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Does School-Based Fitness Fade Over the Summer?

I’ve made my feelings known on the P.E. requirements at schools and how I think they need to be higher. I’ve also made it clear that it’s just as much a parent’s responsibility, if not more, than a school’s to see that their child’s fitness needs are met. Even if you can’t afford to send them to classes, there are a number of free offerings available over the summer from community centers and more – and taking your kids out for walks and bike rides doesn’t cost you much more than some time. So when studies find that school based fitness fades over the summer, you have to wonder – who’s fault is that?

Texas Heat

In Texas, I know that we don’t spend a lot of time outdoors in the afternoons in Texas, but when the temperatures soar up to over a 100, we don’t want to be outside unless we’re in the swimming pool. We tend to reserve our pool visits for mornings and evenings (when it’s hovering around 80 or 90). So what are our other options?

Unfortunately, the days of sending our kids outdoors to play all they want without parents standing out there to watch them are gone. The simple fact is that reduced physical activity is a part of our kids’ natural environments. When I was a kid, I’d head out the door at 7 a.m. and likely pop back in around 10 or 11 to eat and then back off to play until dinner when I had to take a bath. But it was a different world then and the predators of our childhood didn’t seem to haunt my path.

Having kids home all day from school, with limited physical activities can lead to a caloric imbalance – in other words, they consume a lot of calories without burning a lot. This can create a situation where they have insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes, hypertension, weak cardiovascular fitness and obesity.

If your child’s only exercise outlet came from their physical education classes at school, take a good look at your home life and make some corrections that will encourage regular physical activity for you and your kids. Our schools cannot be our children’s parents and I have read numerous articles where legislation is being sought by some groups to protect our children from this lack of physical activity – but this isn’t a legislative issue, this is a parental one.

What can you do with your kids this summer to encourage their physical activity?

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This entry was posted in Children's Fitness and tagged , , , , by Heather Long. Bookmark the permalink.

About Heather Long

Heather Long is 35 years old and currently lives in Wylie, Texas. She has been a freelance writer for six years. Her husband and she met while working together at America Online over ten years ago. They have a beautiful daughter who just turned five years old. She is learning to read and preparing for kindergarten in the fall. An author of more than 300 articles and 500+ web copy pieces, Heather has also written three books as a ghostwriter. Empty Canoe Publishing accepted a novel of her own. A former horse breeder, Heather used to get most of her exercise outside. In late 2004, early 2005 Heather started studying fitness full time in order to get herself back into shape. Heather worked with a personal trainer for six months and works out regularly. She enjoys shaking up her routine and checking out new exercises. Her current favorites are the treadmill (she walks up to 90 minutes daily) and doing yoga for stretching. She also performs strength training two to three times a week. Her goals include performing in a marathon such as the Walk for Breast Cancer Awareness or Team in Training for Lymphoma research. She enjoys sharing her knowledge and experience through the fitness and marriage blogs.