N-Lighten Kids

Week 8 Tip for the Kids:

Did you know that our body is 65% water?  This is important to know because you need to replace the water that your body loses every day, especially if you are really active.  Most kids need 5-6 cups of water per day, but you need more than that if you are active.  Always make sure you have enough to drink before, during, and after activity and be sure you choose good things to drink that don’t contain caffeine or other things that take water away from you.  Water is the best choice, but you can also drink things like sports drinks (be sure to check the sugar content on the label), sugar-free Kool-Aid, or flavored water.  Sometimes you’ll forget to drink until you are thirsty, but you have to remember to drink even before that.  By the time you feel thirsty, it’s too late.  Also remember to drink more if you are doing an activity that is really intense or if the temperature is warmer.

Week 8 Tip for the Captains:

Adequate hydration is very important in regards to fitness.  On a normal day, you would lose approximately 1.5 – 2.5 liters(6-9 glasses) of water through normal body processes.  On days where you are active, you lose even more.  A good rule of thumb for daily water requirements is to figure your weight in pounds and divide it by 2 to equal the amount (in ounces) you need per day.  This doesn’t count extra activities, so be sure to increase your fluid intake to meet those needs as well.  The same thing holds true for changes in environment, so if the temperature increases you need to drink more.  When choosing fluids to drink, you should avoid beverages that contain caffeine (like tea, coffee, etc.) and definitely avoid “energy-drinks”. Usually water is the best choice.  Most importantly, don’t wait until you are thirsty to drink.  By then it is too late and you are already experiencing the effects of being dehydrated.

Sporty’s Corner

Criss Cross
Divide into 4 teams. Send each team into a corner. The object of the game is to see which team can get to the opposite (diagonal) corner the fastest, using the method the leader calls out.  This will create quite a "bottleneck" or "traffic jam" in the middle each time. Keep score of which team wins each crossing. First team to 5 wins.  Some ideas for crossing methods: Hopping, Wheel barrel, Crab Walk, Sprint, Backwards Walk, Skipping, Crawling, etc.  A reminder from Sporty, "Make sure to take a water break!"