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Old 11-18-2010, 03:02 PM
 
11,642 posts, read 23,803,648 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by syracusa View Post
I could certainly use more detailed and creative ideas in this area, but I will be honest upfront and say that if "increasing activity" means enrolling her in a variety of paid classes, that is very unlikely to happen. This is not only because I am extremely busy as a work-from-home doubling as SAHM but also because everything I looked at in my area does not have much for children below 3 yo. Let alone that the extra expense just to get some regular play in, once or twice a week, is hardly appealing to us.

That being said, even when I take her out and try to set up some play that involves running, she simply will not go for it. I run around myself, get all worked up in the hope that she will do the same - and she won't.
She just drags along, very laid back.
When we go to the park, often with her brother, she always chooses NOT TO join the kids running. Her 5 yo brother has 3 sibbling friends, an 8yo girl, a 4yo boy and a 2yo girl - with whom he runs around a lot; but she always chooses to go her separate way, minding her own business - even though there is a 2yo among the kids too.

For whatever reason, she seems to be a laid back, low energy, not very active child.

Mind you, I will increase her protein so I won't have it weigh on my conscience that somehow her low energy might be related to low protein intake. I am 99.9% sure that this is not the case as she gets milk, cheese, yogurt and some meat every day.
Sometimes an egg and nuts too.

It is probably who she is.

Thanks again!
I have one low activity child. You are right in that it is just who they are. My son LOVES sports but when he is not participating in sports he is happy to be home, reading, watching tv, cooking, etc...Today the middle school kids have no wrestling because the coaches are in Orlando with the high school kids and he is in his room reading.

What I have found I need to do is involve him in more home projects. When he was little he liked to garden with me. Of course, that is difficult this time of year in most of the US.

You can have her "rake" leaves with you. She doesn't have to run to be active. Buy her a little rake that's just hers and let her help.

You can have her help you put laundry away. Give her one piece at a time so that she has to keep walking back and forth to put away her laundry. Make it into a game. How fast can you put away the shirt? Then time her.

Have her help you bring groceries in from the car. Give her one thing at a time and she will have to go back and forth to the car a few times. That can add up to a lot of exercise for a little person. It doesn't have to involve running.

Does your town have an indoor pool? She might enjoy the pool in the winter. You would have to go with her.

Are the leaves pretty now (we're in FL so the leaves don't change here)? Take her for a walk to see the leaves. Or go to a petting zoo and walk around and see the animals. Most toddlers LOVE THAT.

You may have to be a little creative but you can work activity into her day without forcing her to things that are against her nature.
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Old 11-18-2010, 03:41 PM
 
4,043 posts, read 7,405,363 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Momma_bear View Post
I have one low activity child. You are right in that it is just who they are. My son LOVES sports but when he is not participating in sports he is happy to be home, reading, watching tv, cooking, etc...Today the middle school kids have no wrestling because the coaches are in Orlando with the high school kids and he is in his room reading.

What I have found I need to do is involve him in more home projects. When he was little he liked to garden with me. Of course, that is difficult this time of year in most of the US.

You can have her "rake" leaves with you. She doesn't have to run to be active. Buy her a little rake that's just hers and let her help.

You can have her help you put laundry away. Give her one piece at a time so that she has to keep walking back and forth to put away her laundry. Make it into a game. How fast can you put away the shirt? Then time her.

Have her help you bring groceries in from the car. Give her one thing at a time and she will have to go back and forth to the car a few times. That can add up to a lot of exercise for a little person. It doesn't have to involve running.

Does your town have an indoor pool? She might enjoy the pool in the winter. You would have to go with her.

Are the leaves pretty now (we're in FL so the leaves don't change here)? Take her for a walk to see the leaves. Or go to a petting zoo and walk around and see the animals. Most toddlers LOVE THAT.

