This past weekend, I saw a stat online that made the hair on the back of my neck stand up.
It said the average American child spends 4 to 7 minutes outside PER DAY.
I couldn’t believe it, so I looked for myself.
Yep - true. At least according to the Child Mind Institute.
The average kid spends 4 to 7 minutes per day outside and 7 hours in front of screen.
I launched this tweet into orbit and it caught some traction.
Endurance Gets You Outside
Without question, the #1 way endurance training has improved my health over the past 4 years is through 1,000+ hours of time outside.
That’s over 1,000 hours in sun and fresh air, with an elevated heart rate and (mostly) without headphones.
Here’s some Run and Ride data from Strava.
It dates back to when I started triathlon training in February 2019.
Run: estimating an average pace of 8:30 min/mile.. 2,325 miles adds up to over 350 hours.
Ride: estimating an average speed of 17 mph.. 12,534 miles adds up to over 737 hours.
Sure, some of those miles were done inside on the bike trainer or treadmill.
But that data also doesn’t include walks, hikes or open water swims.
Connecting The Dots To Obesity & Depression
Back to the theme of my tweet.
Here’s how I see it playing out for the average American child in 2023:
Feed kids soy/seed oil ridden formula (compromised neurological pathways)
Deprive them of sunlight and fresh air (compromised circadian rhythm and poor sleep cycles)
Put them in front of a screen all day (compromised dopamine release)
Feed them snacks with more seed oils and added sugar (compromised gut-microbiome and poor cravings)
Diagnose them with ADD/ADHD and get them on Adderall (develop inability to focus)
Diagnose them with anxiety or depression and get them on a SSRI like Citalopram (imbalance in all brain chemicals and reward systems)
Watch them gain weight and listen to some woke media outlet saying obesity is genetic
This is criminal.
Since I mentioned soy in my Tweet:
This isn’t a rant on soy/seed oils, but it’s a good chance to share that they’re the 2nd ingredient in Gerber baby formula.
This is the same stuff used as machine lubricant.
Why can we not just feed kids real food and get them outside, like how life has been lived for millennia?
”Just Wait Till You Have Kids”
I have no doubt that having a child will turn my world upside down and present challenge after challenge that I am not fully prepared for.
That’s why I’ve spent the last 4 years becoming adaptable, resilient and 100% committed to my goals.
And my new goal is to not let my kid become an obese and depressed statistic.
The habits endurance training has instilled will make spending time outside with my kid second nature.
Turn Off The TV
This is the best change in behavior I’ve made in the past 3 years.
I used to have ESPN on in the background all day.
Then whenever I had a free moment, I’d plop my ass on the couch and “relax” for a few minutes.
A few minutes inevitably turned into 20, 30, an hour and more.
Once I started endurance training (and building a side hustle), I became significantly more aware of how I was spending every hour of my day.
I gradually stopped watching as much TV, which made it extremely apparent how anxiety-inducing it was having it on in the background all day.
It gravitated towards taking my dog on a walk when I had a few spare minutes rather than plopping on the couch to watch the TV (that was already on).
How Convicted Am I…
In my desire to raise a happy and healthy child?
In my mission to provide a life of love, laughter and adventure for my child?
In my goal to finish days with my child covered in mud and full of memories?
VERY!!!
And it starts with spending time outside.
My first kid is due in April. I feel this deeply! I can’t believe those statistics are true. Thanks so much for this post.