How Much Exercise Do Children Really Need?
The new exercise guidelines for Americans have a separate section for children. We don’t always think about how often our kids move, but we probably should. More exercise means better sleep and better mood, not to mention helping kids set up for a healthier adult life.
The basics
Children 6 years and older should be active for about an hour a day. It doesn’t have to be structured sports practice or gym work, though: breaks are important, as is active play, such as fooling around on the playground or playing snowballs. Even short series of exercises are counted so that all the movements that children make in a day can be added up.
As they approach adolescence, they tend to slow down and exercise less. Of course, some may have enough time to exercise as part of sports teams or classes, but otherwise they begin to fall into the same habits that we do: sit at the table all day and laze around on the couch in the evening.
Toddlers between 3 and 5 should be active throughout the day. The new rules suggest three hours. This sounds a lot until you turn off the TV, pick up your iPad, and realize that young children are drawn to crawling and jumping all over the place as they play with their toys.
The new rules don’t apply to babies, but the Health and Physical Education Society has a few suggestions . Babies should interact with their caregivers in a variety of settings (take the child out for a walk!) And should have safe places to move around. So it’s a good idea to place the child in a child-safe space with some toys, for example, even if he is perfectly happy, tied to a swing or deck chair. And give them the opportunity to work on any developmental activity, such as resting for toddlers who are working to keep their heads up and roll.
Vigorous aerobic exercise
As an adult, I know when I’m doing light exercise (walking to the store) or vigorous exercise (running intervals on a treadmill). Children also need a mix of moderate and vigorous exercise, and the guidelines say that if you can chat easily while doing them, it won’t be vigorous.
At least three days a week (which can be part of the daily 60 minutes), children ages 6 and older should do vigorous exercise such as …
- Preschoolers: running games such as tagging, swimming, cycling or triking, dancing.
- School-age kids: Any of the above (at a level that seems challenging enough), plus running, jumping rope, skiing, and sports such as soccer or martial arts.
- Adolescents: Same as school-age children, but their sports preferences may differ.
Exercise to strengthen bones
Most of our bone mass is formed during adolescence, so exercise that strengthens bones is especially important. Fortunately, these are just exercises in which we support our own weight, for example, standing, not sitting. The bones get stronger with (safe) hits such as running, jumping and jumping. Children 6 years and older should do bone-strengthening exercises three days a week as part of a 60-minute course.
Here are some age-appropriate tips:
- Preschoolers: jumping, jumping, running, gymnastics.
- School-aged children: All of the above, including jumping rope, and sports that require quick changes of direction (such as soccer).
- Teens: running, jumping rope and more from soccer sports.
Muscle strengthening exercises
It’s important to get stronger (again, what kids are building now will help them throughout their lives), so strength training is just as important for kids as it is for us. Children 6 years of age and older should do muscle strengthening three days a week, again as part of their 60 minutes.
Here are some suggestions:
- Preschoolers: playground climbing, gymnastics, tug-of-war games.
- School-age kids: Any of the above, as well as climbing trees or ropes, doing strength yoga, or real strength training with your own body weights or elastic bands.
- Teens: Any of the above, plus machine or free weights training.