My overweight son wants to get fatter??

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't think it's really acceptable to let your son get that fat I'm afraid. They have such a high metabolism when they're at that age it can't be just what he's eating 'trying to get fat' there must something to do with how you were feeding him and treating him - how long has he been overweight? Is this weight increase recent? Has he ever been skinny?

Do not listen to this poster. Not all kids rub around like crazy. Our son loves eating and hates sports. We have to resort to making him exercise and watching his food and it is very difficult.

I actually think you need to talk to him about why he wants to fat. It is possible, although unlikely this is in response to someone inappropriately touching him.

I appreciate you defending me against the previous poster. However I am actually quite offended you would suggest a cause which is such an obscene and disgusting image to put into someone's head. I'm sure that if he had been or is going through something like that we would spot reactions or signs other than him wanting to be fat. Please don't ever post suggestions like that unless you have some sort of point to back it up because that In my eyes that is not at all appropriate for this post.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't think it's really acceptable to let your son get that fat I'm afraid. They have such a high metabolism when they're at that age it can't be just what he's eating 'trying to get fat' there must something to do with how you were feeding him and treating him - how long has he been overweight? Is this weight increase recent? Has he ever been skinny?

Do not listen to this poster. Not all kids rub around like crazy. Our son loves eating and hates sports. We have to resort to making him exercise and watching his food and it is very difficult.

I actually think you need to talk to him about why he wants to fat. It is possible, although unlikely this is in response to someone inappropriately touching him.

What was your reasoning behind that??

[Anonymous]

Where do you get your son's clothes from, because I have a son of similar age. He is not as big as your son but finding clothes is still a difficult task. Swimming trunks particularly as most of them seem to be a non-stretchy material and won't fit my son at all. The older aged ones are not elasticcy either so end up being too big - you said your son goes swimming where did you get his stuff?? Thanks!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Where do you get your son's clothes from, because I have a son of similar age. He is not as big as your son but finding clothes is still a difficult task. Swimming trunks particularly as most of them seem to be a non-stretchy material and won't fit my son at all. The older aged ones are not elasticcy either so end up being too big - you said your son goes swimming where did you get his stuff?? Thanks!

Yes we tend to avoid those types of trunks as you can never win with them. We shop through lands end, they have a good selection of trunks and do a husky size too! However the only ones that are really elasticcy are either short shorts or speedo type trunks which is annoying because my son's belly is big enough now to cover the trunks up when he sits down - same happens with underwear as well but not so much of a problem as he only wears them round the house of before bed. Hopefully your son fits them better and he loses the weight soon.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Does he do a lot of physical activities? If you have him try to play outside, he might realize how much heavier he feels, and how uncomfortable it is to be over his normal/healthy weight.

Doesn't really work I'm afraid when he beat friend is also quite overweight as well (but not to the same extent) so when their other friends are running around those two just stand or sit and chat.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Is there a grandparent from another culture who may be encouraging the weight gain?

Yes I guess so, Everytime the grandparents visit they bring treats etc for him such as chocolate or pocket money for him to spend. They're fully aware of his weight but don't see it as a big issue that needs addressing like I do, which exacerbates the situation. How much they've contributed to how fat he is is disputable but I'm not sure it's the main cause tbh

[Anonymous]

What measurements do you do to your son to monitor his weight? When my son was overweight at about 9 we were told to do waist, chest and leg length to see if he was growing. Waist and cheat were fine but doing the leg length was always awkward because when they have such a chubby belly it starts coming over their trousers. This meant when measuring his leg length we had to sort of lift his belly fat out of the way to get the tape measure at the correct height. He absolutely hated it and it made him feel even more fat - how do you cope with this?

[Anonymous]

You are the role model for this. Parent up. Family bike rides, walks, whatever it takes to get him moving. Frankly you have a lot of excuses even though people are trying to be helpful. Your child is EIGHT and should not be sitting around eating and chatting with his friend if you are sincerely concerned about his health. Because they are growing, children don't even need to lose weight, they just need to balance their food and activity enough to grow into their weight.

I HATE to exercise and tend to run on the fat side, but I am extremely conscious that my children are taking their cues from me. So I get my ass out there and do the family hikes, ride my bike, go ice skating in the winter, march around the house at the end of the day finishing up my 10,000 steps, and make it clear that vigorous exercise is a priority for me, too.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What measurements do you do to your son to monitor his weight? When my son was overweight at about 9 we were told to do waist, chest and leg length to see if he was growing. Waist and cheat were fine but doing the leg length was always awkward because when they have such a chubby belly it starts coming over their trousers. This meant when measuring his leg length we had to sort of lift his belly fat out of the way to get the tape measure at the correct height. He absolutely hated it and it made him feel even more fat - how do you cope with this?

