As our decadent Western culture gets fatter by the minute, surprise, so do our kids. Right now, the consensus is that from 20-30% of kids are obese, defined as more than ten percent over ideal body weight. If a child has one obese parent, their odds of also becoming a fattie are 50%. If both parents are obese, it soars to 80%.

It’s obvious many parents of overweight children are dealing with issues of their own but, hey, you brought them into this world and it’s squarely up to you to see that make it into adulthood as healthy as they can be.

You need to get them moving.

No, not with U-Haul. With exercise! Even if they hate it at first. Here are some ideas to get started. It should come as a big surprise to no one that the more time a child spends with video games, television, and computers, the heavier they are likely to be. These activities require little to no physical exertion, so what do you expect? You’ve got to pry their grubby little fingers off the technology. Try limiting daily time spent on these activities.

Or, as Yoda might say, “Don’t try. Do or do not. There is no try.”

As a parent, you’ll probably find more success in steering your child towards a vigorous activity rather than planning a gym workout. Maybe you want to participate with them. Use the extra time that’s no longer devoted to lolling in front of technology for things like soccer, basketball, roller blading, bike riding, or team sports. Consider a martial arts or gymnastics class. Anything you can think of. It is critical to get them moving. Shoot for 20 to 30 minutes a day three or four times a week.

Who knows, you just might get them addicted to something besides The Suite Life of Zack and Cody. Click here to read an article with some sneaky ideas about how to wean the young ‘uns off the video games and television.

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