Helping my 7 year old son....

MommaSarabear

To confirm that I have to do something for my son - last night at ball practice, they had to do some running.....and he was always bringing up the end; walking a lot instead of running. My heart sank because I know what it's like to be "that kid" and it's happened to my child. I feel like I have failed somewhere in this parenting gig and haven't been a good role model for them in the diet and exercise area.

Any other parents out there have suggestions of foods, exercises, ideas, etc to help me help my child??

dawnna76

is your child over weight and thats what caused him to bring up the rear? or is he normal weight and it could be something else like asthma or just not having good cardio fitness?

lishie_rebooted

Talk to his pediatrician

NobodyPutsAmyInTheCorner

Oh honey How about bike rides, kick a ball about together in the park? Swimming etc? All fun things to help build his confidence and help with his fitness levels?

Food wise... Get him to help you make simple meals, fun fruit faces etc that he will enjoy eating. Let him help prepare foods so he can see what's happening in his meals and how he can make the right choices. What a good mum you are to recognise the signs and help him x

kampshoff

Is your son visibly overweight? If not, I wonder if there's an actual problem to be solved here.

I also have a seven-year-old son, and he's probably underweight. He hates running, too.

peleroja

Pediatrician seems like a better first stop than MFP. I'd want to rule out any medical issues before anything else.

At that age, if he's just heavy, all you should have to do is encourage more exercise and make sure he's eating appropriate portions. Kids grow at different rates too and sometimes they put on weight right before a growth spurt in height, and that's normal too.

tcunbeliever

With my kids I don't limit their intake of foods, but I do limit the number of times they get "junk food". To me junk food is just about any food that comes out of a box or can. So, they are fed a lot of what I consider real foods, meat, vegetables, fruits, grains, etc. but we only have processed foods or go out to eat about once a week. The 2 I have still at home are 11 and 13, so they eat unimaginable quantities of food, but are still a healthy weight. My rule is that they have to be in some kind of activity, but beyond that I don't make them exercise. They are pretty active on their own.

All parents are doing the best they can, don't beat yourself up if you have started some unhealthy habits, just do the best you can to alter them and lead by example.

TeaBea

Would he do exercise videos, or play Wii / Playstation fitness games?

This is a kid's Tae Bo workout....

www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bs97j6j1b9M

I agree with Aimee....something you can all do together. You won't be singling him out.

Hornsby

As asked, the most important questions is whether or not he is overweight. If the answer is yes, then yes, you have failed him. I don't mean that to be harsh in any way. It is what it is. Kids are so much less active these days with all the electronics and way to communicate with friends and it's super easy and cheap to eat high calorie foods. That's a recipe for disaster.

Asher_Ethan

I also have a 7-year-old son and we like to do sooooooo many physical activities together. We bike ride, we play tag on the play grounds, we go to the rec center and swim pretty much every other weekend and we'll have night dance parties where we just turn on some music and think of dance moves that look like dinosaurs.
It not only keeps him active but it has really brought us so close together.

I_Will_End_You

Swimming, hiking, bike riding, team sports, martial arts.....

Lounmoun

I would talk to your child's doctor first.
Promoting activity is generally good... Maybe find something you can enjoy together like hiking, riding bikes, dancing video games.

Kimberly_Harper

I think its great that you have him in sports! I agree with everyone else about talking with his pediatrician. If he is overweight the doctor can have a conversation with you about his diet and his amount of time being active v. being in front of a computer or television. If he is not overweight, then it will help find out what the problem really is.

Ninkyou

Talk to his pediatrician, and get him outdoors playing and/or doing sports. Physical activity is probably going to be the best thing for him.

RodHudson1229

You have not given us much to go on here but what I will say is that someone has to be that kid right? I mean don't judge harshly because he is bringing up the rear. If he is a little out of shape baseball is great for that. If his diet is off and needs mom to be accountable OK. If he is Xbox generation set some limits. Does he even like baseball? I mean we went down this road of putting our kids in sports more for us than for them. Make sure you are signing him up for stuff he is interested in.

ninerbuff

Kids learn and create habits from what they see at home most of the time. If he's overweight, then you need to make sure that he's not over eating. It's especially easy to do when most kids just want mac and cheese, fast food and junk food.

A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

harpsdesire

Emphasize the fun of activity and sports, and the yumminess/feel good factor of healthy foods. Limit treats by not having them in the house, but allow birthday cake at parties, etc.

Don't put him 'on a diet' because he 'needs to lose weight' or you risk creating an unhealthy relationship with food and his body that might last forever.

I'm not a parent or expert, but it's what I wish my parents did for me!

jgnatca

I enrolled my children in activities that they had a native interest in. Neither has a weight problem by the way. Neither were in to team sports. My daughter got in to running, horses and dogs, and my son bike riding and rock climbing. I got the rock climbing idea watching him scale trees every time he had a chance.

