With all of the interesting new gadgets, television programs and the internet kids have even more reason to sit around physically unactive. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, 8- to 18-year-olds watch about 4.5 hours of TV a day. And the average kid spends 7 hours on all screen media combined (TV, videos, and DVDs, computer outside of schoolwork, and video games).
Parents should know how much physical activity is suggested for your children. The National Association for Sport and Physical Education offers these activity guidelines for infants to 12 years of age:
|
Age |
Minimum Daily Activity |
Comments |
|
Infant |
No specific requirements |
Physical activity should encourage motor development |
|
Toddler |
1 hour 30 minutes or more |
30 minutes planned physical activity AND 60 minutes unstructured physical activity (free play) |
|
Preschooler |
2 hours of more |
60 minutes planned physical activity AND 60 minutes unstructured physical activity (free play) |
|
School age (5-12) |
2 hours or more |
Break up into bouts of 15 minutes or more |
Infants and young children should not be inactive for prolonged periods of time — no more than 1 hour unless they’re sleeping. School-age children (5-12) should not be inactive for periods longer than 2 hours.
Here are some fun outdoor activities you and your children can enjoy together – they can quite easily be exercise too!
Playing in the snow:
-
Skiing
-
Skating – bonus points if you shovel the rink first!
-
Build a snow fort
-
A good old-fashioned snowball fight – keep is safe – no ice, no hard packed snowballs and head and faces are off limits.
-
Snow angels
-
Build a family snowman
-
Snowshoeing
-
Go sledding – we promise you’ll have just as much fun as the kids!
-
Shovel the driveway together
When it comes to the well-being of your kids, it’s important to keep a proper balance of physical activity and T.V. time. When it’s too cold to go outside bring the kids to MyY! We offer a variety of programs and classes the whole family can enjoy!
Our programs are available for all age groups, check out what’s happening at your local MyY!