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Healthy kids: fitness, fun and good lifelong habits

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July 5, 2011 at 10:47 am

Are children becoming less active?

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From early morning cartoons outlining the importance of eating our greens, to games designed to make teeth brushing more interesting – learning to be healthy is a big part of growing up. But with fast food outlets in almost every town and increasingly indoor lifestyles, encouraging children to eat well and exercise can sometimes seem challenging.

News reports regularly warn of the dangers of weight related health issues, so it’s natural to want to instil lifelong, healthy habits into our children’s daily routines. And as this is National Childhood Obesity Week, it’s a good time to think about how this could be done.

Run by the MEND programme, the event coincides with the MEND Move It Week, to highlight the dangers of childhood obesity and encourage physical activity amongst families.

Healthy kids are more likely to become healthy adults, and tempting them away from computer games and junk food might be easier than you imagine. Think of ways children can stay fit without boredom – fun bike rides in the park, playing hide and seek in the garden, an afternoon at the swimming pool. There’s no shortage of options, and being active together as a family can give you all some great memories to look back on, as well the health benefits of exercise.  Why not browse the scheduled Move It week activities to get some ideas?

Of course healthy eating is important too, and although most children are bound to ask for sweets, there are often more nutritious treats – our recipe for apple flapjacks make a great swap for chocolate bars which are high in saturated fats.

Maintaining a balanced lifestyle is a much easier prospect when it involves a fun day out with the family, or an evening spent baking healthy snacks in the kitchen – and if children grow up knowing how fulfilling being fit can be, they’ll be more likely to keep it up in future.

What does your family do to make staying fit fun? Please feel free to share your kids fitness tips in the comments!