Kids today are spending an unhealthy amount of time in front of TVs and computers, contributing to the fact that 20 percent of children in the U.S. are overweight. Yet, as a parent, it can be difficult to find ways to encourage children to replace tube time with staying fit. In their new book, “Sneaky Fitness,” bestselling author Missy Chase Lapine and personal trainer Larysa Didio offer 100 simple ways to incorporate exercise into kids’ everyday lives—much the same way that Chase Lapine’s bestselling book, “The Sneaky Chef,” helped parents slip spinach into kids’ brownies. The activities include ideas for games, field trips, makebelieve and more that don’t feel like exercise but burn calories, build strength, and most importantly, are lots of fun.
Why should we be “sneaky” when it comes to incorporating healthy changes into our kids’ lives?
Missy: Sneaky is really another way of saying small changes can add up to big benefits.
Why do you think kids today aren’t getting enough exercise?
Larysa: There’s a host of reasons. One is increased schoolwork— kids have probably triple the load now than when we were kids. In addition to that, children spend up to three hours a day either on the computer, playing video games or texting. I also feel that the quality of food that kids are eating causes them to become more lethargic.
Is your book mainly for inactive kids, or do you think all kids need more exercise in their lives?
Missy: It’s absolutely for everyone because studies have shown that even for children and adults who do get in one hour of intensive exercise [each day], they tend to do less the rest of the day. Even more physically active kids can use some creative, fun ways to move. We can always be healthier.
The idea of doing exercise for exercise’s sake can often be a turnoff to a kid. What’s the key to getting them excited about it?
Larysa: Kids always have interests, so you just have to tap into that and figure out what motivates them. For example, if a child only wants to play
video games, I will mimic the exercises in real life and say, “Let’s see
you kick like Kung Fu John!”
Missy: Mostly
what kids crave is fun and our attention, and that’s what this book
gives parents—a way to be with their children by doing activities
together.
What are some of your favorite exercises in the book?
Larysa:
I love making an indoor hopscotch board in the house. What you can
do is either take a water-based marker or masking tape and put that on
the floor in your kitchen or on your way to your child’s room. [Kids]
can’t help it—when you see a hopscotch board, you have to jump.
Do
you have a favorite activity for toddlers? Larysa: We have one for
toddlers called window washer, where you can take shaving cream or
colored crayons, and you let them either color your windows or your
shower doors or tile— they have so much fun drawing pictures—and then
give them a spray bottle and a squeegee to clean it off.
For city
dwellers without a backyard, do you have tips on utilizing public park
spaces?
Larysa: Snow couldn’t be better for fitness, and a lot
of snow activities can alternatively be done outdoors in the sand.
Making snow angels actually takes a lot of core muscles, as does getting
up and down from the snow with a lot of heavy clothing on. What my
daughter does is she makes a snow angel choir; she’ll make 20 or 30 snow
angels, which will take her about an hour to do, and then she pretends
that she is the conductor and she sings in front of all of her angels.
Of
the “Sneaky Fitness” recipes in this book, is there one that has been
most popular with kids?
Missy: I think the Sneaky
S’Mores is probably the most exciting recipe because everybody loves
S’mores, and my decoy method is to put two mini chocolate chips and two
mini marshmallows on top of a cookie—nobody knows that the cookie has
sweet potatoes, carrots, wheat germ, whole grains, and less than half
the fat and sugar of a normal cookie. All they see is the marshmallows
and chocolate chips on top, and they think they’ve won the lottery.
For
more tips, recipes, and activities, visit Sneakychef.com.
