Trying to Get My 10 Year Old Boy Fit too.

sonjavon

Thank you for your words. I would never call him fat. Keeping it fun is the key. Im not forbidding foods, IM just putting it out there that there are better choices out there. Its my feeling that forbidding is not good. Variety is the key, and portion control is also important for us. Last night he wanted a second helping of a lean baked pork chop and orange juice. I carefully said, lets check the cals on the oj just for fun. It was 140 cals, and the chop was 120. I let him make the choice of one, he chose the chop

Awesome! Sounds like you have it under control. I will say that eating more healthy and being more active has done amazing things for my whole family... we all support one another and really... it simply started with me deciding to do it for myself. What most kids miss today that other generations had... playing... real life playing. Running, skipping, jumping - just for the fun of it!

I just wanted to make you aware of the vast calorie difference for kids vs. adults... I was shocked! I had searched the internet extensively and could not find anything. Moreover - it was like pulling teeth to get the pediatrician to understand that I was not going to put him on a diet - that HE was interested in knowing what he should be taking in.

Soda is now a "treat" that only takes place outside of our home. We're learning that treats are just that... not an everyday occurence!
Keep up the good work and let me know how he's doing!

shanerylee

Some of you asked for updates during the journey. I hope Im not boring the hell out of you all. My son in just a weeks time looks different in the face. He has slimmed down already. We have done the gym together a few days and he as really impressed me with his ability to do the treadmill and the eliptical. I guess I really never gave him credit for being able to do it and not fall off, (im a worrier). I had a talk with my father who we are going on our cruise with next week, the man is thin and loves to eat junk. I prepped him on making good choices at the buffet himself so he could set a could example for Shane. He seems to be on board and said that us doing this and made him take a long hard look at himself and he wants to get healthy too.

Shane has been making really good choices on his own with his foods and loves his special snack bin where I have snacks that he can have portioned already in baggies. He is still not willing to go outside the box with other fruits and veggies.

Tonight we are making the switch from beef tacos to turkey tacos, should be interesting. Last night we were at our local sports plex for my daughters practice and there was a bake sale. I watched as all the parents were letting their kids buy multiples of chocolates, pop rocks, tomato pie and soda. I let Shane have one item because I didnt want to make him feel bad and he had eaten well all day. He then said "mom this was probably about 200 calories, so I am going to go run in the hockey area til I burn it off""

Fieldsy

sign him up for sports

It would be a fun way for him to exercise

shanerylee

He is signed up for hockey and does it thru the winter months. He doesnt care for baseball anymore, so we are looking into kickboxing.

kilburni

I love what you're doing teaching him calories. I'm a very math oriented person so now that I know how many calories I burn in a day and how many calories are in one pound of fat (3,500 for those of you that haven't found it yet) it has become very easy to turn weight loss into a math problem and realize achievable goals.

I'd agree that looking into sports is definitely a good thing! I didn't play football as a kid (my mom was always afraid of me getting hurt so I played soccer and basketball) but I definitely wish that I had...they have pretty intense practices from a young age and it's definitely a great way to learn how to work out for the rest of your life. My roommate played football as a kid and still has a workout regimen that he developed through jr. high and high school that he utilizes (albeit a little more sparingly) to this day. So if you're not the type to worry about him playing a contact sport and he has some interest, definitely look into it!

sonjavon

I love what you're doing teaching him calories. I'm a very math oriented person so now that I know how many calories I burn in a day and how many calories are in one pound of fat (3,500 for those of you that haven't found it yet) it has become very easy to turn weight loss into a math problem and realize achievable goals.

I'd agree that looking into sports is definitely a good thing! I didn't play football as a kid (my mom was always afraid of me getting hurt so I played soccer and basketball) but I definitely wish that I had...they have pretty intense practices from a young age and it's definitely a great way to learn how to work out for the rest of your life. My roommate played football as a kid and still has a workout regimen that he developed through jr. high and high school that he utilizes (albeit a little more sparingly) to this day. So if you're not the type to worry about him playing a contact sport and he has some interest, definitely look into it!

Even if you are the type to worry about a contact sport - let him try it. My son is 12 and has played for 5 years... it's been the greatest experience in the world for him! He's learned so much self discipline, teamwork and truly knows what it means to push his body to its limits. I have to laugh though because I never thought I'd be on the sidelines yelling... "HIT SOMEBODY!"

shanerylee

Thanks so much for your comments. The math part he is really into, he keeps logging it in daily on his itouch! He plays flag football, and despite the fact that he loves tackle football, he doesnt want to wear the padding. I have tried to encourage him and I think he has such bad memories from when he played competive lacrosse a few years ago and was overly hot, he doesnt want to have anything to do with it. Although he plays hockey indoors and is padded up and doesnt mind. I have stopped battling and move onto other options. We are looking into kickboxing, and will also do something else. He does a lot of swimming and running at the all day summer camp they go to in the summer, so hopefully that will help in addition to trying follow me to the gym
thanks again for all your pointers.