Getting Yourself And Your Kids Into Shape (NAPSA)—Twoin three Americans are overweight. Experts now say that weight problems, when they happen, start young. That’s whyit’s important to find ways to make exercise fun for your kids. One wayis to incorporate it as a regular part of family life. Kids imitate their parents—if they see you working out, they’ll want to work out too. Fortunately, it can be easier than you think to get in a workout at home, in stolen moments throughout the day. Here are some tips on making workouts part of the normal household routine: Walking is a great way to get fresh air, meet the neighbors and build up your legs. Doctors say walking is one of the most important and most overlooked forms of exercise. Make sure your kids have healthy snacks available to them. Keep fresh fruit in the house, or vegetables such as carrot sticks andcelery. Not only is it better for your kids, but they learn healthy habits that will carry over into adulthood. Family dinnertime gives you a chance to connect with your kids. The family dinner table is where kids eat more fruits, vegetables and fiber and less fried food, soda and satu- rated fats. * Don’t worry about setting aside time for a concentrated workout. Steal a few moments throughout the day—jumping jacks here, skipping rope there— and your fitness level will show improvement. When you're watching TV or using the computer, don’t just sit a RS VAS & Dancing is a great and fun way to exercise. there—get active. Even pacing while watching TV is better than sitting there. Dancing is a great way to have fun and burn excesscalories. Dance games and video games in which the “controller” is a vinyl mat you put on the floor and points are scored with energetic dance moves are becoming more and more popular for both fun and exercise. While most such games have prerecorded music tracks, one, Dance Factory, available on PlayStation 2, allows players to personally choose the music tracks they want to shake to from their own music CDcollection. This means players are no longer limited to games with preset track lists or music genres. Mom can dance to Madonna while the kids tear up the dance mat with hits from The Wiggles to High School Musical. To learn more, visit www.code masters.com/dancefactory.
