Kid Fit!

74 Days to Memorial Day

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I’ve been doing some reading up on a program that Dave Ruff (ruff-fitness.com), a colleague of mine, is running down in the D.C. area. He’s organized a whole program called Fit Kids. With childhood obesity growing at an ever increasing rate, Dave has organized a good old fashioned strength and conditioning program for kids that cuts right to the heart of the matter. He’s incorporating cardio conditioning, coordination, strength training, fun and the kind of tools that can help these kids make this a lasting lifestyle choice in a well balanced and organized way.

I gotta give it to Dave. He’s doing an awesome thing there. It seems like any time I mention training and kids, I immediately hit a wall of static and resistance. “But wait, you’ll fuse their growth plates.” Somewhere along the line there’s been a disconnect of mammoth proportions. For decades now health professionals and the fitness research communities have known just how beneficial strength training can be for children, even very young ones. In fact, children that start an organized and sensible conditioning program before puberty will be able to achieve strength, coordination and conditioning levels far beyond anything that could be reasonably attributed to natural growth and hormone cycles.

The danger comes in not from a kid working to develop strength and conditioning. The problem comes in when they aren’t coached or overseen properly. Bad form or technique is just as bad for a 10 year old as it is for a 40 year old. However, sound technique and good form may be far more beneficial in a shorter amount of time at 10 than they are at 40. When we look at documented child and adolescent gains in motor coordination, proprioception, and motor coordination, one does have to start to wonder how it is that this message is being communicated so poorly, especially in times like these.

Dave man, keep up the good work. Parents, get your kids moving now. Only 1 state has an obesity rate less that 20% of total population. 30 stated have obesity rates of over 25%. The diabetes epidemic is growing by almost 5% every year. Good habits start now.