How do YOU teach others, esp. kids????

I couldnt think of a good description for this topic but its been on my mind for a while. As a mom of 2 small kids, I dont want them to be thrown into the category of the Typical overweight american kid that sits in front of the TV and computer all day. SO my question what are you doing to keep the people in your life from having a problem with weight? Do you let your kids see you exercising? What do you tell them? Do you worry they will have a weight issue, whether its overeating or worried about them not eating enough? my kids are 2 &4 and love the fact that we exercise. They have little 1 pound weights and they even have their own kid exercise dvds. I dont feel bad about them exercising with us, they have asked why we do it before and I tell them so we can be healthy and be able to run and play with them more. My kids are weird- they love fruit and will chose an apple over candy 98% of the time. WE do happy meals usually once a month and its a big treat to them! They eat salads too! I consider myself lucky that my kids love the whole exercise with mommy and daddy but I know there are kids that want to eat junk and do nothing. I want my kids to be fit and happy and know how to be healthy. I figure if I start them off at a young age it will be normal for them. No I dont deprive them of m&ms or icecream but I dont make it a daily thing- we have an icecream shop at the bottom of our hill and that is our Sunday afternoon treat in the summer. Guess Im on a soapbox. I dont tell my kids Im getting rid of my fat, I tell them mommy is getting healthy. Would love to hear from others to see if this is something you have thought about too.

Hi slappy - great post!

I have a meeting tomorrow with the Alliance for a Healthier Generation, which is trying to do exactly this. Good nutrition and fitness needs to start earlier, as you mention, and change is needed, especially in terms of choices for school meals and at restaurants.

I feel I can speak to this by sharing my experience. I raised my daughter to be fit even though I'm not. Everybody on both sides of my family became overweight as adults after being thin as children. Her father's side of the family is the same way. I tried to think back to my own childhood and the development of bad eating habits.

Most of my bad habits were encouraged by family who thought I was too skinny sickly looking. The problem then was not junk food, but "generous" portions of rich food. My mother would put half and half on my cornflakes for petes sake. I was praised for taking second helpings and criticized if I didn't finish everything. My mother is a great cook so everything was delicious. Nothing wrong with that, but it was delicious because of butter, olive oil and cream and tons of pasta. Italian family meals were huge with pasta as just a first course. I grew up eating rich ravioli, home made spaghetti, and lots of red sauce (called gravy).

I realize that the problem children have today is lack of exercise and availability of junk food and sugary drinks. I didn't buy soda or snack foods and made sure there were better things to eat in the house. I packed her lunch every day when the school started offering pizza and hamburgers.

I never insisted on a clean plate and never offered dessert as a reward for a clean plate. We only had skim milk in the house and I made sure she got her vegetables even when she was going through food phases. For instance, she went through a phase at the age of six where she would only eat white food. White chicken, white bread, etc. I would sneak veggies into everything and was able to get her to enjoy a bowl of raw veggies with ranch dip (white of course) until she got over it.

I made sure she took part in activities that would keep her moving, even though, like me, she didn't like sports. She had swimming lessons and she loved that, participated in the marching band and was a cheerleader. TV was never turned on unless we planned to watch a specific show, and we turned it off afterwards.

I never did things like that as a kid - I preferred being curled up with a book. I listened to the radio a lot. Back then there were lots of programs on, not just music and news. It never occurred to my family that girls could play sports. I was expected to be quiet and ladylike, and I obliged. When we got a TV, when I was 11, that became another form of passive entertainment.

When she came home after being at college for a quarter, the first thing she wanted me to cook was steamed green beans and broccoli, because they didn't have those at the dining hall at all!

She got her teaching degree and is now an aquatics instructor and is very fit. She and her husband like to cook and I like the way they do it. Her husband had to learn from her how to eat plain vegetables - he had never had a green bean that wasn't overcooked with ham hocks until I fed them to him while they were engaged. I'm so proud of both of them.

