Chapter 22: Kids, Tweens, and Teens: Fun Activities for the Whole Family ..........
But life can be different with a toddler. Your 2- or 3-year-old feels very grown
up, and she wants to come along with you, at her untimed, relatively unmoti-
vated pace. If you bring her along, you may feel as though your workout will
suffer, but if you leave her at home, you’re missing a tremendous opportunity
to get her hooked on lifelong fitness. What’s a fit parent to do?Bring her along. Although you may decide to supplement with an extra work-
out on your own a few days per week, you can “work out” with your toddler
and still stick to your exercise goals. You just have to change your mindset
about what defines “exercise.” If you’re a runner, what about playing 20 min-
utes of tag, instead, in which you do most of the running around and take
long loops around your yard? If you like to walk, what about alternating ten
minutes of power walking with your toddler in the running stroller with
five minutes of strolling hand-in-hand with your child, and repeating this three
or four times? If you normally do aerobics, what about putting on some
danceable music and cutting a rug with your child?Focusing on fun
Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to help your child decide
how she defines “fun,” and proceed accordingly. Don’t get too tied up in exer-
cise as you may define it — no toddler ever needs to work out on an elliptical
trainer or treadmill. But skipping, hiking, dancing, playing pool games, prac-
ticing gymnastics, playing soccer, and doing a host of other activities keep
kids moving.Avoiding fast food
Recent studies at Children’s Hospital in Boston
found that children consumed enough extra
calories (calories above what they need for
normal growth) during fast-food meals to add
six extra pounds per year. In ten years, that
makes your child 60 pounds overweight! This
study of over 6,000 children also found that kids
who eat fast food also tend to eat more fats and
sugars and fewer fruits and vegetables, than
kids who don’t eat fast food.
Avoid making fast food a family “treat” — you
can do better making healthy choices at a
sit-down restaurant or cooking meals at home.
In fact, toddlers love to help cook meals with
you, and with just a little training from you on
kitchen safety, they can handle a variety of easy
food-preparation chores.When you have to eat fast food, choose grilled
chicken sandwiches, turkey subs with whole-
wheat bread, baked potatoes (with low-fat sour
cream and crunchy veggie toppings), and
salads (minus the cheese).