Get A Role Model, Be A Role Model

by Tom Venuto

I am often asked by moms and dads of all ages how they can get their kids to start exercising more and eating junk food less.

It's no surprise why parents today are concerned...

According to the Center For Disease Control, 30.3% of children are overweight and 15.4% are obese.

That's frightening, but this is even worse:

In the past 25 years, obesity in children and adolescents has quadrupled!

U.S. 6-11-year-olds obese 1963-65: 4.2%
U.S. 12-19-year-olds obese 1966-70: 4.6%
U.S. 6-11-year-olds obese 1971-74: 4.0%
U.S. 12-19-year-olds obese 1971-74: 6.1%
U.S. 6-11-year-olds obese 1976-80: 6.5%
U.S. 12-19-year-olds obese 1976-80: 5.0%
U.S. 6-11-year-olds obese 1988-94: 11.3%
U.S. 12-19-year-olds obese 1988-94: 10.5%
U.S. 6-11-year-olds obese 1999-2000: 15.3%
U.S. 12-19-year-olds obese 1999-2000: 15.5%
(source: Center for Disease Control)

The results of this trend have been devastating:

Not only does excess body fat affect a child socially and psychologically, but also Diabetes, orthopedic problems, high blood pressure, asthma, and sleep apnea have increased to all time highs in children, right along with the increase in obesity.

How could something like this happen?

You could easily blame it on TV commercials, the fast food industry, and a whole host of other factors, but would you like to know the biggest reason of all?

CHILDREN DON'T HAVE ENOUGH GOOD ROLE MODELS!!!

And guess who the most influential role models are in a child or teenager's life?

That's right -- Their OWN PARENTS!

Someone once said, "Who you are speaks so loudly, I can't hear what you're saying."

You don't have to say a word to influence other people. True leadership is to lead by example.

What kind of example are you setting? What messages are you sending to your kids and to others just by the way you look and act?

Anders Olsson, one of the role models in our Fit Over 40 e-book, says, "I think my children are proud to have a 51-year old fit father. Sometimes I train with my 18 year old son."

You bet they're proud! They're also watching their father's every move - role modeling him, on the conscious and unconscious levels. Like father, like son.

I know everyone out there seeks to be the best possible parent they can. However, it's so easy for each of us to forget this one simple fact: Our kids are looking to us and AT us even when we don't see them! It's like they are the ones with "eyes in the back of their head", as my mother used to say to me.

That's why we want to encourage all parents, including our own staff and role models, to help put an end to this rampant obesity issue with our children by taking ACTION to become A-Number-1 role models ourselves.

When you get healthy, fit and maintain an optimal level of body fat, you're setting an example for your family, for everyone in your sphere of influence and even for the entire next generation!

To be a role model, you need role models of your own. We provide you with more than 50 of them in Fit Over 40: Role Models For Excellence At Any Age.

If you don't have a copy of Fit Over 40 yet, pick one up today at http://www.fitover40.com.

Get a role model. Then be a role model. As Gandhi said, BE the change you want to see in others.

Tags: asthma children diabetes disease fat flu food health obesity sleep