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 are finding relief for these symptoms using cannabis in some form.

Physical therapy and exercise are proving to be vital tools in the treatment of children with many pain conditions, as stated in an academic manuscript, published in Children, an international peer-reviewed open access journal of pediatrics. It’s important to note the manuscript indicated several positive effects of physical exercise on children experiencing pain, including a reduced risk for depression. However, it was also noted functionality and mobility were found to improve faster than reduction of pain.3 This means the pain doesn’t typically go away or start to improve immediately. There are some sections stating pain may even increase when beginning more physical exercise, but in the long run, will decrease over time as a result of increased activity.

The connection between cannabis, fitness, and our children comes down to common goals. We want to reduce symptoms, improve quality of life, and extend longevity. Remember, it’s as easy as encouraging more play time. When it comes to incorporating cannabis into the family fitness routine, don’t do anything different than you’re already doing. Keep your same routine, just schedule more time for activities requiring some sort of movement, and most importantly, something they have fun doing. At the end of the day, we really just want to see our children smile, be happy, and have fun, and we can do it together as a family.