Summary: Kids are less fit now than they were decades earlier. They can't run as fast (in a set distance) or as far (in a set time) as those in previous generations. But researchers say parents can help kids build smart cardiovascular fitness habits now that will keep them healthy today and in the future.
By Nancy Josephson Liff | Posted: November 21, 2013
Meet the new couch potato generation — kids who are techy and electronically connected.
World wide, they are also less fit than kids in their parent's generation. That's the finding of a new report on kids and running fitness.
Researchers recently reviewed 50 studies on running fitness conducted from 1964 and 2010. The studies involved more than 25 million children, ages 9 to 17, in 28 countries. Investigators presented their findings at the American Heart Association's Scientific Sessions 2013 in Dallas.
According to lead study author Grant Tomkinson, Ph.D., senior lecturer at the University of South Australia's School of Health Sciences, studies indicate that around the world endurance has declined by about five percent each decade. In the United States, kids' cardio endurance performance declined about six percent per decade between 1970 and 2000.
The Australian study is significant because it is the first to show that kids' cardiovascular fitness declined around the world over a 46-year period. But it is also important in light of what scientists understand about exercise, kids, and growing up healthy. It's one thing for a kid to be strong or agile. But that's totally different from a kid having cardiovascular endurance. According to the Australian study, in a one-mile run, kids in the couch potato generation are a full minute-and-a-half slower than boys and girls who were the same age 30 years earlier. Changes were similar for boys and girls, and younger and older children.
Clearly, you don't need to be a scientific investigator to understand the potentially serious consequences here. In a release, lead study author Tomkinson said, "If a young person is generally unfit now, then they are more likely to develop conditions like heart disease later in life." What researchers want to see for heart health is a kid exercising aerobically and vigorously for a long period. (Think running track around an oval.)
Unfortunately, we all know it can be hard to get that little couch potato off the sofa — and away from the computer. But experts recommend parental intervention anyway.
Ideally, school age kids should engage in at least 60 minutes of daily activities that use the body's large muscles for running, swimming, or cycling. With toddlers, aim for 30 minutes.
So what can you do to encourage cardiovascular endurance?
For one thing, accept the notion that it's never too early to start moving.
Also, if you have a toddler, try to aim for a half-hour of structured exercise a day. Find an age-appropriate activity, such as tag or kickball, and join your kids as they run around the grass or in the driveway. Walk along with your tikes while they tool around the neighborhood on tricycle. Build in time for free play that's also active. Shoot for at least an hour of unstructured exercise in your own backyard, a park or playground.
Do you think kids are less fit now than you were when you were younger? What do you do to keep your kids aerobically fit and active?
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