You may have to be a little creative but you can work activity into her day without forcing her to things that are against her nature.
Mama_bear,

We already do many of these, but I never really thought of them as "being active". I was thinking more along the lines of "running" and "sweating".
She just won't do those. Now, I have to be honest: I remember the first time the PE teacher had us run in a race format. Guess where I landed? Last place and out of breath, out of 30+ kids.
I have never been much of an athlete myself, though I did run a lot growing up, just to keep up with my two boy playmates, whom I worshipped. I hated that I had to do this but granted they were always the ones making the rules, I had to at least try to keep up wkith them. It never came easy and was often frustrating, but I certainly was a healthy child for it.

In time, my physical activity level went down and at the age of 14+ I began to pack on some weight. I stayed on the solid-heavy side (for my country) through adolescence and early adulthood (not fun). When I arrived in the US I lost a lot of weight due to the gym craze I discovered here. While downright skinny on my wedding day...kids changed that and now I am back to my full proportions. Definitely not fat by American standards, maybe a bit so by my country's.

In the end it's all relative - but the only thing that concerns me is my daughter's health. My fear is that if her appetite stays that way, once she starts having acess to junk foods outside the home, she will go from "just fine" to "not so fine anymore".
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Old 11-18-2010, 03:52 PM
 
11,642 posts, read 23,803,648 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by syracusa View Post
In the end it's all relative - but the only thing that concerns me is my daughter's health. My fear is that if her appetite stays that way, once she starts having acess to junk foods outside the home, she will go from "just fine" to "not so fine anymore".
A child who is used to real food will not go nuts when presented with junk food. My son took 2 cookies and some milk when he got home and I don't restrict his food intake. He could have taken the whole bag. I probably would have stopped that but I didn't tell him how much to take. He took a reasonable portion on his own. He wants the chicken I am cooking for dinner.
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Old 11-18-2010, 04:44 PM
 
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Swimming may be the perfect activity for her. Or dance. If she enjoys music, why not just put on some music at home and dance. Perhaps she can have a friend over and play *freeze dance*
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Old 11-18-2010, 04:46 PM
 
32,516 posts, read 36,988,532 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Momma_bear View Post
A child who is used to real food will not go nuts when presented with junk food.
Correct! Ding, ding, ding!

I was raised on "no sodas, no chips" and so were my sons. None of us suddenly went nuts, or got fat, once we were on our own and could eat whatever we liked. What we "liked" remained healthy foods with just the occasional nibble of something horrendously junky.
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Old 11-18-2010, 04:51 PM
 
16,579 posts, read 20,602,195 times
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I haven't read this whole thread, but let me ask anyway: OP, do you have body image issues? Do you fret about being too fat? Do you weigh often? Has anyone ever suggested you have an eating disorder?

Your pediatrician and husband are telling you that your toddler is fine. She's at the 50th percentile on the weight charts. You posted her picture and she looks like a healthy little girl. What further evidence do you need?

Read some recovering anorexic websites and see how the girls describe their mothers/parents and their mealtimes. Then do the opposite.
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Old 11-18-2010, 05:56 PM
 
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Quote:
Originally Posted by nana053 View Post
Swimming may be the perfect activity for her. Or dance. If she enjoys music, why not just put on some music at home and dance. Perhaps she can have a friend over and play *freeze dance*
Swimming: we were at the Y all summer, in the pool. All the way through - and I mean that literally - she held onto me in the pool for dear life; even though she had lots of bubbles on and could have easily floated on her own, she just would not let go. So that counted pretty much as zero physical activity.

- Music: she does love it. When she dances she spins around or goes around in circles, in a very laid back way. I absolutely adore her and I think she is the cutest thing alive when she does that but again, I am aware that will not produce much sweat. I tried to show her how to dance but she prefers her going around in circles, slowly.

