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.