Healthy Kids Need Healthy Examples
Chris Jennings / Herald Democrat

One of my goals as a parent has always been to be able to keep up with my kids, and to set an example for them. No doubt most of you have seen reports that say our nations youth are in the worst shape ever.

Lots of people are quick to blame the fast food restaurants, and any number of other sources of unhealthy food or activities. On a recent trip through my grocery store though I think I saw the root of the problem as overweight and out of shape kids walked through the store with their overweight and out of shape parents.

A study on youth done by the University of South Carolina found that "Approximately one third of males and females ... failed to meet current standards of acceptable cardiorespiratory endurance." In plain English they were out of shape, in about a 15 minute period that included two minutes each of warm up and cool down. They could not endure the physical activity "The findings of this study suggest that youth who have high body mass index (a measure of weight), low levels of physical activity and high levels of sedentary behavior are likely to have low cardiorespiratory fitness," it added.

In my opinion the biggest problem with all these surveys though is that they will all say pretty much the same thing, tell you to eat less junk, and get out and exercise. That's all fine and good but for someone who has had no role model to teach them how to exercise or to eat right it's hard to get that motivation.

So I've taken it upon myself to help you and your kids. I've found a couple of links for websites that encourage you to get out and do more and how to gauge a little better what your eating. The first one give you tips on what to do and even let you log your activity and keep track of it online. go to www.presidentschallenge.org and surf around a bit. This site has an active lifestyles program that encourages you to get active and stick with it. If your already active it has a more challenging program available also. The program helps you set realistic goals and encourages fitness for a lifetime.

The program gives you over 100 preselected activities ranging from running and cycling to badminton, baton twirling and trampoline jumping. The site also offers performance awards that recognize your commitment and ability to stick with it.

You may recognize the presidential challenge from your school days. That's great and even if your kids participate in this in school it might be a good idea to do it at home as well. That way mom and dad can get involved and set an example.

The other major problem we have is the portion size we are offered in foods. It has been reported numerous times that Americans in general are eating larger portions. This can partly be blamed on food manufacturers across the board offering bigger portions and super size options.

Awareness is the first step. According to the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, which posts information on portion education, sizes have changed dramatically in the past 20 years. A typical bagel, for instance, has grown from 3 inches in diameter to 6, with calories climbing from 140 to 350. A cheeseburger 20 years ago had about 333 calories; today, it is likely to have 590. And a serving of soda 20 years ago was typically 6.5 ounces with 85 calories, but today it's often 20 ounces with 250 calories.

So how do you control your portions? Most people are not going to drag out the kitchen scale to measure their meals so here are some general guidelines from the American Dietetic Association. A cup of salad greens is about the size of a baseball. A teaspoon of margarine is about as big as one dice.

Two tablespoons of peanut butter are about the size of a ping pong ball. And a 3-ounce serving of meat, fish or poultry is about the size of a deck of cards. And it's not one of those giant decks of cars that you get at the everything is bigger in Texas gift shop.

Some other tips? Use a smaller plate. If your stacking food on top of food you probably have to much. Reduce the size of your meals and snack all day long on healthy foods. A couple of glasses of water after dinner will curb late night hunger.