The reason so many are overweight may have nothing to do with food
I received samples of products that I included in this post.
I look around and I see so many kids that are overweight. Now before you accuse me of fat-shaming, this is not the purpose of this post. This post is more of why a child could be overweight and why it may not be their fault. It saddens me to see childhood obesity effects on kids and I just want to share this info in hopes of helping someone, especially our younger generation. I also want to share tips on how to help your child develop healthy habits as it is about health and not weight. I wrote about loving your body and not the number on the scale
HERE. I am not going to shame anyone for their size but I want to share info that may help someone on their journey to have a healthy body so they can feel better.
Obesity is one of the biggest health problems in the world
I read somewhere that our
life expectancy is falling as there is an increase in health problems. Health problems like heart disease, diabetes, depression(suicide), and drug overdoses. My main concern is seeing kids at my son's school who are caring extra pounds that leaves them unable to walk a mile in gym class without being out of breath. These kids do not enjoy gym class as to them it is a time of torture.
When did gym class become torture instead of a fun enjoyable time? My boys love gym class and enjoy playing sports. They love being outside instead of playing video games and watching TV. Some might say that video games and TV are the causes of kids are overweight but it is so much more and I think it is time that we do something about this before it is too late. It saddens me to see young kids so overweight that they are waddling and having trouble with exercise. It is not fair to a child to be out of breath when they are walking upstairs. It may not be kids' fault why they have extra pounds on their body, it may be the parent's responsibility. There may also be hormonal causes of childhood obesity but this article is going to focus on reasons that we parents can control.
My son likes to tell me it is the kid's fault
I point out to my son that that child sometimes has no choice in their size. I was a fat child and I don't blame my mom as she was dealing with some awful things when I was growing up but I can look back at my childhood and see things that led me to be the fat chubby kid. I remember how difficult it was to find clothes that fit me as my mom had to select from the pretty plus section. I remember being made fun of because of my size. I remember being sick and not being able to do things that other kids could do because of my size.
I tell my son that the fat child has no control over the food he eats and he may not have someone setting a good example of good nutrition. The child may have a medical reason for being an overweight child. The parent may not even know about good nutrition and exercise for a healthy body so how are they supposed to set a good example for the child? So I want to encourage parents to make changes in their life which then can help their kids. I listed some reasons why I think kids are unhealthy today to help you start making changes.
Lack of exercise
I think one of the big reasons kids are chubby is simply put, the lack of exercise. There are many reasons kids are not getting exercise. It may because we are too busy or we are afraid to let our kids play outside. It may be that kids have too much screen time on devices like phones and computers. It may be that schools have cut back on recess or gym. It may be that we drive everywhere when kids could walk to school. A
fun scooter could help kids be motivated to exercise more or even start walking to school.
Overuse of cars
I think
we rely on our cars more than we need to. We as parents drive our kids everywhere when they could be walking. When I was a kid, my family only had one car so if I wanted to go somewhere I walked or biked. So rethink hopping into the car when the destination is less than 1-2 miles away. I like to think of these small walking times as a great way to get some healthy exercise and to spend quality time with my kids. If your kids are older like mine, they can walk or bike to places by themselves, instead of you driving them by car. It will help them become more independent.
Kids are inside too much
There can be many reasons why kids are inside instead of playing outside. We parents are working and the kids are home alone or parents are too busy to get outside with their kids. I am guilty of the later and need to spend more time outside with my boys. We worry about their safety or things like video games are getting a kid's attention. So I think we need to make a point to have kids get outside more. That outside time could be playing in the yard, going for a walk, park time, or simply outside playing with outdoor toys like bikes and jump ropes.
No time to prepare meals so we eat fast food too much
Our busy lives lead to us eating out too much and that is not good for our health. Feeding kids happy meals is a cause for this weight problem. Rethink how you do meals. That time in the drive-thru could be enough time to cook a simple meal at home like pasta. Add up all the money you spend on eating meals out of the home and you will discover that it may be cheaper to get
healthy meals delivered to your home.
We are too busy
We as a society are too busy or we just don't manage our time well. We tend to over-schedule our day and have no time for exercise or preparing healthy food. Both parents may have to work but do our kids really need so many activities? Sure we can justify that the kids are participating in sports but how much of that time involves them moving? Then having all these activities can lead to us ordering a pizza instead of cooking a meal at home.
We eat too much convenience food
The average person is buying too much processed unhealthy food and that is not good for our kid's health. Those frozen meals and processed snacks are loaded with unhealthy nutrition. Preparing healthy food may take more time but it is what we need for healthy bodies. Check out some
easy to make healthy snacks that kids will eat. Start serving your children more healthy snacks that include fruit or veggies. My boys love apple slices with creamy tahini, pretzels, and chocolate chips.
