Tips to get your kids fit and moving this summer

Keeping children healthy is important for kids, parents and families.

There are so many children facing childhood obesity that the owners of CrossFit Scottsdale have developed a program to get kids interested in fitness early.

Najla Kayyem, co-owner of CrossFit Scottsdale has several tips to get your child interested in being healthy.

1. Parents can set a good example by exercising themselves, going for a bike ride as family or doing outdoor physical activities with their kids like swimming.

Buying whole foods and promoting healthy eating habits at an early age can go a long way.

After all, kids' nutrition habits are established primarily by parents, which is an enormous and important responsibility for caregivers to take seriously.

Exercise is not just important for the body -- it's also important for the mind. Numerous research studies demonstrate the body-brain benefits that regular exercise affords by enhancing cognition and learning.

2. Parents should encourage their children to take part in physical activity from birth. As we develop and mature through life we use functional movements on a daily basis (sitting, squatting, running, walking). CrossFit Kids empowers children and young adults to do just that by helping them develop body control and teaching basic nutrition concepts early in life, thereby preparing them for the challenges they will face in sport, play and eventually work. Research shows that active children are more likely to remain fit as adults, which makes it even more important to establish healthy habits at a young age.

3. How do you talk to kids about proper nutrition? Sugar is bad, protein is good and you need to eat some in every meal. Nuts and seeds are good fats. Eat them, don't avoid them. Pasta, white bread, and white rice are not that good for you; stuff that are stoplight colors (red, green, yellow) found in the fruit and vegetables aisle are good for you, eat as much as that stuff as you can.

You can get more help from the people at CrossFit Scottsdale at (480) 922-3253.