Weight Loss Camps Today

October 27, 2009 By matt Leave a Comment

For years weight loss camps for kids were filled will teen age boys and girls who were willing to eat sparingly and exercise dutifully for a few weeks in exchange for quick weight loss. These programs were often advertised as “diet camps” and nothing more.

Childhood obesity has increased dramatically in the past twenty years. Children haven’t changed but their eating habits and activity levels have undergone drastic changes. Fast food has become a way of life for many time stressed families and sugar laden drinks are no longer a treat but have become part of the daily diet. Video games and computers have replaced outdoor activities and children are delivered to and from school and activities by car even for distances of a few blocks.

The results of this lifestyle are obvious. Chubby toddlers turn into pudgy kids then become overweight teens and obese young adults. The new weight loss camps are designed to break this cycle. They reject the title “fat camps” and describe their programs as “lifestyle weight loss” or “fitness camps“.

The best weight loss camp for any child is the one where he will become engaged in the process and learn to change his eating habits and his exercise routine in a way that will benefit him long after camp is over. The goal of fitness camp is to teach kids the relationships between eating and exercise. Weight loss is about calories taken in versus calories expended and understanding that relationship is crucial to establishing a healthier lifestyle.

One big advantage of time spent in a fitness focused “fat camp” for kids is the ability to exercise with others who have the same limitations. It’s difficult for an overweight child to keep up with normal weight friends in a typical gym class and often he doesn’t try. In a group of kids with the same weight problems he lives with, the obese child is more likely to expend effort and try to do as much as he can. The fear of being ridiculed or of appearing clumsy is gone and the only competition is with others who are struggling just as he is.

Physical activities are no longer a source of fear and shame. They become real competitions when all participants are well matched. Rude comments and pitying looks are replaced with encouragement and the excitement of other kids cheering you on.

Nothing makes a child feel more self confident than knowing he tried hard and did his best – and it was good enough. A week, a month, or a summer at a weight loss camp will not undo years of overeating and sedentary behavior but it can start an obese child or teen on the path to a healthier future.

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Making Weight Loss a Family Affair – Part II

October 22, 2009 By matt Leave a Comment

Parents who want to help their child lose weight at home before or after the child attends a weight loss camp must often undo problems they (the parent) caused. If they allowed the child to dictate what he ate without restriction it will take time to establish nutritional rules. It may also require the full cooperation of every member of the family. A child who is not allowed to have sweets will feel only frustration if he knows a locked cabinet is filled with sweet snacks that other family members are eating. He feels deprived, unloved and mistreated and will not be able to focus on solving his own weight problem.

The first step to establishing a good diet is to toss out all foods that do not contribute to the nutritional plan for your child. Most of that junk food isn’t healthy for anyone in the family and if necessary can be eaten away from the home. If your overweight child is demanding on a grocery trip, don’t take him with you. Older children might benefit from a grocery buying trip where you explain and compare ingredients and labels (and calories, sugar and sodium).

Establish family meals where healthy foods are served. No one in the family will suffer because food is not fried or sauced. Instead, the entire family will receive positive health benefits from eating a balanced low fat diet. Changing the eating habits of the entire family will provide the overweight child with the greatest chance of success.

Instead of watching television or playing video games with your obese child, go for a walk with him. If you drive your child to school, drop him off at the curb rather than at the front door of the school. Take your child places where walking is required such as a zoo or aquarium. Organize family weekend activities of swimming or camping. Children are easily motivated to participate in a project to “improve our family’s health” but may drag their feet reluctantly when the subject is “you need to lose weight”.

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Childhood Obesity – Making Weight Loss a Family Affair Part I

October 12, 2009 By matt Leave a Comment

Note: This is the first of two articles that discuss the shocking reality of childhood obesity and what parents can do at home to help their children lose weight

Our eating habits are formed in childhood. For this reason, the diet of the entire family is of concern when a child is overweight. The most common scenario is an overweight child with one or more overweight siblings and with at least one parent with weight issues. Trying to solve the child’s weight problem may be an impossible task unless the entire family is willing to participate and change their eating habits and activity levels. Weight loss camps for kids can help your child start his new eating plan.

One problem mentioned as a contributing factor to childhood obesity is that children are often allowed to choose their own foods. Two generations ago, dinner was whatever the parent put on the table. Children might eat more of the foods they liked and smaller portions of less favorite foods but they didn’t choose what was served.

The results of 18,100+ questionnaires sent to families with children showed that 4 of 5 families reported allowing the children to make their own food decisions. The same study also found strong links between children who have healthy eating habits and regular family mealtimes. The more often the family ate meals together as a group, the less likely it was that children in the family were obese.

Other studies have shown children with low self esteem are more likely to become obese but this theory has been challenged by medical professionals who wonder if the obesity was caused by lack of self esteem – or vice versa. Teen weight loss camps take a proactive approach to the link between overeating and self esteem.

What can’t be argued is the explosion of children obesity we’ve seen in the past twenty years. This pattern is not only a burden for those children whose activities are limited by the extra pounds they carry but will be a great burden on health care as these children become obese adult. We’ve already noted increasing numbers of adults suffering from types of diabetes brought on by excess weight.

The worldwide estimation of overweight and obese children is 10%. From 1980 to 2000 the number of obese children in the US tripled. The number has stabilized but 30% of the children in the U.S. Are classified as overweight or obese. This number has brought discussions of weight loss for children to the forefront…

Part II of this article series will be completed next week and will focus on what can be done to help curb childhood obesity.

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