Our philosophy centers around having the parent and the child come together and achieve a solution that works for both of them. By participating in a non-competitive fitness program with their child, parents can make a big difference in their child's life. We want them to enter adulthood with good eating habits, so weight control isn't something they take into adult life. Taylor developed the 10-week program, which centers on stretching and aerobic exercise, together with Mazzone and Wrotniak, who is also director of rehabilitation at the Elmwood Health Center in Buffalo, with backing from Daemen and the Center. It's designed to be fun, and each 40 minute class offers a full workout as well as strength conditioning.
Sessions end with relay races and volleyball.
A lot of kids feel uncomfortable because they are really not agile enough to be successful, and it's vital to take this into account. One of the biggest reasons kids who hate exercise feel this way is because they are made to feel they have to fit certain fitness stereotypes, that it's linked to competition, and that destroys their chances for success before they can even get started. For children, weight control is a major self-esteem issue. We want to impart a feeling that 'I can make good choices. We've found that the outcome for the child, is 'I feel better about myself'.