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Get moving! Exercises that help overweight kids lose weight fast

Excess body weight is a problem faced by many children now-a-days. Sedentary lifestyle, lack of physical exercises and less involvement in outdoor activities are the prime reasons behind this weight accumulation in the bodies of the children. Coupled with this is the consumption of junk food which further aggravates the scenario. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, children should be involved in one hour of physical activity every day. Exercising on heavy machines can be complicated and dangerous for children. Therefore, exercises which are simple yet fun-filled can be practiced to help the children lose weight and also to keep them hooked on to the exercise regime. Walking, swimming, jumping a rope are such exercises.

Walking

One of the best kinds of exercise for losing weight in children is walking. If your child is not much in favor of exercising on machines, then walking is a good alternative. You can begin to take him on walks every morning for an hour around the neighborhood or at the park. Begin the walk in a slow pace and gradually increase the pace. Tell your child to move his arms while walking. This will help in burning calories. Swinging the arms in long swinging movements, bending the arms and pumping them in sync with the walking will help your child immensely. The longer and faster you make your child work, the faster his heart beat will become and he will lose more calories.

Jumping rope

Jumping rope is a good calorie burning exercise. It also helps in building the leg muscles of the child. Depending on the weight of your child, fix his pace of skipping. Begin with a slow pace and gradually increase the pace so as to increase heart beat and burn more calories. Make your child continue the exercise initially for five to ten minutes. Then increase the time to about twenty minutes to half an hour. Once you feel your child can jump confidently, make him skip by landing on both feet. You can also make him skip and land him on his toes. This will strengthen the lower backs of the legs, also called the calf muscles.

Climbing stairs

One of the simplest forms of shedding those excess weights from your child’s body is by making him go up and down the stairs. This is a simple exercise and yet very effective. Going up and coming down the stairs makes one go out of breath, implying that the body is getting exercised. Different groups of muscles are involved in helping you to go up and in braking you on the way down. The longer your child does this exercise, the more muscles he will build and excess weight will be shed off. When your child has mastered this, he can even try to climb two stairs at a time.

Dancing

Dancing is not only a fun activity for your children but it also helps in shedding the extra weight. Dancing is a great exercise as it helps in a total body movement and burns calories. Make your child dance in front of a mirror. Moving from side to side, using the arms to involve more muscles can be very effective. Initially begin with ten minutes and gradually increase it to half an hour’s schedule. For motivating your child, you can even play his favorite song and he can shake his body in rhythm with it. This will help his heart to beat faster than normal and will burn calories, which is extremely essential for shedding the excess weight.

Swimming

Swimming has an impact on your child’s body in a low key manner. It also has the least chances of injuries. You can take your child to swimming classes. There he will be taught about the basics of swimming initially like how to be safe in water or how to strengthen his swimming skills. For burning calories laps does not have to be covered by your child. To make this a fun activity, giving him a ball to play in the pool with his friends will not only be a source of entertainment for him but also help in getting rid of the excess weight. Water provides a kind of resistance and your child will have to go against it. This will involve more energy and therefore he will burn more calories. Another task that you can make your child do is simply to sit on the edge of the pool and kick his feet in the water as a workout. Water volleyball or water basketball is also effective calorie burning games.

Running

Making your child a particular stretch of an area can be beneficial for shedding the excess weight. Initially keep the route short and keep a relaxation on the time in which he will have to complete the run. With gradual practice, make him run longer distances and fix his time. This will motivate him to run at a good speed to reach his goal in time. This will not only be beneficial for burning calories but will also be good for his heart.

Cycling

For helping your child to burn more calories, you should select such a route for his cycling which will make the child to go uphill and come downhill. This will require more energy as they will have to push the cycle up the path and have to maintain their balance while coming down the path. Fix time for completing this task. Once a week fix a route for them and the time to see the level of increase in their fitness.

Football

Playing football is also a good way of shedding the excess fat and it also contributes to the good mood of your child. Running with his friends chasing the football will tire him and contribute to an increase in heart beat. This will result in, burning calories. Football is a combination of exercises like running, jumping, hitting and hence the whole body gets exercised well when your kid plays games like football. Girls can play it too and enjoy a game while burning those excess fats.

Playground activities

Playground offers your child a wide range of physical activities. He or she can engage in a hide and seek game or hopscotch. This will help in relaxing his mood and also shedding the excess and unwanted fat from his body. There are various games your child can play on a playground, like basketball, frog jumps, sack races, short races,etc. These games are designed for the complete exercise of your child and hence are very good for your child to stay fit and healthy.

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