how to motivate kid to be active?

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EmilyMarieMo
EmilyMarieMo Posts: 67 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I have a 5 year old that wants nothing to do with exercise. She plays outside for 10-15 mins and then she's DONE! She doesn't want to sweat or do anything that can get her breathing up! Other kids playing doesn't motivate her to want to participate for longer even though she's a very "social" kid! She's not shy and loves interaction. I have her in dance and in tee ball and plan on putting her on a swim team this summer for the first time. She's not overweight at all, but I just want her to develop HEALTHY desires to be active in her life.

Yet, I get literal tears from her and whining that she's tired, doesn't want to do it for very long (she's FINE and happy for the first 15 mins or so of high energy activity!), she can't breathe, it makes her sweat and she doesn't like it, and that she even goes as far to say it makes her back or legs hurt!

I can PROMISE you my child is healthy in all the other possible underlying areas. I know this all boils down to motivation and desire to push herself past her comfort level when it comes to physical activity!!! My husband and I aim to be good examples by being active ourselves, and we encourage her that it is good and healthy to sweat and work hard even if it makes you breath harder. Has anyone else experienced this with their kid and found a way to motivate them to the point of them WANTING to do it?? Not just forcing them to do it!!!
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Replies

  • Clhumpal
    Clhumpal Posts: 38 Member
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    Swim team is GREAT exercise! I loved it as a kid - great social interaction, but you are competing as an individual - my kids love taking out their old ribbons from meets and comparing their latest times to see how much faster they have gotten - my oldest is a book-worm, and would rather sit in a corner and read than go outside to play, but she has done great in swim team (her grade in PE went up this semester, which I partially attribute to the workouts she is getting in practice).

    I think if you keep doing what you're doing, and keep her involved in a variety of activities, as she gets older, she may find one that 'sticks'

    *my oldest is 9, by the way, and has ALWAYS whined when she was sweaty.... hates effort of any kind, but last Saturday when basketball was over, she was breathing a little heavy from running, and SMILING when she wiped her sweaty forehead on my shirt - she was pretty proud of her hard work - she'll find something she LOVES and then the sweat and sore muscles will be worth it :)
  • leilaphoenix
    leilaphoenix Posts: 839 Member
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    Asthma?
  • sammys1girly
    sammys1girly Posts: 1,045 Member
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    If you can spend time playing with her, kicking or throwing a ball, playing tag in the yard, etc..., it won't even seem like effort to her, it will be a fun time spend with daddy or mommy! My kids are allowed a very limited amount of "screen time" and have to learn to keep themselves busy in other ways. Some kids are more naturally active than others (my 2 sons are non-stop!), but being as involved and playing with them encourages them to keep moving.
  • Im_NotPerfect
    Im_NotPerfect Posts: 2,181 Member
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    Anxious to read replys to this. My 6.5 year old son is the same way. Although I will say once he's out there and active, he's good to go. It's getting him OUT there and giving him the push he needs to do it!
  • MaryB2
    MaryB2 Posts: 331 Member
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    Maybe you should take her to the doctor to make sure there are no health reasons why she would be hurting with being active.
  • vim_n_vigor
    vim_n_vigor Posts: 4,089 Member
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    At 5, she shouldn't have to work out to the point of breathing hard. Some kids will, sure. She should be having fun playing and getting her activity that way, not because she is being forced into activities. When my kids hit growth spurts too, they tend to be less active and complain about more aches and pains. I just provide environments for them to play and be active and limit sedentary activities like tv and video games.
  • MaryB2
    MaryB2 Posts: 331 Member
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    Asthma?

    I was thinking that, I have exercise induced asthma and it makes being active uncomfortable.
  • TS65
    TS65 Posts: 1,024 Member
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    I think it's just a matter of finding what your kid WANTS to do. My son is 9 and we're still trying to find something he loves. He hated football because of the running as punishment, but has mentioned he wants to look into track. Go figure.

    What about gymnastics or different types of dance (ballet, tap, etc.) - she'll breathe hard and sweat but it's also LOTS of fun.
  • MB_Positif
    MB_Positif Posts: 8,897 Member
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    15 minutes is pretty good for that age honestly. Their attention span is short. She's just done when she starts complaining. My son played soccer this year which really keeps them moving. One of the few things where he didn't use the hurting legs excuse.

    Edit: my son is 6 1/2
  • Capt_Apollo
    Capt_Apollo Posts: 9,026 Member
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    kids that age don't hold themselves back. they run, jump, and climb at full sprint speed.

    when she starts getting tired, tell her to take a little break and give her some water or orange juice.
  • Fitness4Paul
    Fitness4Paul Posts: 166 Member
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    She's a touch young but if you have an iphone or ipod touch there is and app called Striiv that allows them to earn points to build a little virtual world. You get the point through activity. My 9 year old has been running up and down the stairs in the morning and asking me to go for walks at night since I set this up for him in December. My 6 year old has it on his ipod and has an interest but not as much as my older son. I'd say don't push her too much as it might just turn her off. Just try to make it fun. Play hide and seek with her. This is a great site for info that might help you.

    http://www.participaction.com/get-moving/bring-back-play/
  • Yaxomoxay
    Yaxomoxay Posts: 25 Member
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    Put her in a class, of any kind. She will be "forced" to do at least 60mins activity a day. In addition she will feel more energetic.
    There are various options, from gyms designed toward kids to Martial Arts, dancing lessons etc.
    At first she might resists a bit, but then it should become "routine" quite easily at that age.
    Worked with our two kids with Martial Arts (my 11yo started at 5, became a black belt this year. Used to go every day! My 6yo son started last year. In addition they do some fitness Boxing).

