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Losing Weight and Gaining Self Confidence? Not Necessarily…

May 31, 2012 by

In a recent study conducted by Purdue sociology researcher Sarah Mustillo via the National Growth and Health Study it has been revealed that losing weight does not necessarily boost confidence and whether or not it does may depend on your race.

Mustillo analyzed ten years of data on upwards of 2,000 black and white girls.

Mustillo can’t say exactly why the effects of obesity-related stigma lingered for the white girls, but not the black. That’s a subject for future study.

New Image Camps makes self-esteem a top priority and focuses on making self-esteem an essential step in their four step summer teen weight loss camp.

New Image Camps philosophy:

From the moment campers arrive, they are treated with respect and caring
by our highly trained staff who are all devoted to the New Image philosophy:

1. Provide an environment where weight loss is an integral part of the summer camp experience

2. Promote health, wellness, integrity and learning

3. Build self-esteem and lasting friendships

4. Ensure individualized attention that yields results

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Understanding Fitness Camps: What’s In It For Your Child?

September 15, 2010 by

With the rise of obesity in kids, fitness camps such as Camp Pocono Trails become more and more common. Some parents usually feel guilty about sending (or even simply thinking of sending) their kids to fitness camps.  This is because fitness camps usually evoke images of drill sergeants forcing kids to wake up at four in the morning or yelling at them to do fifty pushups. But, in reality, fitness camps are really far cry from the boot camps that we know.

Summer fitness camps of today are venues where overweight or obese children can learn the value of healthy living and healthy eating. What makes this kind of learning unique is that the children or teenagers are inside a structured environment where they do not have to face the pressures and the temptations of everyday life and the real world outside.

The thought of sending your youngster to a fitness camp shouldn’t scare you. Summer camps such as Camp Pocono Trails are beneficial and fun for overweight and obese kids – and it is the fun factor here which is very important. This is also what makes these camps effective. Summer camps offer a variety of activities, and kids have the freedom to choose activities that they want to join in. The scope of most fitness camps for teens includes education, food and fun.

Education entails lessons on nutrition and cooking for campers. The goal of these lessons and classes is to teach teenagers and kids the kinds of foods that are healthy and nutritious. This is also to expose them to different kinds of foods that are delicious and healthy as well, and will also teach them on how to prepare simple snacks and meals that they can enjoy. Teenagers and kids usually return home from fitness camps with a desire to help in cooking or grocery shopping for the home. Kids also become better in their food choices at home and in other places as well.

Summer Fitness Camps also offer good food. They might offer the typical teenage food for sometime (pizza, burgers and chicken), but they will certainly also offer better food choices such as fruits and vegetables. Portions may also be controlled, but teens will usually be taught to make their own decisions as to when they want to stop eating.

Fitness camps for kids and teenagers are also fun. As said, it is the fun factor that makes it really effective, since teenagers or kids would usually love to involve themselves in activities which are fun and entertaining. There will be plenty of activities and games that will call on the teens to be physically active. In fact, your child may want to continue a sport he might have started at fitness camp.

Fitness camps may also have emotional and behavioral therapy, which will help touch emotional aspects of eating. Therapy helps teens get over these past issues, which is very vital for the success of your teenager’s weight loss efforts.

Fitness camps such as Camp Pocono trails also employ staff members who are qualified for the job. There will be nutritionists, nurses and people with educational and psychology backgrounds who will help work with overweight children.

With this, you might be pretty excited about sending your child to a fitness camp. But before doing so, it’s best to check out the summer camp or fitness camp for yourself to make sure that they meet the standards necessary for them to be safe and effective venues for your child.

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Kids’ Weight Loss Camps Like Camp Pocono Trails Help Children Gain Confidence

August 20, 2010 by

Kids weight loss camps such as Camp Pocono Trails continue to become more and more popular as the number of obese children in the United States continues to rise. And there’s no wondering why as recent studies show that nearly one third of the American children population are overweight, and have high risk of becoming obese.
Obesity or excessive weight poses plenty of problems for children.

