Do What I Say, Not What I Do-Wrong!!!

Hey all, I just want to take a bit of time to chat about health and fitness, and how it relates to children. Here's the thing, children are going to model their behavior after what they see, especially in relation to their parents and other siblings. Additionally, the correlation between adopting a healthy lifestyle when young, and exhibiting the same behaviors as one ages, is very strong. So what am I getting at? It is very important, very important, that we combat this terrible trend of childhood obesity. We cannot solely depend on schools (when I was a kid we had gym class every day, now it's once or twice per week). The real action is at home. As parents, it's important that we portray the type of behavior that we'd like to instill in our children. Children look up to their parents, and thus will model their behavior accordingly. So if you want to see your son or daughter eat a healthy diet, you should be eating a healthy diet. If you want to see them exercising regularly, you should be exercising regularly. Children are more perceptive than we give them credit for, they are like sponges looking for stimuli to absorb. Provide a healthy environment for your children. Encourage good eating habits, education on the bad ones, and communicate with them. Finally, most of all, set a good example by adopting the behaviors yourself.