by Christine Chagaris
The health and fitness craze is, of course, all the rage for adults. However, where children are concerned regarding this topic, there has been a cause for alarm. The latest news has the rate of childhood obesity and related problems, such as diabetes, at an all-time high.
Manhattan may be the land of concrete and not seemingly conducive to exercise, and families on the go can’t always adhere to a healthy eating regimen. What can parents do to encourage their children to practice proper fitness and eating habits in light all of these factors? The Upper East Side has many resources to help, from nutritional to exercise guidance.
Uppereast.com spoke to a few of the experts who offered some advice.
GymTime
One of the places where the junior set can enjoy a multitude of physical activities is GymTime, located on East 80th Street. On any given day, there is a cluster of tykes, from infant to teen enjoying the many activities GymTime offers. There is a large gym and a mini-gym, both replete with thick mats, a trampoline, various gymnastics equipment and a basketball hoop for kids to enjoy.
Owners Bonni and Michael Branciforte have had their facility going strong for 18 years. The classes range from basic gymnastics (which includes hopping and forward rolls) to more advanced practice on the balance beam and uneven bars. There is also basketball, cooking classes and even tae kwan do for those martial arts enthusiasts ages 3 to 15. “It’s very difficult to tell a parent that his or her child is out of shape,” says Bonni. “It’s just so important that parents not stop giving encouragement to their kids to stay active. If a child does not want to do a certain activity, then substitute another, more enjoyable activity for it.” She says that once kids stop staying active, it is generally difficult to get them re-involved in fitness. This makes it that much more vital to help them try and find a physical activity that they feel comfortable with.
GymTime’s philosophy stresses a gradual progression into the more advanced fitness levels. “Kids learning gymnastics first learn forward rolls and hopping, and work on the lower uneven bars and balance beam, for example, before they move on to the higher, more advanced equipment,” says Branciforte. Children over the age of five are separated into male and female gymnastic groups. GymTime also teaches the basics of basketball. “Kids learn coordination skills by throwing the ball into the hoop.” Kids also are in for a healthy treat with GymTime’s cooking classes. “We teach kids first and foremost about good nutrition,” she says. “We like to vary the menu as well. One week, we may focus on something savory with herbs, and the next week cook something sweet. We use healthy ingredients, such as whole wheat pasta and low-fat milk.” Branciforte says that kids learn the healthy components of various ingredients and this, combined with learning to cook the recipes, makes it more interesting for them. “Cooking also helps children build motor skills, for example, when they are mixing ingredients for a recipe.”
Fitness and cooking do make for a healthy combination, and healthy and fit kids are GymTime’s goal. “It’s so important to start children in some kind of healthy activity early, so it will be a part of them for life,” Bonni says.
| GymTime
1520 York Avenue (between 80th & 81st)
New York, NY 10028
212-861-7732 |
Eat Food
A nutritious, balanced diet is a necessary compliment to good physical exercise for kids. Eat Food, a food and nutrition services company on East 60th Street, strives to educate folks of all ages on the benefits of healthy eating. It also has special programs for kids to help start them on the road to good nutrition. One of these programs, Exercise Your Taste Buds, is specifically geared to children ages 8 to 11. Owner and president Elizabeth Fassberg, M.P.H., R.D., C.D.N., stresses nutrition basics to help educate kids. “The program is a six-week curriculum that explores different homemade foods.
For example, we try to show children how a homemade burger with fresh ingredients can taste just as good, or even better than fast food.” This program is offered in a group or individual setting at Eat Food’s premises, or a family can have the program instructed at their home.
Eat Food also offers unique amenities, such as healthy birthday parties, where kids can prepare pasta from scratch, for example, or sushi. The company also has spearheaded a program at YWCA’s throughout the city, whereby the menus have been changed to include primarily fruits and vegetables.
Fassberg emphasizes the importance of parents’ roles in steering a sound nutritional course for their children. “Parents and caregivers need to eat healthy foods as well to be good role models,” she says. “It’s really important for them to provide healthy ingredients for meals at home. The earlier this starts for kids the better, and then it becomes a part of their lifestyle.” Fassberg says that if a child wants something sweet, then something healthy, such as an oatmeal cookie made with fresh and not processed ingredients, is fine to enjoy. “Here at Eat Food, we stress that food made with fresh ingredients tastes better and is better to eat health-wise than processed food. It’s not about deprivation when it comes to healthy eating, but moderation.”
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Eat Food
242 East 60th Street; #2R
New York, NY 10022
212-980-9828 |
Jodi's Gym
Jodi Levine, owner of Jodi’s Gym on East 84th Street, wants fitness for children to be enjoyable, above all. This year, the gym is celebrating 25 years as an Upper East Side fitness mainstay. The classes, for boys and girls, are primarily gymnastics-focused. “The most effective way for kids to get involved in fitness is for it to be fun and non-threatening,” she says. “It has to feel good, with no pressure.”
Fun is the operative word at the gym, where those ages 1 through 12 have a wide variety of classes they can attend. These range from Mommy and Me gym and music combo, Tumbling Tots, (which teaches the basics of gymnastics) Kindergym for kindergartners (where kids incorporate flexibility, coordination and overall fitness into their gymnastics routines) to gymnastics for 6 to 12 year-olds.
Levine believes that the right fitness environment can put kids on the right track when it comes to staying healthy. “The programs at Jodi’s Gym are designed to encourage and establish healthy fitness habits to last a lifetime,” she says. “The skills we work on in gymnastics classes at Jodi’s are the foundation or building blocks for all physical activity, and all sports. Kids develop everything from strength, balance, flexibility, coordination, basic motor skills to self-confidence.”
Levine says that parents play a big role in helping their kids to stay active. “Parents can help by not pushing kids to do too much, too soon,” she says. They also shouldn’t compare their children to others. “They can set good examples by spending active time with their kids, such as joining them for walks, bike rides, dancing and playing tag, for example. Also, it’s important to allow the kids to have fun being kids instead of always trying to push them to reach the next level. Pushing for “too much, too soon” will only lead to an earlier burnout, which is just the opposite of what we really want for our children.”
| Jodi’s Gym
244 East 84th Street (2nd & 3rd)
New York, NY 10028
212-772-7633 |
Asphalt Green
There is a place on the Upper East Side that is a veritable smorgasbord of sports and fitness for kids, and that place is Asphalt Green on East 90th Street. A non-profit organization that has been serving the fitness needs of New Yorkers since 1983, Asphalt Green offers programs for children infant through teen move forward to fitness. Children can participate in learning to swim in the AquaCenter to soccer, gymnastics and basketball programs, to name a few. “We stress fitness in all our sports programs,” says Dr. Paul Weiss, Asphalt Green’s Senior Program Director. “For example, in our gymnastics classes, we talk to the kids about aerobic fitness; heart rate, understanding the cardiovascular system. We feel this is important because parents want us to focus on ways to improve their children’s physical fitness and properly condition them.”
Kids can participate in several activities with their parents as well, such as basketball (ages 5 to 7), swimming, Mommy and Me Yoga and Morning at the Green, a program for two and three year-olds that integrates art and movement.
“We stress movement first in our programs, then skills,” says Dr. Weiss. “That way, we believe kids will be more in touch with their bodies and consequently, be more aware of what is healthy to eat.”
| Asphalt Green
555 East 90th Street (York & River)
New York, NY 10128
212-369-8890 |
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