Type 2 diabetes is becoming increasingly evident in children, and mostly occurs in obese or overweight kids. If your child is overweight or obese, then he faces this danger, as well as other possible health risks as well. With that, more and more parents are slowly sending their children to weight loss summer camps in the hopes of helping their kids become healthier children.

Obese children have a higher risk of developing heart disease over children who are not overweight. A child’s life expectancy may also be lowered by as much as three to five years if he continues to remains overweight. Excess weight of the body causes strain on almost all the organs – and this can be detrimental to your child since his organs and organ systems are still developing. Overweight children may also suffer from liver disease, owing to the extra fat stored in the liver. He may also have an increased risk of brain pressure – which causes headaches or vision problems. Gallstones, acid reflux and other complications of the digestive tract are also more likely to occur.

As a parent, you may find this very alarming. But, this is true and it happens to plenty of children all around the world. But, there are also other dangers caused by obesity that most of us tend to overlook. Over and on top of all these health issues, obesity can also take a toll on the self esteem and confidence of your child.

The world is a cruel place for obese and overweight children – they hear the media obsess on skinny and thin, students and other children in school bully, tease and ridicule them. Even in a school with plenty of overweight children, studies show that it is the obese children that usually get picked on the most. Any child who has to go through these very difficult and demeaning experiences is more likely to suffer from depression; he is also inclined to eat more, causing a very difficult cycle to break out from. External factors can play a role on how your child perceives his or her appearance and self – worth, and this can take a toll on his confidence and self esteem, causing his social skills to suffer.  It’s a difficult and sad thought, but some obese children are even bullied into suicide.

It’s not enough to speak to your child and tell them that you love and care for him despite his weight. While this is a very crucial step in letting him know that you are there for him, your child (with your help) will need to take more action.
One good way to help your child combat obesity is by involving him in kids weight loss camps such as Camp Pocono Trails. Just like typical summer camps or kids camps, weight loss summer camps allow your child to be in a healthy and accepting environment where he can meet friends, get active learn valuable lessons about eating and living healthy. A month or several weeks in weight loss camps like these can be a stepping stone to helping him reverse obesity, giving him the chance to live life as an individual who is healthier and more confident as well.

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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!

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Fat Camp? How the Perception of Overweight Children has Changed

September 30, 2008 by

Years ago, the obese or overweight child faced a lot of scrutiny by their classmates and peers.  Taunting on the playground was sometimes even overlooked by teachers that were ignorant to the plights of these children.  Back then the obese or overweight child stood out, and like any noticeable difference amongst a group, their weight trouble was questioned and looked down on.

In years gone by, overweight children were sometimes sent to a fat camp where they were treated in ways that many parents would find atrocious today.  Their focus was on getting kids to lose weight through an almost drill-sergeant-esque approach.  Their focus was on short term weight loss and much less attention was paid to promoting a holistic healthy approach to living life.

Today with the rise of childhood obesity, more and more children on the playground are in fact overweight or obese.  It’s almost a half and half ratio.  It’s really tough to even say what the average size child is anymore.  As a matter of fact, the flip side are the children on the playground whose parents are so paranoid about their child becoming heavy that they are in fact too thin.

Why do we care about all of this?  Well, if you are a parent of an obese or overweight child, you might take comfort in the fact that your child may not experience the sort of isolation and ridicule that they once did.  As well, you should understand that they may be so comfortable in numbers so to speak, that they don’t see much need to lose weight or grow into their weight.

Ultimately, this boils down to taking a healthy self-empowering approach to childhood obesity.  With the help and guidance of counselors at a weight loss or fitness camp, you can help teach your child about proper weight as it relates to health, not appearance.  Empowering your child to lose weight helps them not only in their weight loss efforts, but also in peer pressure.  When children allow the group to make decisions for them, they aren’t in charge of their lives and are left vulnerable to many potentially harmful situations down the road.

So, while we should be thankful that our children may not experience the same taunting on the playground that obese or overweight kids did when we were young, we need to caution ourselves to take comfort in that totally.  After all, we’re worried about their health, right?  Not their popularity.

