Start Your Lifetime of Exercise Early

By Carol Goodrow

Running can be magical. It transforms the dreariest day into a sparkling one.  It makes snowflakes appear as shining stars.  It's romantic, as you move together with nature, sharing an intimate moment. It steals your heart, causing you to gaze out the window, thinking about the run that's yet to come. It's the diamond of many sports, often the part that catches a spectator's eye.  

If you would like your children to embrace running for life, it must mean more to them, and to you, than just speed. Running can be for almost everyone on any day and in any place.  Its pace can follow one's mood, slow for a peaceful experience, moderate for a long hard workout and quick when playing a giddy game of tag.

TALK ABOUT THE BENEFITS

If you want your child to begin to run, first talk about the benefits. Start with the basics: muscle strengthening, heart protection, calorie burning and disease prevention. Educate your child about the negative outcomes of too much time at sedentary activities. According to a study presented at the American College of Sports Medicine Annual Meeting in May 2003,  "...those engaged in vigorous activity are more likely to stay lean, while TV viewing was the behavior most likely to predict weight gain during middle childhood."  

Start with healthy habits early. Amby Burfoot, executive editor of Runner's World magazine, reminds us, "We must begin to teach our kids about good health at a very early age. When we wait longer, as we have for too long, we end up raising kids who are out of shape."

ACCOMPANY YOUR CHILD
Here are two scenarios:

In the first, mom is busy in the kitchen. Her children are fussy and have nothing to do. Mom says, "Why don't you go outside and get some exercise!  You haven't done a thing all day and you're starting to gain weight!"

In the next, mom is busy in the kitchen. Her children are fussy and have nothing to do.  Mom says, "I need a break. Let's put on our running shoes and get outdoors for a mile or two. The exercise will do us good and it'll be fun. Besides, I need all the exercise buddies I can get."

GET THE RIGHT GEAR

For young children, a pair of good-fitting sports shoes is the only essential piece of equipment needed. By the teenage years, children should wear "running" shoes. A local running store should be able to analyze your child's foot type and make suggestions.
Children will do best with comfortable-fitting clothing.   Shorts and T-shirts work for the summer. Then start adding layers in the fall.  When the weather turns cool, hats and mittens are a must.  If you are running in the early morning or late afternoon, reflective clothing should be worn.

DISTANCE

How far you run will depend on your current level of fitness. If you or your children are totally out of shape, start with a 1/4-mile or 1/2-mile walk. Turn it into a run/walk after a few times out.  If you're used to walking, turn your normal walking distance into a walk/run. Walk a little, run a little and walk some more. Increase distance and amount of running gradually. Listen to your body.  Teach your child about pacing, so that your child learns to start out easy and increase pace only when feeling strong.  Kids are used to equating "as fast as you can" with running. This should be reserved for games and short sprints, which you'll want to have fun with after you build a good running base.

SET GOALS

With something to work toward, children will be more eager to run.  Target a kid-friendly local fun run. Work for one of the ribbons on www.kidsrunning.com.

•  Blue Ribbon: The Log-a-Mile distance program offers awards for 25-, 50-, 75- and 100-mile increments.

•  Green Ribbon: Run the Seasons nature program encourages children to record observations after each run.

•  Red Ribbon: The Run to Read and Write literacy program helps children integrate language arts skills with running.

•  Rainbow Ribbon: For the youngest runners, the Kiddie Mile program is for learning to read color words.

CROSS TRAINING

Make it your family's goal to exercise for an hour daily.  Add other exercise to your routine. Try cycling, snowshoeing, hiking, swimming, cross-country skiing, skipping and skating. Keep it noncompetitive and emphasize fun.

EAT THE RIGHT FOOD

In a survey conducted for the National Association for Sport and Physical Education (NASPE), April 2003, it was found that over 50 percent of parents chose the lack of physical activity or sedentary activities as the most important cause for the rise of childhood obesity.  Forty-six percent of parents chose eating habits as the main cause.

To raise a healthy and fit child, both factors come into play.  Subscribe to a health magazine and read the nutritional articles. To educate your children directly, purchase a copy of "Happy Feet, Healthy Food: Your Child's First Journal of Exercise and Healthy Eating," by Carol Goodrow, Breakaway Books.  This illustrated children's book translates the current nutritional trends into easy, child-friendly information to encourage even the youngest children to become healthy eaters.

KEEP A JOURNAL

Runners reflect. Children enjoy recording what they did and how they felt after each run. Keep a journal yourself and encourage your child to do the same. A well-kept diary can turn into a memento for the years to come, the years in which you keep running and running.

Carol Goodrow teaches and runs with second-graders. She is the founding editor of KidsRunning.com and is the author/illustrator of "Happy Feet, Healthy Food," Breakaway Books.