    EDIT: why does she complain about feeling tired and unable to breath? you say she's healthy, so the answer is simple: she knows you care. And you care a lot. She knows that if she is bleeding a bit you will run to help her. She knows that you can't stand to see her "suffering". It's psychological warfare!! :)
  • cleotherio
    cleotherio Posts: 712 Member
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    My kids are sort of like that. We tried soccer; they just don't have the "killer instinct" to want to run full speed and be faster than everyone else. My son has been doing Tae Kwon Do for a few years. I think it's a good fit for him. It's active with a variety of exercises, but not competitive the way contact sports are. The classes are usually broken up into segments, so kids don't get bored. They do a lot of stuff like obstacle courses and games that incorporate the moves they're learning.
  • Chief_Rocka
    Chief_Rocka Posts: 4,710 Member
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    Yet, I get literal tears from her and whining that she's tired, doesn't want to do it for very long (she's FINE and happy for the first 15 mins or so of high energy activity!), she can't breathe, it makes her sweat and she doesn't like it, and that she even goes as far to say it makes her back or legs hurt!

    She's 5. Maybe she *is* tired.
  • MaryB2
    MaryB2 Posts: 331 Member
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    Yet, I get literal tears from her and whining that she's tired, doesn't want to do it for very long (she's FINE and happy for the first 15 mins or so of high energy activity!), she can't breathe, it makes her sweat and she doesn't like it, and that she even goes as far to say it makes her back or legs hurt!

    She's 5. Maybe she *is* tired.

    Best answer yet!!
  • Martucha123
    Martucha123 Posts: 1,093 Member
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    Asthma?

    I was thinking that, I have exercise induced asthma and it makes being active uncomfortable.

    another vote for checking if she has asthma
  • No_Finish_Line
    No_Finish_Line Posts: 3,662 Member
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    idk, she sounds pretty active to me. Honestly don't see what the issue is here.
  • BeachGingerOnTheRocks
    BeachGingerOnTheRocks Posts: 3,927 Member
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    Yet, I get literal tears from her and whining that she's tired, doesn't want to do it for very long (she's FINE and happy for the first 15 mins or so of high energy activity!), she can't breathe, it makes her sweat and she doesn't like it, and that she even goes as far to say it makes her back or legs hurt!

    She's 5. Maybe she *is* tired.

    My whiney seven-year old is like this child. I had to force her to move, and she'd tell me she was tired, didn't want to, something hurt, etc. Truth is, she was bored. We tried ballet. Her ballet teacher said she had the most raw talent she had seen in ages, but she wouldn't listen and complained, so because she was ruining it for the other girls, we pulled her out. Then I tried a different after-school program that failed for the same reason. Then we tried beach walking, but she cried after 10 minutes saying her legs hurt or she was tired. Then tried swimming, but all she wanted to do was sit in the hot tub.

    So what finally got her going? MMA 5 days a week, 90 minutes a day. This worked! She's good at it. It's tougher than anything else we've tried, and she doesn't complain about getting hurt, and this is a lot rougher than ballet, that's for sure.

    You just need to figure out what interests her and encourage that with everything you got.
  • krissy_krossy
    krissy_krossy Posts: 307 Member
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    Asthma?

    I was thinking this too. I have exercise-induced asthma that got so bad in high school that it took me to the hospital twice and had to sit out for most of PE or at least have it modified (walk laps on my own/while others were swimming just pull myself along the wall/ etc.)

    Or maybe the playing for the first few min is sort of vigorous and, though she's not overweight she's out of shape? I've been out of shape my whole life. I was that 100 lb. 17 year old getting out of breath from a flight of stairs.
  • OkieTink
    OkieTink Posts: 285 Member
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    I have her in dance and in tee ball and plan on putting her on a swim team this summer for the first time. She's not overweight at all, but I just want her to develop HEALTHY desires to be active in her life.

    Be active with her, don't just drive her to various lessons where you sit and watch. Play kickball. Play softball. Ride bikes. You need to sweat right along with her.

    Yet, I get literal tears from her and whining that she's tired, doesn't want to do it for very long (she's FINE and happy for the first 15 mins or so of high energy activity!), she can't breathe, it makes her sweat and she doesn't like it, and that she even goes as far to say it makes her back or legs hurt!

    Have you had a Doctor rule out that there isn't a reason she says that she hurts?

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