Making Connections: Physical Activity & Mental Health

Child development takes place simultaneously across every domain; the domains all support one another. That means all the elements of your kids’ health are connected – their physical health is a part of their mental health and vice versa.

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Physical Activity & Mental Health

There is no part of the body that doesn’t benefit from physical activity!

When kids get 60 minutes of play (doing moderate to vigorous activity) every day, feelings of anxiety, depression, stress, and psychological distress can all improve.

Physical activity can also promote higher levels of a positive self-image, life satisfaction, and psychological well-being both at the present time and over an extended period.

Exercise is linked to better thinking skills, including the set of skills used for learning, solving problems, and self-control.

In the short term, regular physical activity can improve behavior and attention skills. In the long term, active kids have better academic performance, on average.

4 Simple Ways to Get Moving

Make reading a physical activity by imitating the movements of the characters in the story: waddle like a duck, chase a ball like a dog, dance and twirl, go on a treasure hunt, etc.

Move as a family by adding a daily walk into your evening routine.

Make the weather an experience: run through puddles; build a snowman; rake leaves into piles to jump in; go on a tour of the parks in your town.

Find the hook: exercise should be fun! Find activities your kids will be most interested in or most likely to enjoy and build from there.