Online Exercise for Kids & Teens

Virtual Workouts | Kids & Teens | Adults

Virtual Personal Training

What are your thoughts about the trimmed-down video above? Although we’re not sharing the whole virtual personal training session, Hayden let us share this video because he’s feeling great about what he has accomplished. Not only does the video help us tell a simple story about what we’re doing, and why, but at the same time, it serves to show parents, kids and teens everywhere that all of us deserve respect for dignity.

As we laid out in the short overview above, the statistics on adolescent obesity are sobering. That said, it’s vital to remember and state clearly that we’re not fighting obesity. Moreover, we’re not fighting anything. We’re helping 12-18 year-olds regain a permanent sense of improved self-esteem and quality of life. And we’re helping families grow closer together as they face fears, insecurities, and factors that can overwhelm just about any of us when choosing to take a step toward accountability and self-awareness. The truth is, Hayden is teaching all of us a valuable lesson in courage and strength.

If your family needs help, please get in touch with us when the time is right.

What are the main causes of obesity in children?

There are no singular causes of obesity. But at the same time, habits and medical issues can sabotage your children’s health and happiness. So, it’s true, obesity isn’t caused directly by one issue. Instead, we have risk factors to deal with. These include:

Dietary choices – Eating calorie-dense foods, such as fast foods, and vending machine snacks, can rapidly increase your child’s weight. Sugary drinks (e.g., soda, fruit juices) are also a common culprit.

Sedentary lifestyle – Not exercising or playing with other kids as a child is a risk factor for obesity. Spending hours watching TV or playing video games will only exacerbate this problem.

Psychological factors – Living in a constant state of stress is a risk of childhood obesity. You see, some children find comfort in overeating to cope with their emotions.

Certain medications – Certain medications may increase the risk of obesity in children. Examples include prednisone, amitriptyline, paroxetine, gabapentin, and propranolol.

What health risks can kids and teens face in the future?

Just like in adults, childhood obesity increases the risk of metabolic syndrome. Metabolic syndrome is a characterized as a group of conditions including type II diabetes, chronic blood hypertension, and elevated cholesterol levels.

Your child may also deal with the following health complications:

• Bone and joint problems
• Dyspnea (i.e., shortness of breath) that makes exercise, sports, or any physical activity difficult
• Restless sleep
• Obstructive sleep apnea
• Liver and gallbladder disease
• Unhealthy dieting and eating disorders
• Depression
• Higher risk of heart disease in the future
• Substance abuse

We’re parents too. We understand that it can be so difficult to control some of these factors related to obesity. You need to remember that it’s neither your fault nor your child’s fault; obesity is a disease just like other ailments. Accordingly, like when treating any disorder or disease, it makes sense to get help for your child.

How can exercising with a virtual personal trainer help?

Asking your child to work out on their own is not enough, especially when they’ve already developed some unhealthy habits. Virtual personal training is a compelling solution for 12-18 year-olds because they’re comfortable with online experiences. The online version of “one-on-one” personal training is much the same as in-person training. In both scenarios, trainers must educate, motivate, and instruct them in a way that young clients accept and enjoy. That is to say that what works in the real world can also work online.

Remember when your kids had to complete school assignments online without in-person help or supervision during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic? It’s true, the pandemic did force many people to change the way we manage our day-to-day lives. School changed, work changed, and now healthcare, fitness, and exercise is catching up. Much in the same way we check-in with healthcare providers online, the exercise and fitness experience for overweight teens and kids is now commonplace.

So this brings us to the convenience factor. And let’s be honest, time spent driving kids all over town isn’t fun or convenient for parents. It’s true, moms and dads get a break when kids are driving-age, but the 16 years before wasn’t a picnic for most busy parents. We’re as happy as first-time drivers because we get to rest a bit more! That said, parents enjoy being able to pop their head into a virtual personal training appointment to see how their kids are doing.

Let’s wrap up here. How does exercising with a virtual personal trainer help your overweight or obese son or daughter? Essentially, we show that we care. Virtual personal trainers listen twice as much as they speak (that’s a lot, ha!) and we take what we learn from each session to help kids and teens feel better about themselves. We’re an extension of your support system. We’re not just trainers, we’re genuine allies.

