FITNESS +
Cannabis
MAKING FITNESS FUN WITH THE FAMILY BY ANTONIO DEROSE
Did you know, research published in the Journal of Sports Science and Medicine found a positive relationship between the exercise habits of parents and the amount of physical activity their children participated in? It’s important to understand just how much of a positive influence we can have on the health of our children through a focus on fitness. The best part is, it’s probably not what you think when you first hear the word fitness, and it can be fun for the whole family. In order to increase our understanding for how important our own health behaviors can have on the health and well-being of our children, it’s helpful to look at the results of that same study where family and support where concluded to provide a positive influence. The study from the Journal of Sports Science and Medicine concluded several key points, including, “parental exercising significantly predicts adolescents’ engagement in sport.”1 Although this conclusion indicates a strong
significance between parental exercise and adolescent involvement in physical activity through sports, there were a few caveats. The habits of both parents were shown to have an impact on the daughter’s participation in sports, but a son’s participation was related only to the father’s habits. So, if you have a son, moms can tell dad to start getting in shape, but if you have a daughter, then it’s better to have the whole family developing healthy habits together. Although, my honest opinion would be to get the whole family involved either way! Regular exercise is known to promote physical and mental health benefits in adults, as well as being important for children’s physical and cognitive growth. So much so, the World Health Organization recommends “Children and youth aged 5–17 should accumulate at least 60 minutes of moderate- to vigorous-intensity physical activity daily.” This amount of activity benefits children by improving
their cardiorespiratory system, and increasing the strength of their muscles, joints, and bones. Now we’re not talking about a bunch of kids lifting weights at the gym, even though there are some who do. These physical activity recommendations can easily be achieved through more than just traditional exercise routines and playing sports. Encouraging physical fitness can be as easy as having more play time at the park, or even assigning chores around the home. As a NASM Certified Personal Trainer, I believe consistent movement, even in the simplest ways, is the key to mobility and a better overall quality of life. I say it can be easy, but the truth is, there are several families with children who suffer from medical conditions preventing them from performing even daily life tasks. A lot of these children avoid physical activity due to their pain or even anxiety or depression. As discussed in this month’s issue about chronic pain in children, several families
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