Now if they would just produce a grandchild for me.....

thanks Eric! I think its really important for kids to understand how important making the right choices in life, even when it comes to food. I live near a highschool and see the kids out there and its upseting. You see the atheletes and then you see the "Fat"kids. I dont like to say it like that but saying overweight doesnt stress it enough. I believe nutrition is a very important matter and if people took it just a tad serious they would see the fad diets arent the answer. Its sitting down with your kids and family at a healthy meal. Playing together instead of doing your own thing and let your kid play video games and eat junk, while you are on the treadmill drinking water. What does that say? We care more about getting our own lives healthy but not teach our kids how to be healthy. This is something that sits heavy on my heart. I am considering HEAVILY going back to school for nutrition and fitness. I think I want to focus on the younger crowd so they can start a healthy life early in life. Thanks for this website, the people on here are amazing to me, esp. the ones like alwayzfreetobeme- She is only 17 and she knows this is the correct way to lose the weight and maintain a healthy life. Just think if you had a fee on this site, the younger ones wouldnt have a great support area. Thank You Thank You Thank YOU.

-Amy

cekurs- that is awesome- I praise you for that! I grew up playing sports ( only girl in a neighborhood of 11 boys :) )
I did everything my dad would let me do. Boxing matches in the front yard, with boxing gloves, my brothers wanted their sis to protect herself LOL.. played football, soccer, softball- you name it! But went in to eat the fried chicken and all the good southern food. I was a very skinny kid and was all the way til I got prego and POP! I dont want my kids to be lazy. My nephew was staying with me once when he was 10. I had just had my daughter and he was lying on the couch watching tv. I didnt think anything of it until he literally rolled off the couch to the floor. he said he didnt feel like getting up. Lets just say he vaccuumed my house, swept & mop my floors, dusted my banisters, walked my dog and anything else I could do to keep him busy. IT pissed me off that at 10 he was that lazy!!! I saw him back at thanksgiving, he is 13 now and still is only interested in video games and tv- drives me crazy!

Eric- please let me know how your meeting goes! My daughter starts School next year, its good to know there are people like yourself, out there to work towards her getting nutritious food at school! Best of Luck!

About 15 percent of children and adolescents ages 6-19 years are seriously overweight.
The percentage of children and adolescents who are defined as overweight has nearly tripled since the early 1970s.
Over 10 percent of preschool children between ages 2 and 5 are overweight.
Another 15 percent of children and teens ages 6-19 are considered at risk of becoming overweight.
Researchers found that lowered self-esteem was associated with being overweight in girls as young as 5.
1 in 5 children in the U.S. are overweight.
Children with obesity, ages 10-13, are reported to have a 70% likelihood of obesity persisting into adult years

I totally agree this is such a great subject. I've even thought about ways I could present it to my school, but a great deal of the administrators there are very overweight as well as many of the kids already :(. I want to approach the subject, but don't want to offend anyone about bringing a healthy eating/healthy lifestyle program into our schools.

We live in a rural area but when we lived in the city it seemed the kids in the city were healthier/leaner looking believe it or not. I figured out here the kids would run/play more less traffic, pollution, crime etc. but they totally don't. You never see kids out running around here playing. When its nice I boot my kiddo out into the yard and tell him not to come back in to play games until he's tired and has run around for awhile. When I grew up our parents didn't let us just sit around, we got sent outside to play and we were active at least. I admittedly was fed all the junk I wanted, but at least activity was enforced.

I decided from birth my son was going to eat well and develop a taste for good foods. I never gave him baby food, I fed him from the table veggies and things like that. He grew up loving vegetables and fruits and especially spicy foods :). I think it has stuck with him because even now that he's in school he will typically ask for something healthy over something junky.

Of course all the kids take turns bringing in snacks for the class on snack days and he comes home telling me they had cookies and doritos things like this. The parents are specifically asked to send in healthy foods for the class but if they won't be responsible and the school will still pass out the crappy snacks, then what can one do to put a stop to it? Not saying the kids shouldn't be allowed to have some chips or something once in awhile, but a great number fo these parents send junk food for the school snack for kindergartners!! ugh it makes me so mad.

