Children exercise by playing, and the majority of them like being active. It makes no difference if it’s gym class, running around during recess, dance class, soccer practice, riding bikes, or playing tag. All of this creates an opportunity for youngsters to engage in physical activity.
As parents, we want to encourage children to be active and confident in their physical abilities to establish a habit that will last a lifetime. Incorporating physical activity into their daily routine is both enjoyable and beneficial.
However, we don’t think about family exercise nearly enough. According to research, children are more likely to exercise if the entire family participates. Aside from that, there are various advantages to working out with your family.
We’ll go over the benefits of physical activity for kids and the whole family here. So, let’s get started.
Benefits of Physical Activity for Children
Aside from the physical benefits of regular exercise, there are also advantages for mental health and academic achievement. Children who exercise regularly will have:
- increased muscle and bone mass
- a lower chance of becoming overweight
- reduced risk of developing type 2 diabetes
- normal blood pressure and cholesterol levels
- a more positive attitude
- better sleep
- improved academic performance
- a better capability to deal with physical and emotional problems
Adults Are a Good Example for Children
Children watch and learn from their parents. So, here are some things you can do:
- Demonstrate to your child that you are physically active regularly.
- Suggest an activity, ask them what they’d like to play, and engage in it together.
- Emphasize physical activity’s social and physical advantages and foster an environment of acceptance regarding physical abilities.
- Reduce screen time to less than two hours per day, not just for your kids but for yourself (outside of work, of course). Restrict internet access to age-appropriate websites. Limit TV time and turn off the TV when the shows you want to see are done.
It’s important to remember that you’re a role model to your kids. Your children will use their screens less if you do.
Benefits of Physical Activity for the Whole Family
Apart from physical health, there are several advantages to family exercise. Let’s have a look at some of the benefits.
Developing Positive Habits
Obesity in children is a problem that we’re all aware of. Parents are trying hard to keep their children healthy, from healthy foods around the house to encourage more active play. Taking your child to playgrounds, sports practices, or playdates might be exhausting. Meanwhile, with games and movies, family time is frequently passive.
You can encourage your youngster to exercise by using the family time to do a physical activity together. It might be a walk in the park, playing catch, riding bikes together, or anything the entire family would like to do.
You’re forming behaviors that will last a lifetime by being active together as a family. Children typically continue on family traditions into adulthood, with family exercise being one among them. Children will associate physical activity with joy and community.
Spending Quality Time as a Family
Regarding family bonding, movies or games are frequently used to relax and unwind. However, family time usually doesn’t involve teamwork or even dialogue.
On the other hand, physical activity and family sports build a culture of collaboration and communication, which are critical to a child’s growth. Whether playing backyard softball or baseball or going for a stroll, you’re promoting the opportunity to communicate and work together as a family. You may create your own home batting cage so the whole family can participate and have fun burning off some energy.
Furthermore, there will be more opportunities to get to know one another. When you’re watching a movie or playing a game, you’re not constantly engaging with each other or paying attention to what the rest of the family is doing. But when you do family exercise, you pay great attention to how each child and adult responds and reacts. You’ll discover what inspires your youngster the most and how they function in groups. As a parent, this allows you to reward good behavior and correct any undesirable habits that may result from natural development.
A Chance for Parents to Be Encouraging
Parents are fantastic supporters of education and sports, but nothing beats active support during family time. Outside of family time, encouragement might come across as competitive, but it’s more positive when spending time with your kids. Furthermore, research has shown that the quality of family bonding and encouragement impacts a child’s mental health now and in the future.
Children build confidence through strong family bonds and sound family reinforcement. Additionally, parents and children participating in activities give youngsters growth and ownership. This sense of ownership and the capacity to partake in the same activities as their parents boost self-esteem.
Building Teamwork
At home, children develop more life skills than they do anywhere else. In education and athletics, teamwork can be taught and encouraged. However, if it is not reinforced at home, it is unlikely to become a lifelong habit. You’re encouraging collaboration and working together to reach a common objective by exercising together. This strengthens family bonds and teaches the value of setting and achieving goals as an individual and as a team.
The Real Benefits of physical activity
It’s all too easy in today’s environment to disregard both family time and physical activity. But exercising as a family can be an excellent way to bond and have fun. To keep everyone safe and avoid injury, always do a warm-up and cool-down routine together, and don’t forget to hydrate. Try coming up with your family playtime ideas to reap the benefits of enhanced health and bonding.