GWehsling

I'm still waiting to hear if there is a medical problem, but if there isn't and I assume there isn't, then yes, likely, your son is living your example.

I suggest you go out and spend $10 on water pistols and chase each other around the yard or a park for 10mins a day, every day. If it's Winter, find a sport that you can both work at; there are many more lessons a parent can give a child by starting without any knowledge or experience at something new. Both of you learning and making mistakes together will create a good bond as well as correct the lack of activity or energy you have told us about.

I am a single father of 5 year old twins. They are in excellent health given they were born at 25 weeks and we have a lot of active and physical fun with very little expense or effort on my part. The key here is planning and I make sure the kids get the idea that they plan everything when I really just guide them. We are at that point where they want to go ride bikes, play on the trampoline, kick a ball around and their first choices for food are raw fruit and water.

These activities and habits are not hard to execute and form, they are not expensive and they keep me on my toes mentally, physically and emotionally - yeah, people fall off bikes, miss the goal, don't succeed first time etc. these are life lessons that also come with sport and active choices and they are good lessons that teach discipline (which can be applied to food and other areas of life) and self education (which also passes nicely onto other areas of life), not to mention that you will have an opportunity to show your child first hand that even if you, the 'infallible' parent, fail at something, you are okay with picking yourself up, dusting yourself off and having another go.

You owe it to your kid/s.

Good luck.

MommaSarabear

Yes, to answer the question he is overweight but he also towers over most of the boys in his class height wise - I have lots of very tall people in my family and he's very much built like them as kids - on the heavy side but also built solid as a rock (his arms and legs are very, very strong, but he has a bit of a belly). Once they hit puberty age, they shot up like bean poles. There are no underlying medical conditions - I have been to the pediatrician. I was more or less wanting suggestions from other parents with kiddos my sons age (7) as to what they do with their kids to encourage eating right and fun exercises and yes, he does enjoy baseball - it's not just something I wanted to put him in for myself. Thanks in advance.

bluworld

At 7, you determine what he eats. He's only going to eat what you provide, whether that be lean proteins and veggies, or Mr Noodle soup. He's also young enough to be fairly adaptable too.

GWehsling

harpsdesire wrote: »

Emphasize the fun of activity and sports, and the yumminess/feel good factor of healthy foods. Limit treats by not having them in the house, but allow birthday cake at parties, etc.

...

I'm not a parent or expert, but it's what I wish my parents did for me!

This works for me - there are no lollies or candy in the house. If the kids are hungry, we walk to the store or we have to prepare something or they can help themselves to any fruit they can find in the fridge - we also make a game of trying fruit and other fresh produce we've never seen before from the local store so that they feel they are being in control when choosing to buy some strange looking orb, at least they try it, sometimes they like it...

Also yeah, I often reflect on how my parents raised me and I make the decision to do a better job with my kids.

Eureka175

Since he enjoys baseball, keep at it. My son (9) hates running but loves sports and is very competitive, he enjoys soccer, basketball, hockey, volleyball, etc. Although he doesn;t enjoy running, he will "practice running" at home in order to be better at his sports. He also loves going for family bike rides, and playgrounds. My daughter (6) prefers gymnastics and swimming, as well as "exercising with mommy" -she also loves "dance parties" - the trick is to find things he enjoys, and being active with him. Good luck!

skippygirlsmom

I think the big thing is not to make it a big thing. Bring healthier food choices into your home. Limit the amount of "bad" snacks he can have in a week. I find that buying the already packaged cookies or chips makes eating a serving easier. Being more active with him naturally like swimming, riding bikes, taking walks. No need to say "we are going to ride bikes to exercise". He likes baseball so go out and throw the ball around, play hide and seek, flashlight tag, red light green light. He might just be a slow runner, being big doesn't equal slow anymore than being little means fast. Unfortunately someone has to finish last.

How does HE feel about coming in last? I know in the past when my daughter (14 now) was upset because someone was better at something I would say "do you want to practice?". If it really upsets him to be last work on running skills, with miles comes speed. Like I mentioned about tag etc are games that will get him running and working on that skill without him feeling like he is working at it.

Good luck and don't be down on yourself, there is no parenting guide and there are no perfect parents.

berlynnwall

I have my school age kids exercise in the morning before we go to school. There are all kinds of fun dance/martial arts/ yoga dvds available for kids, and my kids actually like to do them. My 11 year old sometimes chooses to ride my stationary bike instead of doing a video. Not only is it a good habit for them, but I think it helps them not be so squirmy at school.