3 benefits of virtual personal training

Here are a few benefits of virtual personal training:

1. Expedited results

Encouraging your child to exercise can be daunting when results are slow. Losing weight takes time. Moreover, losing weight slowly is the best way to lose body fat, and keep it off. That said, a deliberate pace of 1-2 pounds of fat loss a week is healthy.

Having the right support system in place is vital. The ups and downs of exercise and weight loss shouldn’t fall squarely on the shoulders of your child alone. That’s where your virtual personal trainer comes in. With virtual personal training, your child will not experience this burden alone.

Your virtual trainer will help him/her get over this pitfall by:

• Evaluating their current status and progress
• Setting realistic goals
• Helping them stay motivated to ensure the consistency of their training
• Holding them accountable by setting weekly goals

Note that attaining reliable results will encourage your child or teenager to work out consistently. Consistency is key. Results come from consistency over intensity of exercise. In other words, the old saying, “no pain, no gain” is a fabrication. The truth is that ultra-high intensity always hurts people in the end. Your child’s body has to last him or her a lifetime. So treating a body to abuse isn’t a winning strategy.

Researchers found that fast results in the field of fitness are the number one driver of consistency and compliance during exercises.

This is perhaps the most notable benefit of virtual personal training.

2. Expert guidance

Working out with a virtual personal trainer is indispensable to providing your child with the guidance he/she needs. Professional personal trainers know a great deal about complete workout routines that consist of cardiovascular training, weight lifting, and stretching exercises. The personal trainer will teach your child the basics of working out; this entails the frequency, intensity, time, and type of workout to perform.

A trainer can help your child navigate the world of fitness by:

• Figuring out how hard to exercise and how to exercise with correct intensity, duration, and frequency
• Showing them the appropriate exercises, weights, reps, and sets, and why certain exercises may cause more harm than good
• Using different tools and fitness accessories to optimize their workouts and keep them engaged

3. Setting up challenges

Kids are known to get bored easily, especially when doing repetitive stuff. If you want them to get out of this rabbit hole and reach the next level, you should definitely consider hiring a virtual personal trainer.

Here is how a virtual personal trainer can help:

Pushing their limits – Whenever your child hits a plateau, the virtual personal trainer will come up with new ways to push their limits and reach the next level.

Being a workout partner – Many trainers choose to engage with the workout of their trainees. This will add a competitive element to their workouts. With the current technology, collective workouts can be set up virtually.

4. Basic training

Exercising with a virtual personal trainer can be a great way to learn new workout routines. In order for your child to become comfortable with performing complex exercises, they will need the guidance of a professional trainer who does this for a living.

The personal trainer will:

Teach targeted exercises – Learning about a variety of exercises that target different muscle groups is fundamental to enriching your child’s workouts.

Demonstrate good form – For a child with obesity, the most important aspect of working out is to perform the exercises with correct form based on their specific needs and/or limitations. This will save them from injuries that could immobilize them for weeks.

Show your child how to embrace strength training – A virtual personal trainer will teach your child how to lift weights, the number of sets and reps to do, and how to isolate muscle groups. More to the point, your child will learn what’s right for them; not what’s cool, but what’s right.

Takeaway message

Virtual personal training is a convenient way to help your child become healthier, happier, and physically fit. Hiring a virtual personal trainer offers the same benefits as a conventional trainer. However, it gives you the added advantages of convenience, privacy and safety, and saves everyone in the family time.

We hope that this article helped you connect with the realities of people of any age being overweight or obese. Add to that, virtual personal training for children can save years of frustration and health problems for your child. If you have any questions, concerns, or personal experiences about childhood obesity or virtual personal training, please do not hesitate to share your thoughts and contact us using the form provided below.

You can learn more about practical and technical details regarding virtual personal training by booking an appointment to speak with a personal trainer. To book a virtual personal trainer or discuss virtual training for your child or teen, please get in touch with us using the form provided at the bottom of this page.

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