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The Scary Truth about Childhood Obesity

September 4, 2008 by

It’s hard to turn on the news or read a paper anymore without hearing something about the obesity crisis in America.  Our poor eating habits and sedentary lifestyles have certainly caught up with us.  Today’s kids are feeling the effects as well.  We have more obese children than we have ever experienced.  Years ago, there used to be one or two larger kids per class.  In today’s world, it’s not unlikely that half of the class will be overweight or obese.

Even though your child is not likely to be singled out as heavy kids once were, that does not take away from the truly scary things about childhood obesity.  Obesity is linked to many, many diseases.  If your child is obese, they are likely to have some fairly unpleasant problems in the future such as:

* Increased risk of cardiovascular disease:  High blood pressure, Atherosclerosis, Myocardial Infarction
* Type II diabetes
* Joint problems such as bad knees and back problems
* Increased risk of  developing certain cancers such as breast and prostate cancer
* Lessened quality of life

It’s important that you help your child now before the health conditions are set in stone.  You need to educate yourself and understand the physical and emotional aspects of obesity.  You need to figure out creative ways of helping your child lose a bit of weight and grow into his or her weight without adding a bunch of pressure.  You need to explore other alternatives such as therapy and fitness camp.   Today’s fitness camps are a far cry from the stigmatized “fat camp” of yesterday.

Obesity is something that can be completely reversed if you are willing to work hard and if you are able to empower your child to work hard.  Adjusting one’s life to lose weight efficiently isn’t an overnight process, but if you commit to it now, you’ll be giving your child a wonderful gift; the gift of good health!

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Hidden Childhood Obesity Factors

August 19, 2008 by

When your child is born, your probably never think that you’ll face obesity issues.  Yet, here you are looking up information on teen weight loss camp and how to help your child lose weight.  What happened?  What went wrong?

It’s a blanket order to say that childhood obesity is because of all the junk food in our society and the sedentary lifestyles that our children lead.  True, but not informative enough.  There are some hidden factors behind this epidemic.

For one, the world is not as safe.  When we were children, we often had the run of the neighborhood.   Past learning to look both ways before crossing the street and adopting safe biking rules, our parents really let us out in the morning, expected us back by lunch and then out again until dinner.  Our kids don’t have that luxury.  Is it any wonder why they have so much "screen" time?  What else are they supposed to do?

Secondly, super-sized, junk food advertising is a huge enemy to us and our children.  The bigger, the better, right?  The next time your child is watching something on television, sit down and write down the types of commercials you view along with your child.  Any commercials for fruit and veggies?  Did the ice cream commercial show a child with a normal sized cone or a huge dripping mass of ice cream larger than the child’s face?

So, what do you do?  We need to find creative ways of offering up that physical activity.  Team sports are great, but let’s face it, they are seasonal and usually take place only a few hours a week.  Arrange "watch" time with other parents in the neighborhood.  Maybe each of you could take a day to oversee the kids playing outside.  Set up safety cones to slow down traffic.

Get your child into a fitness camp where they can play actively all day long, safely with other kids.  Find activities in the house that involve more than sitting:  Dancing, indoor obstacles courses, Wii Fit, active games like Hullabaloo.

As far as the advertising goes, remember that though you can’t control the media, you are still in charge of what your child eats.  Down-size, don’t super-size!  Take them to the produce section and let them pick something new to try each week.  Let them know that fruit doesn’t come from a "fruit-roll ups" box.  Try to eat dinner together as a family at least four times a week.  Children learn what they live more than anything else!  And above all, find creative ways of getting them away from that suggestive television!

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How Parents Ruin a Successful Transition Home from Camp

July 31, 2008 by

Sending your child to a summer weight loss camp was probably a difficult decision.  An entire summer of camp can be expensive and parting with your child can be heart-wrenching.  After such sacrifice on your behalf and that of your child’s, it’s imperative that you help your child transition from the camp experience to normal home life without leaving behind all that they’ve learned.  By understanding the top reasons for failure of this important transition time, you can make sure that you won’t make the same mistakes.

