Every January many of the New Year’s resolutions that roll around include losing weight, getting into better shape, or eating healthier. This has often been something that I swear to do every new beginning as well. As a mother of four, getting into better shape is still something that I aim for, but what is to be done when it is not mom, or even dad that need this life change? It is so much different when it is a child that we are concerned about. How does a parent deal with child obesity without deflating the child’s spirit? The second oldest child in my family has been showing the signs for years. This once slim boy, has a belly that concerns those who love him. We have lightly discussed it with him, but ultimately we have waiting until it was something that he is concerned about, and it seems as though this is the year. Our heavier child has told us that he want to lose some weight.
Losing weight isn’t always the right term to choose. We have discussed with our eleven year old the difference between losing muscle or fat, and how muscle may weigh more than fat. We have discussed the different ways to track his goals because as the New Year’s resolution post mentions, goals have to be measurable. One way to track weight loss is inches lost, another way is through pounds lost, another is through a BMI, and lastly through body fat percentage.
Losing Inches – Measuring inches is often a very effective way to measure weight loss depending on what the individual’s goals are. If the main issue is a large tummy area, then measuring inches is really going to show fat loss, as well as tightening of the skin.
Hitting the Scale – Most weight loss challenges, including the famous Biggest Loser television show measure weight loss by actual weight. The only problem with this is that any weight would be counted including muscle, fat, or even water retention. Those who wish to gain muscle might not want to use a scale to measure how thin or in shape they are.
Body Mass Index – The body mass index is figured out by a formula that uses a person’s weight and height ratio. This is helpful, but it can not always be considered completely accurate since again it does not differentiate between the muscle, and the fat in the body.
Body Fat Percentage – A person’s body fat percentage is a measurement that calculates the actual amount of fat that is in the body. One way in which people measure the fat percentage is by measuring with a certain type of calipers, and a formula. The other way is by using a machine that pushes a small current through the body. Since muscle and fat conduct electricity differently, the fat percentage is figured out by the machine, using the current, as well as the person’s height, and age.
For our not so little miracle, we have done all of these and recorded them for weight loss. According to the “fancy” new scale that we recently bought to measure our body fat percentage, our son’s level of fat in the body is measuring at a normal level. The collection of fat near his middle begs to differ. We are only concerned because belly fat is often an indicator, or a precursor for heart disease. We are also worried because he feels self-conscious about his belly as well as how fast he gets out of breath. The strategy that this family decided to put into place is to get outside more as a family, trying to eat healthier as a family, and the boys have joined basketball teams. All of these together with the measurements of his midsection will hopefully result in a healthy happy young man in the near future.