Prevention Connection - Gundersen Health System

Make fitness a priority for the whole family
Children need at least 60 minutes of activity every
day. They should also engage their muscles in a
strengthening way twice a week by playing on the
jungle gym, doing gymnastics or doing push-ups or pullups.
Active kids enjoy the benefits of healthy bones and muscle
joints. They build endurance and muscle strength. Exercise
gives kids energy and helps promote healthy
self-esteem. It also helps them to maintain a healthy
weight. Some studies indicate that when kids are physically
active they are more alert and attentive, helping
them to better concentrate at school.
Sixty minutes a day may seem like a lot to ask of your
children, but as a parent, you can orchestrate activities to
help everyone participate while having fun as a family. Go
for family bike rides, take a trip to the local beach and go
swimming, hike in the woods or go to the local high
school and participate in Saturday morning basketball.
of exercise? Start by choosing not to use the word exercise.
Instead, suggest that you have fun and play. Even adults
tend to be more excited about exercise if they know that
they’ll have fun while doing something active. Parents are
especially important role models for their children when
it comes to being physically active.
Gundersen Lutheran offers a fun physical activity program
called Shoe Crew. Families or individuals may participate
in this incentive-based program for a minimal
charge. Members of the program keep track of the number
of minutes they exercise and then turn in their time
to win incentives. Shoe Crew also offers challenges that
members can choose to join throughout the year. In these
12-week challenges, members track their minutes of exercise,
with a goal of 30 minutes of activity per day. All
members who reach that goal are eligible to win a grand
prize. The next Shoe Crew challenge will begin in May.
To learn more about Shoe Crew programs, call (608)
775-6861.
What do you do when your kids absolutely hate the idea
Practice bicycle safety to make riding more enjoyable
Biking has been a popular pastime for people of all
ages since the 1800s. There are many benefits to
bicycling such as improved physical health and enhanced
quality of life, as well as economic benefits for
those who choose to ride their bikes instead of driving.
Although biking is fun, if appropriate safety measures are
not taken, serious injury and even death can occur. According
to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
(CDC), more than 500,000 people in the U.S. are
treated in emergency departments and more than 700
people die as a result of bicycle-related injuries each year.
Children are at particularly high risk for bicycle-related
injuries. In 2001, children 15 years and younger accounted
for 59 percent of all bicycle-related injuries seen
in U.S. emergency departments.
The single most effective safety device available to prevent
serious injury and death from bicycle crashes is a helmet.
Children are more likely to wear helmets if they see their
parents wearing them. Children learn from their parents
and will mimic their behavior. Also remember that bicycles
share the roads with motor vehicles, so it is important
to follow traffic laws.
Tips to prevent injuries while biking:
• Always wear a helmet that meets Consumer Product
Safety Commission standards.
• A correctly fitted helmet should be level. It should
not rock forward and backward or side to side. Helmet
straps must be buckled snug, not too tight or too
loose.
• Learn the rules of the road and obey all traffic laws.
• Ride on the right side of the road with the traffic, not
against traffic.
• Use appropriate hand signals.
• Respect traffic signals, stop at all stop signs and stop
lights, stop and look both ways before going into a
street.
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