Trying to find the time to workout when you have kids can be quite challenging at times. Trying to find a babysitter or a gym that has a play are the kids like can be challenging at times, but have you tried working out with your kids before? No, I mean really working out with your kids. Small children can actually be used as resistance as you do a workout. Maren Sederquist, a Medical Exercise Specialist in California, developed a program that uses your kids to workout with. And while, this will only work when the kids are young, for a busy mom, it might be just what you need. Here’s a video Serderquist developed that demonstrates how to exercise with your kids.
I love supporting local Katy Auctions. I always support local elementary schools by donating personal training sessions to help them raise money for anything they want to raise money for. Katy is my home, my community, and I want to do everything I can to support it. But lately, I’m wondering if others in the Katy area that donate to auctions really understand the point of it. I’ve had two bad experiences lately with auctions. I won’t name any names or businesses, but if you are a business that donates to auctions consider a few things.
1) Don’t donate something that you give away for free on a normal basis. If you list on your website that you are giving away a certain item to everyone that gives you their e-mail address, no one should pay money to get it an auction. Because the moment they see that they paid for something they could have had for free, you lost the respect of that individual.
2) If someone wins your auction item, they shouldn’t have to pay for something to use it. My wife recently won something. We paid for it, outbid everyone else, and was ready to redeem it, only to find out there was a catch. It turns out that she had to purchase something at the store in order to get the raffle item. Now I can understand if she had to purchase something in order to use it on what she won, but this wasn’t the case. She just had to buy something, completely unrelated to what she won, just so she could be put in their computer system to redeem the prize. This makes no sense to me, but if someone can explain it to me, please do.
With all that being said, I am donating to some local auctions. I donated personal training sessions to the Katy Chamber Gala recently, I am donating to Bonnie Holland Elementary, and I have another auction I will be donating to soon as well. I almost always donate several personal training sessions to these auctions. (By the way, if you have a fundraiser that you would like a donation for, let me know. I’d be glad to help.) I never discount my personal training sesssions, but sometimes you can get a great deal on a block of personal training sessions with me when you go to one of the auctions. So bid on them when you see them, and let’s raise some money for some good causes. I look forward to helping the winners of the auctions get in great shape, and I can assure you, you will get your money’s worth.
Live Science just published an article releasing the studies of the cause of childhood obesity. Here is what they found.
Teens whose parents drink soda every day are nearly 40 percent more likely to drink soda every day themselves than teens whose parents do not drink soda.
Teens whose parents eat five servings of fruits and vegetables daily are 16 percent more likely to do the same than teens whose parents do not eat five servings a day.
Nearly half of adolescents (48 percent) whose parents drink soda every day eat fast food at least once a day, while only 39 percent of teens whose parents do not drink soda eat fast food at least once daily.
45 percent of teens whose parents do not eat five servings of fruits and vegetables daily eat fast food at least once a day, while only 39 percent of teens whose parents eat five servings a day eat fast food at least once daily.
The moral of the story is that childhood obesity is due more to what they are taught by their parents than their parents’ genes.
If you are concerned about your kids weight problem, please read the article.
I know this isn’t about weight loss, but this does effect some kids in this area. Halter, Inc is a non-profit agency that lets kids ride horses. They have special saddles for the kids and someone broke in the other day and stole them. It’s really a sad story. Riding horses is very therapeutic for handicapped kids and I absolutely hate what has happened. I really hope they are able to replinish their supplies. You can read more about the break-in or you can visit their website.
Atlas Sports Genetics our of Boulder, CO is now gene testing your kids to help you guide them into the right sports. They can basically tell you if your kid is built for endurance sports (long distance running and swimming), Endurance and Power (soccer/cycling), or power (football, weightlifting, sprint events). While I personally don’t think it’s perfect yet, over time I think they will make strides to fine tune it to be more accurate. The basic test is $149, if they include a jump test it is $249, and to include a speed and agility test the price jumps to $999. Is it worth it? I’ll let you decide that.
This is the very reason we are seeing heart attacks happening at an earlier and earlier age.
Obesity is aging our children before their time.
The Association Press reported that studies presented last week at an American Heart Association conference found about a third of American children are overweight, and one-fifth are obese.
In a sense, that’s old news.
But what made one study depressingly newsworthy was the conclusion by researchers at Children’s Hospital in Kansas City that obese children as young as 10 had the arteries of 45-year-olds.Want more depressing news?
Another study by researchers at Royal Prince Alfred Hospital in Australia tied childhood obesity to abnormal enlargement of the left atrium, one of the chambers of the heart. The AP reported enlargement is a known risk factor for heart disease, stroke and heart rhythm problems. One researcher said he saw a clear link between rising weight and size of the left atrium.
Still not convinced about the danger of obesity?
A study by the Australian National University in Canberra found impairment in the heart’s ability to relax between beats in children who were overweight or obese.
Earlier research found more rigid arteries in such children — a possible sign of plaque deposits starting to form.
This isn’t just a matter of personal health. It’s a public health issue, too. Overweight adults are more prone to Type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure. The cost to society to treat these conditions is staggering, and it’s only going to grow as the number of obese Americans increases.Some people can’t help it. They have weight problems and other health issues because of their genes. They are not what they eat; they are what they’ve had passed down to them from their ancestors.
However, many children are overweight and obese because, like far too many adults, they are eating too much — and too much of the wrong kind of food — and exercising too little.
It’s not a matter of growing out of baby fat. When it comes to obesity, child is father to the man. The news service reported research increasingly shows that fat children become fat adults, and with that come higher risks for many health problems.
For these children, it’s about eating the right kind of food and exercising. And it wouldn’t hurt if their parents joined the regimen, either.
Overweight and obese children and adults must take this condition seriously. For them, it really is a matter of life and death.
Jason Hodge is a 13 year veteran personal trainer living in Katy, TX. He was chosen as the 2007 and 2008 Katy Personal Trainer of the Year, has numerous articles published in magazines, 7 personal training certifications, and a degree in Kinsiology.Read More About Me
Jason Hodge is a 13 year veteran personal trainer living in Katy, TX. He was chosen as the 2007 and 2008 Katy Personal Trainer of the Year, has numerous articles published in magazines, 7 personal training certifications, and a degree in Kinsiology.
