“If there is anything that we wish to change in the child, we should first examine it and see whether it is not something that could better be changed in ourselves.”

- C.G. Jung, Integration of the Personality, 1939

Have you been ignoring your children’s fitness? If so, you may only be helping to raise yet another generation of overweight, unfit couch potatoes.

Obesity in kids has nearly doubled in the last several years, to almost 16 percent. To stem this growing epidemic we’ve got to get our kids to become more active.

It may be tough to tell junior that he’s packing on the pounds. Odds are, the child already knows that he/she is overweight, has been ridiculed by peers at school, and needs a parent to step in and take action.

Here are some simple, yet effective solutions parents can use right now to help the husky.

1. Be a positive example.

A successful parent is above the old “do as I say, not as I do” credo. He is the child’s first teacher. If daddy works out in the gym, the child will want to look like daddy. Parents need to be a role model — keep in shape and eat healthy — because that’s where kids learn most of their habits.

2. Everything in moderation.

Be conscious as a parent of how many calories your child is eating and balance it with physical activity. It’s not about denial, it’s about balance. For every hour spent in front of the TV, do some form of activity. During commercial breaks, make a contest out of who can do the most push-ups or jumping jacks. You can get almost 10 minutes of exercise in a 30 minute show if you work during the commercial breaks. Its not like you watch them anyways.

3. Smart dining out.

Watching calories while eating out? The good news is that today you have plenty of options! If a restaurant fails to offer a healthy option, don’t be afraid to ask for a vegetable instead of French fries or pasta. Split an entrée with your child, and order a salad on the side. Keep that in mind with dessert, too. It’s okay to want a cookie, but if your child’s going to have one, make sure he/she shares half with a buddy. Half the dessert equals half the calories.

4. Work together.

Engaging in regular physical activity is such an important part of everyone’s overall health, you should make family-oriented fitness a priority. Tell your kids you love them the way they are, but that you need to be healthy together. Start exercising together, go for walks together, and play a part in his/her after-school activities or sports. Support what they’re doing and cheer them on.

5. Beware of beverages.

Water and juice should be a child’s main beverages. But watch out for some juices that pack more sugar than soft drinks. The label should say 100% natural or 100% juice. There is no need for sugar in fruit juice. Also watch children’s soft drink intake, especially while at school. Not only do these beverages contain empty calories (calories that don’t provide any nutrients), but kids who fill up on them don’t get the vitamins and minerals they need from healthy sources, putting them at risk for developing nutritional deficiencies.

6. Ban bad beverages.

Parents can even request that schools deny or cut down on soft drink vending machines present on school grounds. A handful of the America’s largest school districts are establishing new health policies that forbid or restrict carbonated soft drinks sales in public schools, so contact your local school board to find out what can be done.

7. Keep fruits and veggies in the open.

It’s not exactly news and it’s certainly not a secret — our kids should eat more fruits and vegetables (the original fast food). Bury the tempting cookie jar, and put a bowl of fresh fruit in its place from which children can self-serve. Pack a snack bag for the road to avoid resorting to fast food restaurants when the kids are hungry. There should be no excuses for using the drive through for a quick bite to eat to when it takes less than five minutes to eat a piece of fruit.

8. Walk it off.

Meet your child a few bus stops earlier than usual and walk together. Another idea — when you go out with your child, park the car far from the building and walk. Don’t circle to find the closest parking spot: Walking counts as exercise! We waste so much time looking for a closer stop. If we had just taken the far spot to begin with, we’d get inside faster and burn more calories at the same time.

9. Make a substitution.

Cook your usual meals, but play with the ingredients. There is no single way to change a recipe, but making small changes here and there can make big differences nutritionally. Use less butter and oil. Sub in lower fat ingredients like part skim cheese, low fat or skim milk, and lean meats. No one will notice the change if you gradually use healthier ingredients.

10. Portion control.

One reason that kids eat too much at meals is that they tend to eat what is on their plate. Thus, as portions have gone up, so have the calories consumed. Use smaller plates to serve meals, so portions look larger. Order a medium pizza instead of a large. Everyone still gets the same amount of slices, only the slices will be smaller.

For more free healthy eating and activity tips visit We Can!, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services site.

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