Staying Active in an Obese Nation

The obesity epidemic is not getting any better. In fact, it’s getting much worse. In a recent report released by the Trust for America’s Health, obesity rates went up in 16 states, and not one state was able to report an improvement. More than 30 percent of the people in 12 states are obese. Four years ago, only one state could make that claim.

In addition, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality notes that there has been a 119 percent increase in the number of hospitalizations for eating disorders among children under the age of 12.

These statistics are sobering for any mom. It’s important to help our kids maintain a healthy weight, but not at the risk of pushing a child into a situation where they feel compelled to control their weight with dangerous eating behaviors. Modeling is also very important. Studies show that a mom who talks and thinks about her weight on a regular basis will probably have a daughter who talks and thinks about her weight on a regular basis.

We also need to get moving. Because excessive exercise can be another tool that is used to allow eating disorders like anorexia to take hold, experts recommend that families incorporate more activity into their lifestyles, without focusing heavily on burning calories, or, for example, “working off that ice cream.”

The advice is a relief for this mom, who finds it hard to find specific time to go for a run or an exercise class, but loves to get out and get moving. If you don’t have time to exercise and you’re noticing that your kids are looking a little pasty, here are a couple of ideas for exercise that won’t feel at all like exercise.

One of the places my kids love to go is Powder Valley. Located near I-44 and Watson Road at 11715 Cragwold Drive, it is almost impossible to believe that the highway is so close in a place where deer are regularly spied with their young. Several beautiful trails wind around the property, with varying levels of difficulty. One of the trails is only a third of a mile long. We sometimes choose that trail because we can make several loops, but it’s a short haul if a little one gets worn out.

Before or after your walk on the trail, be sure to spend some time at the Nature Center. Your kids will love watching the birds, chipmunks and deer feeding outside the large windows surrounding an area with comfy chairs and even a fireplace for chilly days. There is also a large puppet theater and a giant aquarium with freshwater fish.

Our family also loves to go in our backyard and play football. Our football bears almost no resemblance to the real game, evidenced by the involvement of a hula hoop in some matches, but we all end up laughing and sweaty and even make up dinner-time chants for our small teams to taunt one another.

To be honest, our kids love to move. They’re not the problem. When music is played for even a few seconds, my daughters dance. When we go out to the car, my kids are running every direction and it’s a big herding process to get everyone trapped in the car long enough to shut the doors. I’m sure your kids are the same.

The problem is the grown-ups. Our kids are usually hard to keep still, but sometimes an hour slips by on the Internet that could have been spent running races with our kids on Grant’s Trail or walking the neighborhood after dinner. If we're all looking a little lackluster, nothing gets the family moving faster than the appearance of a couple of squirt guns.

My family has a long way to go in implementing active play into our day. It is a task to get everybody up and out the door when it’s so comfortable in our house. We are working on it, though, with hopes that we can all be healthier and encourage good lifetime habits.