Help for Overweight Teens Who Maybe Can't Afford Residential Programs

Residential school programs for overweight teens (some in excess of five thousand dollars a month) are becoming popular but there are other options. These schools provide a reduced calorie eating plan plus increased activity (sound familiar) in a safe environment. I'm glad someone is making an effort, but five thousand dollars a month! Yikes. You could hire a personal trainer and nutritionist plus my program for far less than that. Hopefully these schools offer counseling, but it isn't likely to go beyond the advice which simply does not work. People, young and old need something more such as actual techniques and exercises they can use to deal with the reasons they prefer to eat processed foods, and why they don't enjoy physical movemint. It's not about the food. It's what's going on inside your head.

I tried to find stories of teens who had successfully completed these programs and what I did find instead were other options, in case you feel you are at the end of your rope and don't know where to turn.

Get Your Kids Up and Moving

Find an exercise activity your kids would love. Most overweight kids probably aren't too crazy about the idea of running and jumping but what about bike riding? Or hiking with a GPS (Global Positioning Satellite) is enormous fun and anyone can do it. Adults are reporting losing 20, 30 or more pounds while they are out exploring the woods and hills in their surrounding area. An added bonus is that learning to use a GPS is educational too (math, science, physics, geography).

Martial arts is an excellent activity for kids of all ages. It helps with much more than just physical fitness teaching kids discipline, honor, and self defense. Nothing builds self-esteem faster than knowing you can take care of yourself in any situation.

Talk to your kids. Find out what they may be interested in, and then explore the options together.

My son is a good example. He was never overweight but I noticed when he was about 13 that his skin tone was flabby. He didn't go outside much, preferring to play Nintendo, and he was an excellent student so he studied every day. I wondered if I should do something to encourage him to go outside and play, but I knew he'd just say no thanks.

Luckily neighborhood kids invited him to start playing football, and today, five years later he's a senior in high school playing varsity football and loving life. In school he had weight lifting as a physical education class for two years (wish we'd had that choice when I was in school). He also had a class that had the kids each bring in some labels from home, and then went on to explain how to read and use labels. After that he started telling me how many grams of sugar were in a soft drink and he started to drink them less too. His body has shaped up nicely (he's still a young teen but now has muscles and an excellent skin tone). He's confident, well liked, and I have no worries that he'll continue with a healthier lifestyle from this point forward.

Before he took up football we bought him a bike which was rarely used. He has a skateboard, and a motorized scooter, pogo stick. He took a year of Karate but then he broke his wrist on the playground at school and when it had healed he didn't want to go back. I couldn't see any reason to force him so that was the end of martial arts for him. If the neighborhood kids hadn't asked him to join their play, I don't know what he might have done, but I do know he was likely to find some sport or activity as his father still runs regularly at 72-years old, his grandfather and great grandfather are both in the Linfield College Hall of Fame, his sister achieved pre-qualification for the Olympics in track ... and I could go on.

Sports and physical fitness seems to be in his blood, but it didn't just happen. Without someone to encourage the kids to go out and toss a ball around or get on their bikes, it's easy for them to end up watching TV or sitting on their computer. Yet, even if you don't have woods or forests nearby for hiking, and you can't ride bikes where you live, or you have other limitations, there are physical activity games for the computer now. I've talked before about DDR (Dance Dance Revolution), a computer game that kids (and adults) are playing with an added benefit of losing weight in the process.

Sometimes it takes awhile to find the right fit, but nearly everyone will feel better when they find a physical activity they like.

Finding Indoor Activities in Your Area

If you live in the city, get out the phone book and/or search the Internet for indoor activities in your town. Here are a few for my area (Vancouver, Washington) using the search words: indoor sports vancouver washington

Vancouver Indoor Sports which offers programs for adults and children.

Books on Sports for Kids: You might also read up on the subject in books on sports for kids

The Ultimate Sport Lead-Up Game Book: Over 170 Fun & Easy-To-Use Games To Help You Teach Children Beginning Sport Skills

Learn Geocaching

Finding something your kids would enjoy that keeps them active is all it takes, and if they are reluctant, I can tell you once the blood starts pumping they'll get jazzed. It feels great to be alive. Remember, any hobby helps. Keeping yourself busy with something you're truly interested is what is needed to get off the couch with a bowl of food in your lap!