My son is great though, he'll tell me if he had a "bad snack" at school adn then eat a healthy one when he gets home and vice versa if the snack at school was healthy he'll ask if he can have some chips or a pudding or ice cream ;).

thats good Christins. Same thing here. Rural area and the people could care less! I remember Saturdays- watch morning cartoons, clean your room and get out of the house. We were only allowed back in for lunch and dinner! Then sent back out til bedtime! my mom wanted us out so she could clean! exercise

this is a great post! I am so glad to hear that we are all trying to "change" the next generation. It is a lot of hard work!!!! My son is 12 and is in the healthy range of BMI at school (yes, our school test for this....don't get me started) my daughter is 7 1/2 and is in the at risk for being overweight BMI range. She has never said anything about her weight, and I hope it is b/c we have never said anything to her. I don't ever say I am dieting , but I am just want to be healthy.
My mother was always on a "diet"!!! (she still is always on a diet and she is 73.) My mom missed the boat b/c she is so healthy, she walks, and workouts.....but she always said it was to lose weight, nothing was ever said about health. That's where that all starts. She was so proud that my sister and I were "thin". But I was always dieting. (boy, did that backfire!)
I don't want that for my children, especially my daughter. I still have to "correct" my husband when he tells my son he needs to eat more . Such double standards!!!!
I don't deprive my kids either. I try not to make a big deal about any of it. I keep lots of fruit in the house b/c they both like it (my son doesn't like a lot of stuff)

I think you are doing a great job!!! BTW, I've signed a waiver to NOT let my kids...both of them...to not be weighed at school and have BMI done. I don't want them compared to others. Even though the nurses say it is all confidential...it's not, they all talk.
Here in Arkansas (our governor lost over 100 pounds the old fashioned way) we are no longer allowed junk food for snacks. Birthday snacks are suppose to be limited to monthly, I think. For drug free week, all snacks went from smarties, etc... to pretzels, etc... It's a great start. So, go ahead and speak to your school-----christins !

instead of doing that they need to focus more on bringing in healthier lunches! take out all the crap! its about a healthy life for our kids, not having them on a diet when they are 7.

After years of countless meetings and disscusions some of the schools in the St. Louis public school system announced today, the change of the Lunchmenues to healthy foods. Back to basic homemade cooking, pizza and hamburgers only once a week and nacos once a month, several schools also took there Soda Machines out and replaced Bad snacks in Vendingmachines with Healthy snacks.

that is awesome!! Thanks! I will have to look into the NY schools.

I think the biggest problem is fast food, at least for my family, with two working parents (mom gets home at 7/7:30 usually, dad who gets home at 4+ but used to the women doing everything-gag me lol) fast food was gotten 5+ days a week... and living in a rural area, and in my neighborhood I'm pretty much the only girl (the rest are 7+ years younger) and having two brothers who would love to "pick" on me so I ended up just sitting inside watching t.v. with my mom most of the time. At one point she bought an exercise video and I'd love to do it, but she stopped so i did... there is a public park about a half of a mile/mile down the road- but my parents rarely took us there, and other than that there was pretty much nothing to do... the town is just now putting in an ice skating rink and all kinds of crazy stuff like that, but that's going to take a few years. so try to get out is often easier said than done.

I think a lot derives from learning from the parents... if they sit around all day, chances are the kids will pick it up sometime- not always... also when I have kids- fruits and vegetables are going to be the primary food, I'm going to pack their lunches until middle school where if they want I'll pack them, or they can.. and I'm going to teach them that I wont always be there to make their decisions and they'll have to know good from bad, and their consequences, and basically try to teach them independence and their consequences. And I think that's pretty much all you can do... you can't dictate what to eat and what to do and expect them to hold it up throughout their lives, I think after 12 they need to be taught independence (obv. not all at once) that way it's their choices that they're living with.

NOW I know why I like you! 2brothers- thats tough! I have 2 older brothers and trust me they think they can always pick on you and boss you! You are a smart girl-alwayz! You are right, its what you learn at home. My mom did all the laying around and my dad was the one that coached football and all the sports- I grew up loving sports. I still get outside with my hubby and throw football. If you teach your kids at an early age they wont know how to be lazy. Keep them motivated but not forced.

