Parent Resources

Camper Resources

Our Blog

Contact Us


How can an obese child lose weight?

January 20, 2012 by

We’re all aware that childhood obesity is a growing problem, as obesity rates among children and adolescents have nearly tripled since 1980.

What’s causing this increase in obesity rates? Obesity has many different causes. Some of the causes are:

  • Lack of physical activity or sedentary lifestyle
  • Too much fat in the diet
  • Too much sugar in the diet
  • Family genetics

With those causes in mind, here are a few tips that can help obese children lose weight and help children with healthy weights stay there:

  • Find a “stopper”. A stopper is an activity that is incompatible with eating. Examples are chewing gum, playing outside, running, or doing house cleaning.
  • Make lifestyle changes as a family. Get rid of high-fat, high-sugar or salty snacks in your home to avoid temptation for your kids.
  • Drink plenty of water. Set an example for your kids. Water is healthy, and can keep you full so you don’t want to eat as much.
  • Exercise as a family. Go for a bike ride, play tennis, go swimming, or just go for a long walk as a family.
  • Find a weight-loss camp for kids that focuses on fun exercise opportunities, long-term success and lifelong friendships, such as Camp Pocono Trails.

More tips on helping obese children lose weight.

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: , , ,

Break the Vicious Cycle with Fitness Camps for Kids

April 21, 2009 by

Did you get your cardio in today? How about strength training? What was your most active thing you performed today? If you are into exercise, then fantastic, but the obesity and overweight numbers in our country would indicate that most of us do not exercise often enough. Our sedentary lives born out of modern convenience have created quite a few health problems for many of us.

As the saying goes, “children learn what they live” so if Mom or Dad do not approach fitness as a daily necessity, chance are the children do not either. It’s probably hard for some people to picture a child “working out,” and we rely on the exercise they get while playing to counteract all the sweets and otherwise sedentary activities.

The older our children get, the less they “play hard” especially if they are girls. This certainly isn’t always true, especially for athletically active kids. However, if you are relying on a few games and an occasional sports practice to offer your child all the exercise he or she needs, this may not be enough.

Sports are great and playing outside is great; but if you want to foster daily fitness that your child will take with them long into their adult years, then you need to make it as much of a habit as brushing their teeth. This might be difficult if you don’t already exercise, but now might be a good time to get the whole family in shape. You might consider one of our weight loss camps for kids this summer or over the next break to help, but you can get started right now!

Make it fun, but make it purposeful. If you can keep up a game of tag or football at the park for 30 minutes, then that might be an idea. Keep in mind that your child needs to develop the skills necessary to perform exercise without having others around. If your child is old enough, you might consider purchasing a used treadmill. If that’s not in the budget, then buy a $3.00 jump rope. A trampoline is rather expensive, but it might be a good family gift for the next holiday.

A fitness camp for kids is a great way to foster a healthy lifestyle. Your child will have loads of fun and will bring home tons of new activities and exercises; some of which you might just enjoy doing!

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: , , ,

Screen Time Solutions for Parents with Overweight or Obese Children

December 22, 2008 by

A lot of today’s weight troubles among our youth can be attributed large in part to the growing number of sedentary activities available.  Years ago, we never had so many choices of “screens” to entertain us:  computers, satellite TV, TIVO, video games galore and handheld personal video games.

You know as well as I do that we cannot turn back the clock.  We can’t expect our children to not want or desire these games.  The reality is that we simply need to set up limitations and a system to ensure that they get plenty of exercise along with their screen time.  Here are some ideas of how you can do that:

1.  Set up screen-time reward tickets

For every 15 minutes of exercise they perform, they get 30 minutes of screen time.  This is something that they will perceive as a great deal because they get more for less.  Most kids will see that if they do 30 minutes of cardiovascular exercise (running, jumping rope, riding their bike etc.) that they’ll end up with an entire hour of their favorite screen activity.  And, you’ll be sneaking in that ever important 30 minutes of necessary activity in order to promote weight loss.

2.  Buy a Wii and Wii Fit

Screen time doesn’t have to be inactive anymore.  Wii Fit has provided a fun outlet for kids that incorporates the best of both worlds.  They get to set up their “Mii” which is a virtual image used on the screen to represent your child.  An initial weight is taken as well as other fitness assessments such as BMI and balance.  As your child sets up their own personal fitness program, they get to track their progress.

3.  Provide Other Activities

Hey, the screens are tough competition, but your child still enjoys other activities.  Fitness camps are absolutely fantastic for kids.  They are a lot of fun and they’ll help your child develop a fitness plan that they’ll continue long after the camp is over.  As well, make a point to get the whole family out and about on a daily basis.  This could be a game at the park, walking the dog together or even having a silly yet fun, active obstacle course in the backyard!

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: , , ,