Camp Pocono Trails has More than Just Fun to Offer

Almost every day, we hear in the news about our heavy kids and their poor eating and exercise habits.

The Mayo Clinic website states about childhood obesity, “One of the best strategies to reduce childhood obesity is to improve the diet and exercise habits of your entire family. Treating and preventing childhood obesity helps protect the health of your child now and in the future.”

Great news – Camp Pocono Trails in Reeders, Pennsylvania, can do just that – help children learn new habits while having fun in the setting of a beautiful summer camp. This summer, they will host over 400 children, ages 7 to 19 in their quest to lose weight and get healthier.

The camp is not just for the obese; children who need to lose 10-20 pounds also attend the camp. They learn healthy habits including portion control, smart food choices and the benefits of daily exercise.

The camp includes separate swimming pools for boys and girls, a 7,000 square foot gymnasium for rainy days and personal beds instead of bunk beds.

Family First was able to interview the owner and director of the camp, Tony Sparber. Here are his answers to our questions:

FF: How do most of the kids find the camp – is it parents telling them to go?

TS: In the old days, you shipped them off.  Today they ask their parents to send them.  We have a safe and nurturing environment.

FF: Are doctors recommending the camps to patients?

TS: Yes, doctors definitely recommend the camp to hinder bad habits such as over eating and to combat the inactivity that often plagues children over the summer.

FF: Do kids come back and lose more weight or do they gain it back and need to come back?

TS: We have had previous campers who are no longer dangerously overweight come back just to lose the last five or ten pounds. Kids often come back to reunite with their friends that they have bonded with over a previous summer.

FF: Can you come even in you aren’t super heavy? 

TS: When I first began, only extremely overweight kids attended our camp and they were mostly girls. Now the camp is comprised of 40% boys, as well as kids who only need to lose 10, 20, 30 pounds.

FF: Do you have plans to expand?

TS: Camp Pocono Trails is bringing back its “mom’s camp” this summer.

Moms will spend 1-to-3 1/2 weeks living at the 350-acre Sylvan Lake setting in more upscale cabins. They will participate in the endless activities the camp offers: nutrition and cooking classes, personal training, fitness boot camp, water aerobics, tennis and canoeing. Previous camper moms were so active they lost weight alongside their kids. We are also looking to branch out beyond the camp into doing “teen tours” for the older age groups over the summer months.

FF: What are the favorite things kids like there?

TS: Water sports such as water skiing, kayaking, canoeing, swimming, banana boating, and monster tubing, as well as excursions to places such as amusement parks and miniature golf courses and days spend hiking or horseback riding on the nature trails.

FF: Do you spend time educating them on food choice and exercise so they learn new habits while they’re there?

TS: Besides attending weekly nutrition and cooking classes, the camp has a rigorous follow-up program once the kids go home, so they don’t slip back into their old habits.

FF: What support to they have when they get back – like from parents, counselors, etc?

TS: As a parent, it’s best to have a clear understanding of the education provided, levels of activity expected, and the goal setting techniques used to track progress.

It is also vital to understand the role families play when a child returns home. Parents should be responsible for upholding the concepts kids learn and should set good examples throughout the school year.

Camp Pocono Trails — the only private, traditional, weight-loss camp accredited by the American Camping Association — has been featured in MTV documentaries, “Fat Camp” and “Return to Fat Camp,” as well as on “Good Morning America,” “Dr. Phil” and “The Today Show.” For more information, please visit www.CampPoconoTrails.com.

Marijo Tinlin is the Editor in Chief of Family First, one of the oldest family-oriented websites on the internet. She is also the author of a book about patriotism and teaching our children to love this country called “How to Raise an American Patriot, Making it Okay for Our Kids to Be Proud to Be American.”  It features 13 interviews with patriotic Americans including Ed Meese, Erick Erickson and Jackie Gingrich Cushman. It’s available at www.raisinganamericanpatriot.com.