Family Weight Management at Cleveland Clinic Family Health Centers
What is the Fit Youth Program?
This program is for children ages 7-16 years who are serious about wanting to lose weight. Specifically designed for children and their parents, the group will meet once a week for 90 minutes. The program will last for 12 weeks. Group leaders include a psychologist, dietitian and exercise physiologist. In addition to losing weight, the program will help your child develop new eating and exercise habits. This program will teach you and your child to change the things at home affecting eating and exercise habits. Your child will learn to communicate effectively about their weight control. If you are interested and would like more information, please see locations and contact numbers below.
How does the program work?
Defining Fit Youth
Winter 2012 Newsletter
If you join, your child and you will be in a group with nine other families. Your group will meet once a week for an hour and a half, for 12 weeks. Sometimes all the families meet together in a large group. At other times, children and parents have separate group sessions. The group leaders are a pediatric psychologist, a registered dietitian, an exercise physiologist and a pediatrician who together will teach your child how to lose weight and help the families resolve issues that interfere with weight loss. An advantage of being in a group is that other people are going through the same thing as your child.
Between meetings your child is expected to keep a diary, listing all the food they eat and their physical activity. This will aid your child in learning how to determine appropriate portion sizes. Your child will learn ways to find exercise enjoyable. Homework will be assigned each week. When you come to the meeting, your child will be weighed and a record maintained of their weight and exercise time. During group meetings, you and your child will learn new information, and try out new skills.
Gradually changing behavior will help your child lose weight. Our trained staff of specialists will help your child develop solutions that enhance their ability to enjoy a healthier body. This is not a starvation program or a diet that leaves children feeling hungry all the time. We don’t prescribe a “diet” or tell you exactly what you have to do. This is a program that teaches you and your child to make better choices. In this program, with your help, your child will be in control and will be expected to take responsibility for their weight loss.
Is this program for your child?
Overweight children usually feel more self-confident and happy after they lose weight. They feel more comfortable moving around physically and more interested in exercise. They have fewer health problems. They feel proud of their accomplishment.
Locations
If you are interested, or would like more information, please contact Fit Youth at one of the locations listed above.
This information is provided by the Cleveland Clinic and is not intended to replace the medical advice of your doctor or health care provider. Please consult your health care provider for advice about a specific medical condition. For additional health information, please go to the Cleveland Clinic Health Information Center.