Ah we have the same problem. When he was very young and much skinnier we used to measure his keg length with him sitting down and then he would just stick his leg out and it was easy, however there would be no chance of being able to do that now. Even standing up his belly sags over his belt by a good inch. But my son loves his fat so we just get him to lift it out of the way himself so we can get to the top of the belt. Not something that you want to do in public really though!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Does he do a lot of physical activities? If you have him try to play outside, he might realize how much heavier he feels, and how uncomfortable it is to be over his normal/healthy weight.

Doesn't really work I'm afraid when he beat friend is also quite overweight as well (but not to the same extent) so when their other friends are running around those two just stand or sit and chat.

I am not the PP but I think you're going to have to be more proactive about this. Figure out something active that you can do as a family. Don't make it optional. It may take time for everyone to learn to enjoy it but it will be worth the effort.

[Anonymous]

Maybe a child psychologist could help you guys out with this?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Where do you get your son's clothes from, because I have a son of similar age. He is not as big as your son but finding clothes is still a difficult task. Swimming trunks particularly as most of them seem to be a non-stretchy material and won't fit my son at all. The older aged ones are not elasticcy either so end up being too big - you said your son goes swimming where did you get his stuff?? Thanks!

Yes we tend to avoid those types of trunks as you can never win with them. We shop through lands end, they have a good selection of trunks and do a husky size too! However the only ones that are really elasticcy are either short shorts or speedo type trunks which is annoying because my son's belly is big enough now to cover the trunks up when he sits down - same happens with underwear as well but not so much of a problem as he only wears them round the house of before bed. Hopefully your son fits them better and he loses the weight soon.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Again, what is a share table???

NP. At my son's school it is a table where the kids put anything they bought or brought that they don't want to eat.
I have only every seen milk or bananas there. But I am not there that often.

Thank you so much for answering me!

Based on the name I figured that's what it was, however we have so many rules regarding sharing food in our elementary school (it's not allowed, ever) that I'm shocked to see that there are elementary schools in the area that allow this (just out of concern for food allergies alone).

The previous poster (22:25) mentioned that her overweight son takes things off of the share table at school, however based on what you've seen on the share table (milk & bananas), I don't think she has to worry too much that the share table is a major culprit in the weight gain.

I mean let's be real, I don't see many kids leaving cake or cookies on the "share table". It's probably loaded with fruits & vegetables they have no interest in eating or think are gross & they keep the good stuff (the sweets) for themselves.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't think it's really acceptable to let your son get that fat I'm afraid. They have such a high metabolism when they're at that age it can't be just what he's eating 'trying to get fat' there must something to do with how you were feeding him and treating him - how long has he been overweight? Is this weight increase recent? Has he ever been skinny?

Do not listen to this poster. Not all kids rub around like crazy. Our son loves eating and hates sports. We have to resort to making him exercise and watching his food and it is very difficult.

I actually think you need to talk to him about why he wants to fat. It is possible, although unlikely this is in response to someone inappropriately touching him.

Not that pp but it is common for people who have been sexually abused to want weight on themselves as "protection." I know, I am one of those people.

To me, it just sounds like he likes being larger. He can be finny, torment his sibling, and annoy op. Ask him why he wants to be larger op. Is he having issues with peers at school? Is this a way to distract them? Does he feel more in charge when he is larger?
What was your reasoning behind that??

[Anonymous]

Put me down as another Pokemon Go advocate!

I was also a non believer in the mystical powers of Pokemon Go... that is until I went "Pokehunting" with my kids too & I loved it right from the start.

It's so much fun, like a great big scavenger hunt however instead of searching for specific things, you never know what you'll get (which is the exciting part!).
It definitely has made us closer as a family, where as before my kids wanted to rip each other's hair out if they had to spend 5 minutes together... but now, they've actually teamed up to play & ate getting along better than they have since... well, ever actually, lol.

I also lost about 6 pounds from all of the walking (I'm jealous of all you others that have lost so much weight) but the best part is that you're not walking for exercise you're walking for fun, so it's much more pleasurable thang exercise.

We've now started a "Poke night" in our neighborhood & all of the neighborhood kids & their parents play on the team based on the team you choose when you start Pokemon Go & they wear a shirt that corresponds with their color (Team Mystic/Blue, Team Valor/Red & Team Instinct/Yellow).
We split up & "Pokehunt" for an hour or two (based on the weather & temperature) & whichever team catches the best at the end of the night wins.

I too was one of those people who thought it was silly watching all of these people running around playing, bit it wasn't until I actually played with my kids that I understood.
I shouldn't have knocked it until I tried it.

OP, this would be perfect for your son, as he won't have a clue he's even exercising. He'll just simply think he's having fun.