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Fitness Programmes for Children
  1. What is Bodyweight Control?
  2. Why should we control bodyweight?
  3. How to define overweight?
  4. How to avoid overweight?
  5. Simple exercise programme
  6. Fitness Training Course for Children
  7. Virtual Class for Simple Exercise Programme
  8. Download Pamphlet of Bodyweight Control for children

  1. How to avoid overweight?

  1. It is the responsibility of parents to control the diet of their children. Various kinds of food should be included in meals.

Graphic: How to avoid overweight?

Drink 6 to 8 glasses of fluid (including water, tea, soup, etc.) every day.

If all your family members follow the above dietary suggestions and make it a habit, this will be the first step to achieve bodyweight control.

  1. Doing appropriate exercise.

    2. Apart from paying attention to one's diet, doing exercise is also important in controlling one's weight. Appropriate exercise can use up one's excessive energy, avoid the accumulation of body fat, and effectively increase the body's metabolic rate. Moreover, it can strengthen the muscles, bones and cardiopulmonary system.

Parents are advised to heed the following guidelines on exercise:

  1. Choose a most suitable time of the day to accompany your children to do exercise.
  2. Choose the most favoured place to do exercise, e.g. a nearby park or fitness centre.
  3. It is very important to choose the right exercise.
Graphic: Jogging
    • The type of exercise chosen must be enjoyable and suitable for your children if they are to stick to it.

    • More than one kind of exercise can be done in a workout.

    • Emphasize that all chances for exercising in our daily lives, such as doing household chores and walking, should be cherished.

    • Emphasize the advantage of exercising the whole body, e.g. walking, long-distance low-speed swimming, cycling.

 

  1. Set achievable exercise targets: do the suggested amount of exercise as follows -

    Type -- the best exercise is walking, to be followed by swimming, cycling, step aerobics or some low to middle-intensity general exercises.
    Intensity -- exercise until the point of mild discomfort, but yet acceptable.
    Duration -- exercise for at least 30 minutes. Beginners can first do exercise in sessions, say, 3 sessions of 10 minutes each.
    Frequency -- 5 to 7 times a week (the importance of exercising every day should be emphasized).
    		Graphic: Set achievable exercise targets
    Note: The above suggested amount of exercise should be maintained for 18 weeks or above if it is to be effective in burning up one's body fat.

  2. Increase the amount of exercise gradually, e.g. suitably increase the walking distance each time.

  3. Encourage parents, other family members or friends to exercise with children.

  4. Parents should seek every opportunity to praise their children as a kind of encouragement for their efforts and progress such as loss of weight, reduction in body fat or an increase in the amount of exercise.

  5. Keep records of each exercise, e.g. the distance walked, time taken, the level of discomfort and energy (calories) consumed so that the results can be used for future comparison to check progress.

  6. The formula for calculating the energy (calories) consumed in walking is:

energy consumed in walking (kcal) = 0.7768 x distance (km) x weight (kg)

(Reference: ACSM (1995) ACSM's Guidelines for Exercise Testing and Prescription. Williams & Wilkins)

 

  1. Remedies for inappropriate habits.

Remedying inappropriate habits aims at establishing a new and positive habit of doing exercise to replace the inappropriate habits on dieting and exercise. The following are some practical suggestions:
1. Parents should set a good example and exercise with their children. For instance, walk for a short distance instead of taking a ride or using escalators (e.g. the escalators in MTR stations). Graphic: Walk for a short distance
2. Know your sentiment. In times of depression, do some exercises such as push-ups, curl-ups, etc. instead of going on the binge, and communicate more with parents and teachers. Graphic: Know your sentiment
3. A balanced diet should be maintained for breakfast, lunch and dinner everyday. There should not be any dietary bias and omission of any meals, and should avoid eating too much. Graphic: A balanced diet should be maintained

4. Parents should dissuade their children from the habit of eating snacks. Some healthy snacks can be chosen for the afternoon tea.

 Graphic: Parent should dissuade their children from the habit of eating snacks.

5. Eat slowly so that you will know when you are full. It also helps digestion.

Graphic: Eat slowly so that you will know when you are full
If parents can guide their children to a proper habit of dieting and doing exercise, and to correct their inappropriate habits, effective weight control will be achieved, with better health and vitality maintained.

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Organized by Co-organized by
Back to LCSD Physical Fitness Association of Hong Kong, China, Ltd
  Assisted by
Health Department Graphic: Prince of Waltes Hospital Department of Physiotherapy

 

 

 
2003| Important notices Last revision date: 5 November, 2012