Unhealthy habits are being passed down
People like to say that certain health problems and diseases are hereditary but instead, it may be unhealthy habits that are being passed down. I think to some extent type 2 diabetes may be hereditary but it really can be the unhealthy eating habits and unhealthy exercise habits that are being passed down. So break the cycle and start passing down healthy habits to your children. We parents are the best example kids have so if we make healthy food and exercise a priority so will our kids. Even moms can find time to exercise with these
exercise tips for stay at home moms.
13 Simple Ways To Sneak In A Workout
We have become lazy
All this new technology has made us lazy and it may be affecting our health. We no longer have to move as we can answer the door from our chair, use a remote to change the channel or heat setting. We can even order fast food to our house instead of getting in the car to go pick it up. We no longer walk into a grocery store and get a small amount of exercise as we can pick up our groceries in the drive-thru lane.
We are afraid
We are afraid to let our kids play outside or walk to school so we drive them everywhere. I think the internet has made us more aware of the dangers that were always present when we were kids so we stay inside instead of getting outdoors. Take back these fears and teach kids how to be safe. Then allow kids to play outside or even walk to school with friends.
Lack of nutrition information
So many people don't even know about nutrition so how can they eat food that is good for their bodies. Then there are the folks who jump from one diet plan to another in hope for a quick fix solution to get their body in shape. It is not about a special diet that we follow for a month but rather a lifestyle change that needs to happen to take charge of our health. As parents, we need to make that change so our kids can learn about what they need to do to have a healthy body.
We make excuses or blame things
We can make all the excuses or blame about why we don't eat healthily or exercise but that will do us no good. I remember posting a while back on Facebook about how I make food and exercise my medicine and somebody got very angry. They made the comment that their husband drives a truck all day and does not have time for exercise. To that person, I say her husband can make the time. He can park his truck and walk laps around his truck for 30 minutes. You can make time for exercise as I did the other day at the airport. I had an hour before my flight was leaving so I walked laps at the airport. I was amazed that three other people started doing the same thing. I even make time for exercise when I am traveling as it makes me feel good. I find that 20 minutes in the hotel gym gives me energy and also helps my body avoid travel problems like constipation. I also bring my
Regular Girl with me when I travel as it is a great way to get my daily probiotics along with some prebiotic fiber. There is no right way to get exercise as it is about moving and getting your heart rate up. Here are some
ideas for ways to get some exercise.
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What can we do
I think the first thing we can do to help our kids become healthy is to realize that we need to make changes. Then we can look at our life and our kid's life and see where we can make some healthy changes. Start with one thing at a time so we don't overwhelm our kids or ourselves. Have grace on yourself and don't feel guilty but rather feel good that you are making changes for the better. Take one day at a time and wake up each day with good intentions to make a change in something whether it is having your child play outside or eat an apple. If things don't go as you planned, just realize that you can keep trying. Reach one goal before starting the next and before you know you will have made some healthy changes for the better.
Don't focus on weight
When you start making changes in your child's diet and behaviors, don't focus on their weight or that only the child has to make changes. Instead, set the example and make the whole family participate. Start adding healthy food into your diet and slowly take away food that is not nutritious. It can be something as simple as adding spinach to eggs or apple slices to their lunch. Include the kids help when shopping and let them choose a new healthy food that they would like to try. Give the kid's choices when selecting the new foods, for example, they can have apple slices or grab-and-go TahiniBars® that taste so delicious. Make exercise fun and a family thing like going for a family bike ride. These habits will not happen overnight and it may take a while to become a new norm.
Focus on fun
Instead of focusing on exercise as a chore, make exercise a fun time. Buy your kids and yourself a fun toy that encourages exercise. Most kids love to
jump rope or jump on a pogo stick. Kids even find jumping on a trampoline fun, I know I do. I just received a fun jump rope that makes skipping rope a fun workout for adults. This
Crossrope is weighted so you can get an effective full-body workout. This unique jump rope comes in different sizes to fit adults. The jump rope also has ergonomic handle grips that give you a smooth jumping experience every time. This Crossrope is different as it has interchangeable handles so you change between light and heavy ropes for a more versatile workout. So now you have no excuse to not be able to work out just because you have kids. Buy your kids a jump rope and then buy yourself a Crossrope so you can have fun playing outside. Head over
HERE to learn more about the Crossrope and also see the
Crossrope in action.
What is one thing that you are going to change to help your kids become healthy?
It can be as simple as adding spinach and Regular Girl to your eggs.
