no question of doubt in my mind that this is a huge problem. You get these hideous children’s menus which are all stuff out of packets from the freezer; deep-fried mechanically recovered meat in various shapes.”
Again, eating out with the children needs to be investigated and done in moderation. If you are unhappy with the children’s menu, you have the option of leaving the restaurant.
June 16th, 2006
by Len Saunders
ABC News ( link ) is reporting the obvious, that kids who become fatter will be less fit. You would think this is common sense to most, but truly, it is not! These conclusions came from a study performed using 70 million children spanning 40 years.
Snip…..The study found kids’ fitness increased until the 1970s, then started to spiral down by 5 per cent each subsequent decade. It suggests the children of today are some 15 per cent worse off or less able to perform for long periods of time than their parents. The researchers monitored aerobic capacity and whether children could run for more than 10 minutes at a time. The review found boys tended to lose their fitness quicker than girls, although the difference was not huge. What has caused the drop off is children’s growing waistlines and a lack of activity that gets the heart pumping. Children are less able to run over long distances because they are fatter. Fitness is much worse today than it was 30 years ago and there is no evidence its slowing”…..SNIP
In another related story out of Canada ( link ), health officials are giving children a ‘D’ on their health report cards. This is the second year in a row that Canadian children have failed this report card. The great thing about this article is it tells the parents that they are failing the childhood obesity epidemic. The parents have to take an active role in the growth and development of their children. The facts state, without the parents support, it will become a losing battle.
Active Healthy Kids Canada is “encouraging parents and schools to take a more active role in the health of the children. According to the group’s research, between 80 and 90 per cent of parents now characterize their children’s activity levels as ‘good.’ In reality, however, less than half of Canadian children and young people meet minimum daily physical-activity requirements of 90 minutes of moderate to vigorous exercise.”
June 12th, 2006
by Len Saunders
Now that summer is almost here, it is a good time to start to prepare for family fun fitness activities.
1. A Family Walk – A nice family walk is always a safe and fun activity to do which promotes family togetherness as well as exercise. Find a safe area in your neighborhood to take a family stroll. If the weather is not cooperating, take a trip to the local mall and window shop. This means, walk around the mall without stopping for 15 minutes and just browse through the windows. When the 15 minutes is up, go back to any store you may have seen something you liked.
2. Commericial-cize – As you may know, children watch over 20 hours of TV a week. A fun idea is to watch TV together as a family, but every time a commercial comes on the TV, commit to performing a specific exercise. For example, during the first commercial break, the entire family should do 10 jumping jacks every time a commercial comes on. The next break, you may switch to performing 5 push-ups each time a commercial comes on. Follow this pattern each and every time you watch TV. Try to have your children do this even when you are not watching the television with them.
3. Exercise Videos – Purchase an exercise video that is safe and fun for the entire family. Watch it as a family, and perform it as a family.
4. Household Chores – Work around the house is a form of exercise. As long as you create a safe environment, children can vacuume, rake leaves, take out the garbage, clean the garage, or paint a room. It promotes a family fitness environment.
5. Family Hikes – Find a safe, protected, and recognized hiking trail where you can take a family hike together. Put on the backpacks, hiking shoes, and pack a lunch on an exercise adventure.
6. Bike Rides – Find a safe area to take a family bike ride together. Make sure it is a non traffic area so the children remain safe.
7. Theme Parks – Take the children to a theme park. You have fun, but at the same time do a lot of walking to all the wonderful attractions.
8. Join Local Gym – Why not join a health club with your children? Some clubs actually offer discounts if the whole family signs up. Many gyms also offer exercise routines for children as well.
9. Walk To School (if it is not over yet) – A great way to talk and exercise with your children is to walk them to school.
10. Basic Calisthenics – Teach your children to proper fundamentals to performing exercise properly. Show them how to do a push-up or jumping jack. Work on them together!
June 9th, 2006
by Len Saunders
What type of parent are you? Some parents are strict, loose, relaxed, don’t care, or even authoritative. Now, a new study out of the United States is stating that a parent’s personality plays a major role in whether or not a child could be obese ( link ). Children of really strict parents are more likely to be overweight than those with more relaxed parents. “Strict parents and those with low expectation for self-control and discipline in their kids, could be putting the children’s long-term health at risk. A US study on parenting styles and the weight of children at age six found the weight of children often depended on the style of parenting. The best parenting style to avoid obesity was authoritative where parents were respectful of their child’s opinions, but kept clear boundaries.”
It has been stated in the blog for months now that the parents are the key to a healthy child. The facts supporting this keep growing everyday.
June 6th, 2006
by Len Saunders