The new focus in our culture on childhood obesity has led to some interesting shifts in childhood itself, the most recent of which is club memberships for kids. The Chicago Tribune reports that:
"Fitness club memberships for youths age 6 to 17 have more than doubled in the past two decades, rising from 1.3 million in 1987 to 3.9 million in 2007. More than 1.3 million of those memberships were for children 6 to 11, according to the International Health, Racquet and Sportsclub Association."
One might think new concerns about sedentary kids would hurt the video game industry. Not so! They are on the edge of the professional kid fitness trend themselves, with products like Wii Fit, Nintendo's interactive exercise program and Gamercize, that makes video games work only when the player is moving.
The Tribune suggests that:
"Outdoor games such as hopscotch and tag that kept Baby Boomers fit when they were kids have largely fallen by the wayside. With busy family schedules and concerns about neighborhood safety weighing on parents' minds, many youths are more likely to play video games inside than ride a bike outside."
But I'm not 100% convinced. At $69-$125 per month for membership to a youth gym, I have to wonder how many parents can afford to budget the expense these days when there are perfectly good, free and reasonably safe playgrounds in most neighborhoods (certainly in neighborhoods in which residents can afford to contemplate kiddie gym memberships). I also have a hard time reconciling this "trend" with what we are told is another trend in bike-riding in times of expensive gasoline and concern about global warming.
What do you think? Does your kid go to a youth health club? Would you consider such a membership for a young child? What other (better?) ways do you get your kids moving?
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