The YMCA is an extremely family-oriented gym, and that means children are allowed access to the exercise equipment. I am in favor of this and love the idea of introducing these youngsters to the world of health and fitness, except for the fact that they are doing it all wrong. Here are three rules for parents to help their kids do it right.
This goes beyond keeping your kid on good behavior. The desire to become trapped in the “Well, she’s just a child and I want her to have fun” mindset is probably strong, and I empathize with you on that one. In a sense, it rings true; if your child finds enjoyment in going to the gym, they will continue to do so. You should always be looking for ways to make health and fitness an attractive lifestyle. A great way to do that is to ensure your kid has good form. Any serious fitness guru will tell you good form is imperative. Ignoring this can lead to injury, which would make the gym not fun.
If you want to ensure that your child understands the benefits of going to the gym, keep an eye out and ensure they are putting effort into their workout. You may also want to make sure they are not exerting themselves too much, as heavy weight lifting can have damaging effects on young children. It is your job to find that sweet spot. If they are not reaping any benefits at all from what they are doing, you should have left them at home. They will come to see the gym as a waste of time and effort. This rule is especially important if your child is trying to lose weight. Losing weight takes effort and is incredibly hard to do. It would be discouraging to anybody to go to the gym for 6 months and never improve.
Perhaps this is the reason behind the exemplary behavior I appreciate so greatly. I understand that parents may not want to be controlling, but maybe they should be. If your kid is not considered smart enough to make their own decisions until 18, perhaps there is a reason for that. You should still let them use their phones to listen to music (I use mine for that and would hate to be a hypocrite). They will hate you now, but will eventually thank you for making them the only person in the office able to function without a phone screen.
We should all be doing more cardio, and thanks to you, your kid no longer has a choice. If your child is struggling with weight, it will help them lose it. If they are not, it will help keep them that way. If your child is not in sports, they probably spend a majority of their time sitting; they could use a run or a bike ride. Besides, excessive weight lifting is not good for a growing body.
Parenting advice from someone who (hopefully) does not even have any of these little monsters running around.