Is reduced fitness and weight gain in children becoming more common?

[BeAmberPanda]

I know this is a sensitive subject and I really don’t want to sound like I’m judging anyone, but I do feel a bit out of my depth with what I’m seeing in children now and wondered if others feel the same.
On holiday recently with DD and her best friend, both DH and my mum made a few comments (probably more out of concern than anything else) about how much less active children seem compared to when we were younger. The girls are lovely, but they really did spend most of the time around the pool sitting or lying down, snacking constantly, and getting quite out of breath with very little activity.
What stood out to me was just how much weight both of them seem to be carrying around their middles. When they were sitting on the loungers after lunch, their stomachs were quite rounded and visibly resting over the waistbands of their bikinis, especially when they slouched or leaned forward. They didn’t seem aware of it at all - constantly adjusting waistbands and carrying on chatting, which I suppose shows how normal it feels to them.
My mum did gently comment a couple of times that she worries children now don’t seem to be as fit as they used to be, and that was met with a bit of eye-rolling and “you’re just old, it’s normal now” type responses, which she found quite upsetting if I’m honest. I think she was trying to say it from a health point of view rather than appearance.
I suppose what’s worrying me most isn’t how they look, but how quickly they seem to get tired, how much they rely on snacks and drinks all day, and how little proper movement there seems to be without it being a bit of a struggle.
Maybe I’m just naïve, but I can’t help feeling a bit concerned that this is becoming the norm rather than the exception.

There is an 8 year old boy who is in my extended family and he is very, very overweight. His parents bought him a scooter, after a few minutes on it he was purple and struggling to get his breath. His parents also buy him 'snacks' such as sharing bags of crisps, chocolate and sweets, he drinks full sugar fizzy drinks and has takeaways and fast food regularly in large portions. His parents can't see it, or don't want to see it, and ignore all attempts by their family or the school who say something. The papers etc talk about the statistics so we are all aware it's an issue but it's heartbreaking seeing it 'up close'.

When you lean forward your skin, muscles and fat have to go somewhere. It's pretty normal to have a bit of roll when you slouch or lean forward even if your weight is fine.

Constant snacking. Parents carrying tupperwares full of food for a 1-2 hour outing after lunch. Constantly handing their kids snacks. Food is a parenting tool now - used as a bribe, to keep them quiet, to keep them busy, to keep them occupied, used as a reward. People act like being hungry is the same as being starving. You’re supposed to be hungry for an hour or so before a meal, but the constant snacking means hardly anyone is

Im always shouted down on threads when I say this. Kids do not need to eat all day constantly

I work with little kids but am fairly new to the industry. My very experienced colleague with 20+ years experience has commented that she sees a difference in coordination and other physical skills, ability to kick a ball, catching, speed climbing steps, general agility, even among slim children. She says its a gradual decline over the years.

Children used to play outside among themselves for hours, now they don't. It's not just about screens or working mothers or childcare or availability of snacks. In my opinion the worst thing that happened to children was the collective move towards not allowing them to just play as they wish. We as a society decided their safety was more important than their wellbeing and judged any parent who didn't agree. Playing 20 mins of catch with your child in the garden or bringing them swimming isn't much real physical activity. It's also adult led, so the child never gets to assess risk. Kids on trees or monkey bars literally have a parent standing below them telling them what is and isn't safe, so they cannot learn. They also dont learn to problem solve or how to argue and then resolve a conflict with a friend, but that's a different point.

Totally agree @Clefable. I live by a school and the amount of parents who park right outside of the gate is ridiculous. Many of them live a 10 min walk away max.

I think your mother sounds awful tbh. She had no right to comment on the girls’ bodies, and it was horrible to do it when they were supposed to be on holiday. Good on them for pushing back.

This does all feel a bit like rage bait. I find it hard to believe that your own daughter’s figure came as a surprise to you.

@BeAmberPanda
are you active? Are you overweight?
Has your daughter been active as a child?

Healthy Relationships with food and exercise are often modelled by parents/families and people who are close to them.

Teens often rebel, want to do their own thing, try things out of course.
My parents were/still are active, walking, gym, fitness classes as it’s good for mental health and we always had home cooked meals. My mam taught me how to cook.
I’ve always been active and so has my sister (it’s good for our mental health)

my in laws on the other hand have never been really active and they started in their late 50s/early 60s when they have well health checks……and became grandparents and eating better.
My husband wasn’t too fussed as a teen, grew out of playing football etc but was very active as a child. It hasn’t been until he hit his early 30s he has got into being fit and active and again he does it more for his mental health!

My friends family are all very inactive and in poor health, my friend is very laid back, slightly more active than family as she does walk a lot but when she was at school she couldn’t take part in sports day etc due to poor fitness

I’m not sure why some posters are acting as though I must personally be sat there eating family bags of Doritos while judging everyone else 😅
I actually take my fitness and health very seriously. I walk everywhere possible, swim regularly and DH and I are both pretty active. I’m hardly “letting myself go” - I was still happily wearing a bikini on holiday without feeling the need to hide under a kaftan like some women my age do. My mum jokes I was strutting round the pool like I was auditioning for Love Island: Menopause Edition.
That’s partly why it was such a shock seeing how unfit the girls seemed in comparison. I’m not expecting teenagers to be running marathons on holiday, but when two otherwise healthy girls are puffed out from a short uphill walk, constantly snacking, avoiding movement and visibly carrying quite a lot of excess weight around their middles already, I do think it’s fair to quietly worry about health trends generally.
People are acting as though acknowledging declining fitness levels in children is some extremist position when even teachers and health professionals in this thread are saying they’ve noticed the same thing.

It’s not that, it’s more that kids, even teens , tend to do what they’ve always done and what was modelled to them. If your teen is used to “doing” then that would also apply on holidays , though of course , there’s nothing wrong with lying around the pool either.

You can't win on MN, two threads active currently, children are inactive and overweight and also children do too many activities when they are young and are not allowed to just relax and lounge about at home. Well guess which children are more likely to be sporty as teenagers?

DS is on the go constantly and does a variety of sports at least 4 days a week in addition to school PE and general activity, walking to and from school , cycling as a family at weekends, generally waking where we can target than using the car, we walked to town and back this morning 1.5 miles each way plus the walking in the town centre. Active habits are formed young.