How to Help Your Teen Stay Healthy

There are three important elements to consider when attempting to help your teen develop a healthy lifestyle: Good mental health, good spiritual health and good physical health. Tom Landry, former coach of the Super Bowl Champion Dallas Cowboys and the winningest coach in that franchise's history, said about reaching your potential: "In my experience as a football coach, I've seen two common barriers that most often prevent people from performing to their fullest potential. The first is a pattern of past failures and mistakes. The second thing holding people back is a fear of failure." Once again, since this article is about what you can do to help your teens, that is what will be discussed. However, keep in mind that they start developing a healthy lifestyle while we have them in our gently rocking arms and we will have plenty of time to reflect how we did once we are in our old squeaky rocking chair.

Let's consider what Tom Landry said about reaching our potential and instead of applying that to our teens, let's apply it to us as parents of teens who need a positive adjustment in their lifestyle. Right off the bat, if we expect to help our teens then we have to forget the mistakes that we made up to this point and we have to believe with every ounce of belief that we can muster that our efforts will be rewarding. Our frame of mind will determine their frame of mind. If we don't think we can do it, they will think they can't do it. Get the point? Now, from Part 1 we know that our teens have to be willing participants and you have them refreshed mentally and spiritually and you are ready to tackle getting them physically fit. I can tell you as a coach and mentor to my players for over 30 years, getting a player physically fit, if they are willing, is the 9^th inning of a ballgame. You're in the home stretch. You have won the game already and now the fun begins. It's the part right before the celebration in the locker room. Ok, enough of the analogies, here's what I found to be the best way to motivate your teen to get healthy physically.

Teens learn by example. If you want to implement a healthy exercise regime, you need to take part in it also, especially if you could use it yourself. I've always hated seeing coaches with a huge protruding stomach, with their shirts tucked in exhibiting all their unhealthy glory. However, on the same hand they are urging their players to get into shape and telling them how important it is to be in good shape and how it will sustain them, all the days of their lives. Can't you just hear the players now..."yeah right coach and I can't wait until I get old enough to throw back a couple of those beers every night too." A good pot bellied coach will have a good young healthy coach that exudes good health to lead the players in their workouts. He will if he wants them to place a value on good health.

So, you and your teen can now sit down and discuss a plan that will be a win-win for both of you, or perhaps for the entire family...which is even better.

Let me get real with you for a minute. An unhealthy lifestyle sometimes refers to kids and teens that are overweight. It is not exclusive to overweight kids but obesity is one of the side affects of an unhealthy lifestyle. If nothing else due to overeating, or eating foods that are not good for you coupled with a lack of exercise. I am going to deal with obesity, whether it is a problem now, or you see as a parent it could become one. I am going to refer to two studies published in the PubMed magazine, which is a service of The National Institute of health. The first study dealt with the causes of obesity in children and found to no one's surprise that: Television watching, electronic games, lack of physical activity, maternal work and paternal smoking were independently associated with obesity. What does obesity have to do with a healthy lifestyle? I'm glad you asked. The second study, performed for PubMed was entitled: Psychopathology and Obesity. The conclusion of that study shows that psychological disturbances are more likely to be the consequences of, rather than the causes of obesity. There was even another study performed in 2007 by Dr. Tak at the University of Korea that proves a physical activity-behavior modification effectively changes metabolic risk factors like waist size, high blood pressure, HDL cholesterol levels in children, which would lead to improved self-esteem and a healthier lifestyle. That is what we would call a no-brainer but now you have the evidence to back you up when you start your healthy lifestyle program with your teen.

So if your question is, I believe it but what do I do now? Here it is; you sit down with your teen and /or your family as I stated earlier, and you create a plan. Your plan should include less TV time, less electronic game time and more physical activity. That physical activity has to involve you participating as well. To capitalize on your teen's immense interest in electronic games, get a Wii. They have great-simulated games that will provide fun and activity for the whole family. In addition, many other simulated games call for some sort of physical exertion on everyone's part. When you do watch TV, find programs you can watch with your teen together. You will be killing two birds with one stone. You will find it to be a great time together. You might have to watch one of their favorite programs but then they will have to watch one of yours. That in itself is a game. It's called the game of give and take. Lose some battles but win the war. Don't dwell on the past mistakes that you may have made with your teens and don't be afraid to fail. You owe it to them and to yourself to try and try again, seven times seventy.