Food wise, I make a lot of healthy foods, and I let them help me cook often so they see what I'm putting in there. I try to strike a balance - we don't eat "clean", but a treat is a treat and not an every day/hour/whenever situation.

I hope that helps a little, and I want to say that even though you maybe made mistakes in the past, it's really good that you're trying to figure this out now instead of just letting it go and not caring. Best wishes to you guys.

dawnna76

Okay so thanks for answering. sounds like your son isnt over weight per se, but could benifit from some more activity.

I have a 8 year od son and a 6 year old son. the 8 year old is underweight and and the 6 year old is average but could easily tip over if i dont watch it. I dont limit what he eats but i dont keep chips, sodas or cookiesetc around the house and there is no mindless snacking. he gets to snack on cheese, fruit, yogurts, vegetables and ranch or hummus etc. the 8 year old gets bigger helpings than the 6 year old at dinner to add weight.

they both play basketball, do taekwondo and swim. on non sports days they go with me to the gym to play in the adventure zone (play structure) or we do active things together as a family, ride bikes, go for walks etc. to motivate them into waling and hiking more we started geocaching so we are always going out on treasure hunts and doing that we can easily walk a couple miles without complaint.

urloved33

Raising my kids (now 24 and 25) as a single mother...I wanted them to know fitness. I brought them to the gym with me every day and they went their way (taekwondo, swimming, basketball, etc) and I went mine (treadmill and weights) We did this for their whole life and they know fitness. We may not alwaYs choose fitness...but they know it. ..and that is what I wanted for them to know enough to be able to choose.

Laurend224

My son is the slowest one on his team too. He is very fit, he just hates running when it's required of him, though he runs around the house and yard like a maniac so I know he can do it. Crazy kid.

weird_me2

MommaSarabear wrote: »

Yes, to answer the question he is overweight but he also towers over most of the boys in his class height wise - I have lots of very tall people in my family and he's very much built like them as kids - on the heavy side but also built solid as a rock (his arms and legs are very, very strong, but he has a bit of a belly). Once they hit puberty age, they shot up like bean poles. There are no underlying medical conditions - I have been to the pediatrician. I was more or less wanting suggestions from other parents with kiddos my sons age (7) as to what they do with their kids to encourage eating right and fun exercises and yes, he does enjoy baseball - it's not just something I wanted to put him in for myself. Thanks in advance.

Your son sounds similar to my 8 yo DD. She waver's at just under overweight, but she's very big for her age. She's as tall as most of the 5th grade boys and she's in a women's size 6-7 shoe!

It sounds like your son just needs some more conditioning. When DD8 said that she didn't want to finish last when her softball team ran laps, I let her do some conditioning on the treadmill (during the winter). She gets on and runs for 10-15 minutes. It started out with her running very slowly...3.8 mph, but now she does intervals at 5-6 mph. She enjoys it because she is competitive and likes seeing how far she can make it. When we are outside walking or jogging, I encourage her to sprint on hills for added endurance training. Usually she races me or her sister. When she's playing in the neighborhood, she likes to race the older boys.

You'll probably also have to accept that some people will always have to be at the back of the pack, especially when it comes to sprinting. I've always said that DD8 is built for marathons, not sprints. If the team runs 1 lap, she's still at the back of the pack (not last anymore, though), even with her conditioning. If they make that three or more laps, and she's pulling towards the middle-front of the pack. DD4 is a sprinter - she can run as fast as DD8 if they are just going a short distance. DD4 is also tall but very underweight and moves with a natural grace that DD8 and I don't have.

DearestWinter

When I was a kid I was always a really slow runner. I was a healthy weight and did plenty of other cardio exercises but hated running. Now that I'm an adult I've identified my problem is pacing myself. I tend to sprint for a little bit, get tired, and then walk. Repeat. I've done running clinics with pacers, run 5/10Ks/half marathons, and still have this issue. I just get incredibly bored running at the same pace.

But sure, see a doctor to check his cardio fitness and see if that's the issue. I just wanted to mention my story because fitness and slow running aren't necessarily linked.

rainbowbow

TeaBea wrote: »

Would he do exercise videos, or play Wii / Playstation fitness games?

This is a kid's Tae Bo workout....

www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bs97j6j1b9M

I agree with Aimee....something you can all do together. You won't be singling him out.

OH MY GOD! I did this in gym class in elementary school.....

DOUBLE TIME! *strobe light flashes*


OP, the best thing you can do for your kid is to lead by example. This means eating right, having the right snacks available, and engaging is sports/activities with them.

Things like tennis, swimming, rock climbing, skating, kickball, soccer, gymnastics, basketball, baseball, etc. Find something you can both do together in addition to his already existing activities.

Remember: topping at mcdonalds on the way home, cheating on your diet, or giving up is going to be noticed.