Let me just start by asking you a question- which of the following is your number-1 priority for your family?
a) Wealth
b) Health
c) Knowledge
d) Travel
With no doubts in our minds, we would conclude that a healthy family is a happy family. However, the awareness for health and fitness is lacking amongst the masses. Even our education system is excessively focused on academics, so much that out of over 30 crore school going kids in India, only 12 lakh have access to a structured Physical Education. As a result, diseases such as diabetes, cardio-respiratory disorders, low immunity, and even clinical depression have become common in kids.
With government’s Fit-India initiative, sports has recently been promoted across many schools to engage kids in physical activities. While many kids have shown active participation, others exercise their choice not to play.
This is where fitness training becomes essential. If a kid plays a sport, they can excel in it only if they work on their fitness. If they don’t enjoy a sport, fitness is anyways like a life-saving drug.
A quick fact-check- no single sport covers all elements of fitness (namely strength, stamina, speed, agility, flexibility, balance, coordination, and body-composition). For ideal growth, we must create a balance between each of these elements.
Xfitkids is an award-winning start-up, focused on building solutions around making fitness measurable, inclusive and interesting. Kids are made to learn and perform a variety of functional skills and movements. Such skills have a huge carry over to other aspects of life such as improved mental health, increased ability to concentrate, boosts confidence, etc.
Another factor that helps kids enjoy fitness is the involvement of their parents. I believe kids draw a lot of inspiration from their parents. Many modern-day parents don’t find time to exercise, however they persuade their kids to do so. A quick-tip for parents would be to lead by setting an example. Of course, if we don’t take responsibility of our health, who else would.
Let’s conclude by just saying “Fitness for kids is not optional, but essential”
SOURCES:
https://fitindia.gov.in/