Staying Fit

There's been lots of press regarding the ever-widening girth of North Americans, and in particular, the worrisome growing rates of obesity in children. There are factors such as a heavier reliance on cheaper, pre-packaged, convenience foods, larger portion sizes and increased time spent in front of a screen -  be it television, computer or video game. As families become busier, and parents work longer hours or shifts, the ideal of a sit-down family meal becomes a thing of the past. All of which leads to bigger and heavier folks.
We made a commitment to stay healthy and fit in our family. Despite long commutes and extra-curricular activities, we try to eat dinner together as a family almost every evening. All of the kids who can walk are involved in sports. For several years, all three were in gymnastics. This year, we've given gymnastics a break, and instead, Devlin, Ceilidh, Aisling, along with their dad, are taking Tae Kwon Do lessons. There's hockey for Devlin, and dance for both girls. All four kids have swimming lessons, although it's mostly splashing in the water for Quinn. During the summer, there's soccer.
It's not just the kids who are active. Mommy works out almost every morning, or goes for a run after dropping the kids off at school. The kids have come to cheer me on at the races. Daddy hits the gym on his lunch hours. We play ultimate frisbee during the warm weather months. The children all come out to play on the sidelines. We used to play three nights a week, but that's been reduced to once a week because of the kids' activities. When there's a free hour or two and the weather is pleasant, we go for a family bike ride. Unless it's a torrential downpour, our children walk to school everyday.
We also try to throw them out in the backyard whenever we can. It's amazing how creative the kids can get when they're trying to amuse themselves. Once we watched them try to put together a zipline using some skipping ropes and our trees. Unfortunately, they weren't tall enough to make an effective zipline and they only travelled a foot before hitting the ground.
This morning, during the daily morning confusion of getting jackets on, backpacks sorted, shoes tied and out the door to school, Aisling asked about getting fat.
"Will I get fat?" she queried.
"Not if you exercise and stay fit," I answered while looking for somebody's jacket.
"That's doesn't seem to be working for Daddy," replied my smart mouthed eight year old son.
"Hey, don't call Daddy "fat". That would make him upset!" reprimanded Aisling.