- We're working on the play date thing. When among other people/kids, she tends to be quite shy and always prefers to play separately. Definitely not a "joiner". When just with family or with her brother, she blossoms and becomes very playful and interactive.
Since she was born we have simply not been in a position to have her among lots of small children her age. The acrobatics that I have to do just to have these two kids play with other kids are usually above my head. Nothing handy in the neighborhood. We do hope things will somehow change when we relocate next year. We plan on being extremely careful with the neighborhood choice and perhaps things will change in the way of handy, local interaction with oher children.
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Old 11-18-2010, 06:16 PM
 
4,043 posts, read 7,405,363 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Marlow View Post
I haven't read this whole thread, but let me ask anyway: OP, do you have body image issues?
I have not had an ounce of "body image issues" since I was in my very early 20's. I did use to be a bit displeased with my body as a teenager but I wonder what percentage of girls is not.
Now, I would not care to change one single thing about myself. I could probably stand to lose a bit of weight, but frankly, I couldn't be bothered.
Body image-wise, I feel beyond fine. Health-wise, I do feel quite rusty and sluggish because I don't get to exercise much nowadays.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Marlow View Post
Do you fret about being too fat?
Nope. Sometimes I wish I did because that way, I could maybe gather a bit of motivation to prioritize exercise; but all other commitments in my life right now weigh too heavily and I just don't get to do it.


Quote:
Originally Posted by Marlow View Post
Do you weigh often?
Basically never. We used to have a scale which I rarely used but it broke recently and I did not even bother replacing it. The only times I find out about my weight is when I'm at the doctor's office.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Marlow View Post
Has anyone ever suggested you have an eating disorder?
No. But maybe I had something close to it as a teenager - nothing in the way of anorexia or bulimia though.
I just remember starting one of my many diets, then I'd obviously get hungry soon and then I'd "mess it all up" by eating more than I should have. Absolutely never made myself vomit or anything close to what I read about eating disorders.
It was a phase, it passed. Later when I came to the US, I ended up reading a lot about healthy living, nutrition, etc and never had one problem ever since.
My concern nowadays is with the quality of food and with health, not with looks. In myself or my daughter.

You will catch me being much more worried over preservatives in ready-made foods or hormones-pumped beef than over fat/"looking fat".

Quote:
Originally Posted by Marlow View Post
Your pediatrician and husband are telling you that your toddler is fine. She's at the 50th percentile on the weight charts. You posted her picture and she looks like a healthy little girl. What further evidence do you need?
Nothing further, Your Honor.
I am just puzzled over her overall appetite and a bit worried about how she could devour all the junk food out there, once she steps out of the family cocoon where she is now 24/7. I have seen her on occasions (at BDay Parties where it is completely inappropriate to fuss over "junk food" and I can tell you she can go to town on those).

Quote:
Originally Posted by Marlow View Post
Read some recovering anorexic websites and see how the girls describe their mothers/parents and their mealtimes. Then do the opposite.
I can only imagine and I can assure you I am nowhere close to what those websites would reveal.
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Old 11-18-2010, 07:27 PM
 
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I may be the only one but I thinks it is pretty odd that you want your 2 yr old to do activites that will make her sweat a lot. Dancing or a day at the park isn't enough of a work out for her? What do want from her, she's 2, she's not going to do a solid 30 minute work out and be sweating If she eats fruits and veggies every day, junk once and a while and plays everyday why does it matter if she is a little fluffy? Not everyone is made to be skinny.
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Old 11-18-2010, 07:32 PM
 
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Quote:
Originally Posted by SuzyQ123 View Post
I may be the only one but I thinks it is pretty odd that you want your 2 yr old to do activites that will make her sweat a lot. Dancing or a day at the park isn't enough of a work out for her? What do want from her, she's 2, she's not going to do a solid 30 minute work out and be sweating If she eats fruits and veggies every day, junk once and a while and plays everyday why does it matter if she is a little fluffy? Not everyone is made to be skinny.
I mentioned the physical activity part because I have never seen a 2 yo that doesn't like to run around. That's all.
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