Your Mind Your Body

We know Dads are important for many reasons, but they can serve a vital role in helping families become and stay healthy. This might seem like a given to those dads who have coached a tee-ball team or the ones who play outside with their kids.

But health goes beyond athletics and sports.  Good health is overall well-being, which includes good nutrition, adequate activity and exercise, and good emotional, social, and intellectual skills.

Some children are not natural athletes, do not want to participate in organized sports and cringe at the word “exercise.” But there are ways to motivate your kids and teens to be more active and like it.

Firstly, dads need to know how important they are to a kid. They play a vital role in developing a child’s sense of self-worth and confidence. Secondly, dads are role models. Children really do look up to their parents as role models, whether Mom and Dad like it or not.

Father’s Day weekend is a great time to provide dads ideas for motivating their children to be active and promoting health every day of the year. Here are just a few to get you started today.

Teach your child a new skill. I still remember my dad teaching me to bait my own fish hook and repair the line when it got hung up in a tree at our local pond. I am proud to say I went out in an intertube with my tackle box and cutoff jean shorts to fish closer to the trees.  Start with small tasks that are useful. By helping out and doing these things, kids spend less time in sedentary activities like watching TV. It’s not just their physical health that benefits — the kids also learn to self-disipline and a sense of responsibility.

Create a family challenge. Come up with a goal each week as a family. Support each other and work together to meet the goal. Some ideas are reducing overall family TV time for the week or tracking the number of chores each person does daily. Be sure to reward your family when you reach the goal. Obviously, it should be a health-promoting award, perhaps a day at a nearby park, lake or other fun physical activity.

Emphasize what your child is doing well without overfocusing on what could be done better. Positive reinforcement is often more motivating than punishment.  You know how challenging it can be to make a change. It’s just as tough for kids. You may have heard the phrase…accentuate the positive, eliminate the negative. Give your child a CAN-DO attitude!

Dads who are good role-models, get their families moving, and encourage their children to engage in behaviors that strengthen their mind and body health will also reap great benefits. Just ask my dad–I learned a lot from him.

Photo by laurenfarmer via flickr

Filed under: Children, Lifestyle & Behaviors, Parenting