Keeping Children Active During Lockdown

We’re in the grip of an obesity crisis costing our NHS dearly. And those with obesity and obesity related illnesses such as type 2 diabetes are at further risk of the Coronavirus pandemic that has all but stopped society in recent months.

Since the UK went into lockdown on 23rd March 2020, children have been restricted in terms of what they can do just as much as adults have. While parents try to work from home and homeschool their children too, it’s likely that the usual rules around screentime go out of the window. And with days out off the cards, school sport no longer feasible and all those active classes kids love suspended too, it could be harder than ever to keep your little ones active in lockdown.

But you’re here reading an article on how to do just that, so you’re already aware of the importance of doing so.

Here are our tips for keeping the little ones entertained over lockdown.

Training Drills in the Garden

Got little ones who love football? Or teens who play rugby? Whatever their favourite team sport, recreate some of their training drills in the garden.

They might not be able to engage in team sports right now, but the training elements of many such sports can be done in a smaller space and without the team around them.

Image credit: https://www.flickr.com/photos/188197504@N02/49833860381/in/dateposted-public/ Released under Creative Commons by footy.com.

Agility ladders and cones, for example, are low cost pieces of equipment you can acquire quickly. And putting these in the garden turns your lawn into a training space and helps keeps the little ones active.

Obstacle Courses

Creating obstacle courses in the garden or house can be entertaining as well as active. You don’t need special equipment. Crawling under chairs and climbing over boxes can be very physical. Let the little ones help you design the course and put their creativity to the test at the same time.

Explore Your Local Area

Walk in a direction you’ve never walked from your front door before. Find footpaths or walk to places you might simply have overlooked in the time since you’ve lived in your own.

By setting your childrens’ expectations that you’ll be getting out for a walk each day and setting challenges related to your local area, you can turn your daily exercise into something that’s as educational as it is physically beneficial.

Exercise Online

Joe Wicks is the best known of the fitness classes for kids that have gone online since lockdown began. But there are loads out there. A search on Youtube for “kid’s fitness class” will bring back a ton of videos and you can let your kids choose their favourite. For those days where it’s raining and nobody really feels like heading outside, this might be just the way to keep active.

It won’t be easy keeping everyone fit, healthy and active over an extended lockdown. And some days, routine might go out the window as parents juggle work with their new role as teacher too. But we hope these are some tips that might help you get the kids excited about being active at home.