Lol yeah two brothers is tough ick lol... i'm stuck in the middle, older brother (get along with him usually lol) who's 18- leaving for the marines in July :/... then a little brother who's 15 lol he's going through then "im bigger then you and if you don't do what I want/give me what i want i'll make you" lol just looove it lol... I did kind of get into sports, I like to play when I can but it's hard getting other people to play, I looove playing football :D lol but HATE watching sports... BORE ME! lol

yeah that's exactly what I mean though :D

This is a great topic and I wish you all luck with this.
My 13 year old step-daughter has a serious weight problem - part of which is genetic but isn't helped by her eating and exercise habits.

Our problem is that you can't make decisions for them and the minute they leave your sight, you have to trust them to make good decisions. Ours wants to but has no will-power. It's heart-breaking.

so sorry to here that. does she have any hobbies or interest? You do what you can when she is with you, set an example, fix healthy meals for everyone, let her see you exercising and enjoying it. Sit down with her and first find out if she wants to get control of it, if she does tell her to set small goals and rewards. If she exercises 3 times a week for 2 weeks, take her to a movie. Or....Im not up on my teenagers! Alwayz is a great role model to talk to! You have to make it fun for her. If she sees you doing things and enjoying it she may give it a try. You cant make someone do things, but you can help them in the right direction by example. Best of luck!

It's really hard for teens/preteens... she probably knows she has a problem- but is too self-conscience to do anything about it- because by doing something about it is admitting she has a problem and she doesn't want to put it out there so people know she knows, it's easier to act like you don't care/don't know and just hide in the shadows, than to go out and do something about it and put yourself out there, especially at such a young age where everyone is so critical. I wouldn't point anything out, or be obvious about anything. Be subtle I'm sure she wants to change but doesn't know how to without asking for help. Which is why I think soo many girls (and boys) turn to bulimia and anorexia- they don't have to ask for help.

Try to keep lots of fruits and veggies in the house, and try making weekend trips to go ice skating/rollerblading or something fun that doesn't have to be looked at as exercise, but as a fun way to get out. Or take her and her friends out bowling, or have her set up a game of football, or some other fun thing that is just that- fun. But try not to force her to do anything because she could go a few ways, she could feel like people are ganging up on her for her weight- even if you go about it nicely. My mom sometimes says stuff like "are you sure you want to eat that?" and she's nice about it, and is just trying to help because she knows I'm trying to lose weight but that just makes people so much more self-conscience and turns them more to ways to do it alone. Which isn't what you want. Okay so now that I'm done with another book :P

I knew you could help! Did you have school today? I decided you need to go to Binghamton University. I could use a good babysitter! One of my brothers was in the Marines...he is 2 years older than me- it was so hard but I was so proud! Put a Marine sticker on your car- helped me get out of 2 tickets! LOL

Hehe... Yeah there was school... did I go? noo shhh! hahaha I'm so bad lol I didn't go cuz I had stuff I needed to do, like clean my room, take a shower, finish homework, etc ahahah. Actually that seems like a really good school- just looked it up... I think I'm goin to apply there lol- I don't know if I'll get in... my GPA isn't too great :/ lol... hopefully I'll do well on the SATs... hahha well maybe my brother will finally be good for something! lol jk!

Slappy... she plays field hockey but it's only in the fall. Anything else is not interesting to her, it seems. She is trying really hard - she's getting on our elliptical and has started Weight Watchers but her eating seems to be emotional (at 13, go figure!). She'll eat a good meal and then sneak some candy into her room (that she got from somewhere else, of course) and just binge on that. It's so hard when she does that to herself and we're so worried about pressuring her (she gets enough at school, I'm sure) and we don't want her heading in the opposite direction. But there's so much that's dependent on her making the decisions. All we can do is encourage the positive stuff and not come down on her when it doesn't go so well.

Thanks for your suggestions and good vibes. I really appreciate it... I worry so much about her health. :(