Healthy Living Includes Physical Activity

The key to sustaining a healthy lifestyle is to have a healthy metabolism. The two most important elements toward building a healthy metabolism are healthy eating and physical fitness activities. It's never too early to teach this to your children; the earlier you start, the more of a chance you have to help them develop the attitude that diet and exercise are essential components of a healthy life.

The most common obstacles you face in getting your kids more active are the television, the Internet, and video games. To combat these tempting technologies, it's a good idea to institute "screen time" rules in your house. What does "screen time" mean? It refers to time spent sitting or lying down in front of a monitor or screen of any type, whether television, video game, or computer. Try to set a reasonable limit to the amount of screen time your children get each day. A child's screen time should be less on weekdays and a little more on weekends. Not taking away but simply limiting screen time is an important concept similar to not taking away but limiting certain types of foods to special occasions. Limiting screen time will go far toward getting your kids back onto the playground where they can run, play, and increase their metabolic rates through physical fitness activities.

More on: Healthy Kids

Excerpted from:

From Raising Healthy Eaters: 100 Tips for Parents by Henry Legere, M.D. Copyright © 2004. Used by arrangement with The Perseus Books Group.

To order this book visit perseusbooksgroup.com.