KIDS AND EXERCISE Never too young?

By MARTIN MILLER
LOS ANGELES TIMES
NOW, PRESCHOOLERS CAN JUST DO IT too.When Mommy or Daddy hops on the treadmill, the little tykes can work out alongside -- on their very own minitreadmill. There's also a miniexercise bike and a miniworkout bench with foam weights -- all specifically designed for the Playhouse Disney set.
The home exercise equipment for preschoolers is being pitched as ideal holiday gifts that offer sweet and sweaty moments of family togetherness by Sport-Fun Inc., a Los Angeles-based company that manufactures and markets the products, which retail for $70 to $100.
Karl Aaronian, Sport-Fun's vice president of marketing, says the products are designed to offer parents an exercise alternative that will help entice children away from the TV and computer and, hopefully, "build healthy habits early on and have fun in the process."
Worries
But what if kids find walking on a treadmill as boring as their parents often do?
That's the concern of some child development experts, who fear that the machines may send an unintended message -- that exercise isn't much fun. But these experts acknowledge that the equipment could be useful if it helps to support family activities that promote health.
Few adults would choose to work out on a machine if they had the energy, free time and boundless curiosity of a 4-year-old, child specialists say. Children should be encouraged to explore and develop athletic skills, not get bogged down in routine, they add.
"The main point here is fun," said Kathy Seal, a Los Angeles writer and co-author of "Motivated Minds: Raising Children to Love Learning" (Henry Holt, 2001). "Is running on a treadmill fun? And joining the neighborhood T-ball or tumbling team or learning how to dance is fun. That's really what kids ought to be doing."
Added Deborah Stipek, a professor of education at Stanford University who has studied childhood development: "It is very hard for me to see any value whatsoever in such a constrained, uncreative exercise for a preschooler. To me, it sounds like a great way to turn them off exercise."
Showing role models
Stephen Virgilio, an associate professor in the School of Education at Adelphi University in Garden City, N.Y., has a different perspective. He said he became a paid consultant for Sport-Fun after seeing the preschool exercise machines in action.
"We aren't trying to train kids or check their heart rates. Instead what we're trying to do is to show them a role model for behavior," said Virgilio, author of several books on children's fitness. "We don't want to force kids, but if they show the desire parents should support that. If they don't, that's not a problem and [workout equipment] should be put in the corner or the basement."
Rain and snowstorms can trap kids indoors during the winter, watching videos instead of climbing around on outdoor playground equipment, Virgilio said.
Combating obesity
"With cardiovascular and heart diseases still the No. 1 killer, why wait until a kid has a weight problem to do something about it?" said Virgilio, a member of a National Association for Sport and Physical Education panel that issued national guidelines this year for daily physical activities for children up to age 5.
Childhood obesity, even among preschoolers, has continued to rise. It is estimated that almost 8 percent of 4- and 5-year-olds are considered overweight, nearly double the figure of 20 years ago, according to recent studies. Once overweight, children have a 70 percent chance of carrying the problem into adulthood, some studies have shown.
Sport-Fun, which also makes pogo sticks, skateboards and other action toys, launched the Kid Starts product line this summer. The private company doesn't release sales figures, but spokeswoman Deena Lewis says the company is having difficulty keeping up with orders. "It's selling incredibly well," she said.