Saturday, May 21, 2016

CrossFit for Kids

When we talk about exercise, gym or fitness clubs, our minds immediately think about grownups, adults and teens, kids don’t come into our mind. We assume that the equipment's used in the gym are not kid friendly and have damaging effects to them. Over the years we have built a mental model and whenever we talk about fitness, we keep kids out of it and assume that these places are for adults/grownups and teens.  

Looking into the CDC website, we could see that “Childhood obesity has more than doubled in children and quadrupled in adolescents in the past 30 years. The percentage of children aged 6–11 years in the United States who were obese increased from 7% in 1980 to nearly 18% in 2012. Similarly, the percentage of adolescents aged 12–19 years who were obese increased from 5% to nearly 21% over the same period.”
In order to get healthy, kids should have fun, they should take part in games, play for at least 60 minutes a day. There are many activities like gymnastics, swimming, sports, Karate, Taekwondo, jogging etc that kids can take part and begin leading a healthy life. “CrossFit for Kids” can be considered in the same bucket, it introduces the Mechanics of gymnastics, weightlifting, running, rowing and more for kids ranging from 3-18 years.

Kid’s minds and bodies are like a sponge, they absorb everything they come across and they learn quickly. Once a kid learns something new it stays with him for a long time and that is the reason why kids are being trained young at gymnastics, swimming and other activities.

CrossFit Kids is meant to be BIG fun for all ages. It is alternate for other kid’s activities and this can bring down child obesity and better health for children at a young age.  Just like other CrossFit workouts the workouts are scalable according to the age of the kids. In the CrossFit Kids program kids don't lift weights heavier than one or two kilograms, they do push-ups, squats, cartwheels, perhaps climb a rope. CrossFit Kids is moderated by trained certified professionals.  The trainers know the techniques on how to overcome the unique challenges of teaching kids. The children's class is half an hour long and portion of it is dedicated to other games. CrossFit Kids is inexpensive and often requires little or no equipment, which makes the program affordable. This program provides an opportunity for kids to be physically fit and physically active throughout their lives.
CrossFit Kids programs can be found in over 1,800 gyms and more than 1,000 schools worldwide.

10 comments:

  1. Bala good one, will be fun for kids and gain awareness on fitness from the early stage... Praba

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    1. Thank you PrabhaKaran for your positive feedback. I am sure Kids will like this activity if they are coached into it properly.

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  2. Good initiative and happy to see the benefits out of it... I think there are lot of factors that goes in to this and the main thing is time and commitment .... It is a life changing experience... Enjoy and cherish it... Good luck

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  3. Seems like it is a lot of fun for the kids to get together and do! It can help them stay active and healthy!

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  4. This is something that I would definitely like to check into for my 8 year old son, thank you!

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  5. Great information, thank you for sharing! Its so important for kids to be active and what a great way to do it. Not only will they have fun but also feel accomplished!

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  6. This article is so true Suresh. I just recently started coaching a younger hockey team (11 year olds) and you are right on about how the kids are like sponges. Everything we say and show them they are eager to start learning and grasping. By getting these kids active early, they begin to sponge on to the proper habits which can really lead to a healthy life!

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  7. I have a 6 year old and I really need a program like this so she can meet and interact with other kids outside of school. I didn't know there were programs like this. Thank you for posting this information.

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  8. I never really thought of cross fit for kids. Do you think it would put too much stress on their bodies or do you think they are resilient enough to recover quickly from workouts and not sustain injury. Each time I see people doing cross fit by my home, I just think how much pain I would be in while and after doing it.

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