1.  Expecting Too Much

Realize that a child loses weight differently than a grown up.  Because your child is still growing, a lot of weight "loss" is really allowing them to grow into their weight.  The time they’ve spent at summer camp will have a greater long term impact than short term impact.  Your child has probably lost weight while at camp, but don’t expect your child to run through that door at a perfectly healthy weight.  This will take time.

2.  Failing to Change

Your child has just spent the summer learning to eat properly and exercise.  What have you done this summer?  We all make mistakes and obviously, if your child is overweight or obese, there has to be  reason for it.  It can be difficult to assess this sometimes.  We feel badly when we make parenting mistakes and sometimes, we just don’t want to accept fault for yet another thing.  But your child’s future health depends on your ability to learn from your mistakes.

3.  Failing to Provide a Healthy Kitchen

You need to make sure that your kitchen is in good shape for your child’s return.  Get rid of the junk.  Get rid of the refined carb’s such as white breads and pastas.  Replace these items with healthful foods such as veggies, fruits and whole grain carbohydrates.  Replace chips with seeds and nuts.  Replace fattening treats like cookies with healthful sweet alternatives such as fruit.   They’ve learned so much and have been working hard to retrain the way they eat.  Don’t tempt them now with a pantry full of junk.

4.  Being Too Strict

In the same breath as the above advice, make sure you don’t go too far the other direction.  Though you don’t want your child eating crummy foods on a daily basis, it’s okay to have treats now and again.  Hopefully, the camp counselors have done their job and helped your child to CHOOSE better foods, but it’s only natural that we all want something sinfully delicious now and again.

5.  Encouraging Couch Potatoism

We’ve all been guilty a time or two of using the TV, computer or gaming system as a babysitter.  Now’s the time to change all of that.  It’s important that you provide continued activity opportunities for your child.  Some of these activities can come in the form of individual time or time spent on a team or other organized class; however, this is also a good time to get the whole family moving.  Take on an activity with your child.  Maybe it’s a walk after dinner or a run in the morning.  Whatever it is, make sure you make it enjoyable.  Maybe the two of you can chit chat while you walk and catch up on all that you missed while they were at summer weight loss camp.

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What Causes Childhood Obesity?

July 2, 2008 by

Childhood obesity is a medical condition that is characterized by a weight well above the norm for their height and age. Doctors define obesity as having a body mass index well above average. Over 15% of American children are considered obese and the number is growing.

There are a number of factors that contribute to childhood obesity. I’d like to look a bit closer at a few.

Eating Habits

Childhood obesity can result from poor eating habits.  When looking at lunches that children bring to school, instead of being packed with a healthy, balanced meal, many are packed with junk food meal and snack items.  Eating out on a regular basis also contributes to weight gain in children.  Children that eat meals at home with the family (all sitting down to eat together) typically weigh less than children whose families eat out several times a week.

Physical Activity

Physical activity is a great factor when it comes to overweight children.  If a child sits around watching TV, playing video games and munching, they are more likely to be obese.  On the other hand when a child gets at least 30 minutes of exercise each day they will be less likely to be overweight.

Biological Factors

A child’s weight is also affected by genetics. Many overweight children have a mother and/or father that struggle to maintain a healthy weight.  Genetic factors such as metabolism may impact a child’s inability to lose weight, but frequently children of overweight parents gain weight simply because their parents are poor role models.  Many children look to their parents for the “right thing to do.”  If a child is raised in a house where healthy eating and exercise are not promoted, it should be no surprise if the child grows up eating unhealthy food and not getting enough exercise.

Lack of Sleep

Believe it or not, lack of sleep is another contributing factor in obese children. Previously this was believed in adults but recent studies have shown that this is also true in children as well. Infants and toddlers that get fewer than 12 hours of sleep are more likely to gain weight.

There are a lot of things that contribute to childhood obesity.  At Camp Pocono Trails, we do our part to provide as many chances as possible to live a healthy lifestyle.  You may have seen us on MTV’s "Return to Fat Camp" where we demonstrated our commitment to help overweight children learn how to eat healthy, be more active, and feel better about themselves.

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