A healthy lifestyle for your child includes being active. It’s important to help your child establish good exercise habits early in life, so he can continue them into adulthood. According to the American Heart Association, regular exercise can help your child:
• build strong muscles and bones
• maintain a healthy weight
• sleep better
• improve self-confidence
• reduce blood pressure
• raise HDL (“good”) cholesterol
• decrease his risk of type 2 diabetes
Most children need at least 60 minutes of moderate activity most days of the week. Keep in mind that this doesn’t have to be planned exercise—playing outside can count!
How You Can Help
There are things you can do to encourage your child to be active:
• Exercise as a family. Find activities that get your child moving and are also fun, such as dancing, biking, playing tag or walking the dog.
• Make physical activity a daily part of your child’s life. Instead of driving to the library, walk or bike there. After dinner, take walks instead of watching TV.
• Make it easy to exercise. Have balls and bikes at your house, or take your child to the playground.
• Make plans for cold-weather exercise. Build a snowman, shovel snow or go sledding. And, if it’s too cold outside, have a scavenger hunt inside.
• Choose activities that are right for your child’s age. This way he won’t get bored or frustrated.
• The key is to make exercise enjoyable. Let your child do something he likes to do.
Also, limit the time your child spends watching TV or playing video games. And, never use exercise as a way to punish your child, or force him to participate in activities he doesn’t like.
Get Your Child Involved in Sports
Individual or team sports are another great way for your child to stay active. But, don’t force your child to play a sport. He may have reasons for not wanting to participate, and that’s okay.
You might be able to help your child figure out what kinds of physical activity he might like. For example, use your child’s interests and abilities to figure out what activities he might like. If your child loves music, suggest he take a dance class, or ask him to show you his moves at home.
Other individual activities you could suggest are:
• riding a bike
• karate
• dancing
• jumping rope
• rollerblading
• swimming
Exercise and Weight
One reason it’s important for your child to be physically active is to prevent obesity and maintain a healthy weight.Exercise burns calories so they aren’t stored as fat. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Hispanic-American children are more overweight than other American children, so it’s important to take steps to help your child. If you think your child is overweight, talk to your doctor about a diet and exercise plan.
Helping Your Child Lose Weight
Talk to your doctor about what steps to take to help your child reach a healthier weight. A weight loss plan may include increasing the amount of physical activity your child gets, and reducing the calories he consumes. Weight loss is complicated because it involves family habits, plus body image issues. One of the best ways to help your overweight child is for you to be a positive role model by making healthy eating choices, being physically active and having a healthy weight.
Remember:
- Exercise is important for your child's health and well-being.
- Try to be active as a family, and do things together that everyone enjoys.
- Limit the amount of time your child spends watching TV or playing video games.
- If your child is overweight, talk to his doctor about ways to help him lose weight.
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