Equipping Your Children with a Lifetime of Healthy Habits; Or, Do As I Do

Every once in a while, a parent will contact me, asking me to run classes for their child’s school/sports team/cohort - you get the idea. Their child is sitting too much and they want them to increase their flexibility and strength. At this point, I ask them if they are interested in participating. Answers vary: some parents are keen to work out with their child, others want nothing to do with the program.

Over time, which children do you think will stick to a program of physical fitness?  It’s not a trick queston, by the way. There’s plenty of research to suggest that setting an example for your children will ensure a lifetime of good habits. In other words: although the expression, “Do as I say, not as I do” may ring true for bad habits; when it comes to healthy habits, it’s “do as I do” all the way.

Take my kids, for example. Every weekday, my husband rises before the crack of dawn to get in his daily gym workout. He’s been doing this for over 25 years. As for me, well, I walked away from a climb up the corporate ladder to retrain in the fitness industry and help older adults maintain their youthful vigour. Before we started our family, the daily treks to the gym were a joint endeavour. It was our way of spending time together before the hectic world of high tech took over for the day. ​

Now that our kids are teenagers, they make their own decisions about activity. And I’m very pleased to say that daily physical activity is a big part of their days. Both of them joined a local gym over the summer. Now that they’re back at school, the schedule has changed, but they’re staying active on their own terms: our son is getting up at the crack of dawn to get in a workout before school - just like his father. And our daughter has asked if she can join her father at the gym every morning.

The great thing about these daily habits is that they’ll translate into healthy behaviour in adulthood. They’ve made the choice of what to do and when, so they’ll be more likely to stick with it.
The list below is an excerpt from an online article about the top 10 tips to help your children develop healthy habits. I pulled out these 4 tips in particular because they ring true for our household. Not purposefully, though, it’s just the way we roll.

1. be a good role model
2. encourage physical activities that they’ll really enjoy
3. make dinnertime a family time
4. make a game of reading food labels

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Reference:
http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/HealthyLiving/HealthyKids/HowtoMakeaHealthyHome/Top-10-Tips-to-Help-Children-Develop-Healthy-Habits_UCM_303805_Article.jsp#.V9c8gDuMmt8

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