Do your children get 60 mins of active time a day? Add your comment and you could win a £100 voucher - NOW CLOSED

[AnnMumsnet]

We've been asked by the team at Seara to find out if (and how) your children (aged 5-18) (and other children you know) are getting the full recommended 60 minutes of physical activity a day?

For guidelines see the NHS Choices site

Please share your thoughts and experiences on this thread. Please also share your tips for what you do to encourage your DC's to be active - or what you do with your DC's to get them active?

Share your tips etc on this thread and you'll be entered into a prize draw where one MNer will win a £100 Love2Shop voucher.

We do recognise that, for various reasons, not all children (or adults) are able to reach the target of 60 minutes of exercise per day - and that 'exercise' can mean different things for different people. If this is the case for your child, do also feel free to share your experiences about how you encourage physical activity in ways that are consistent with their capacities.

thanks and good luck
MNHQ

Also: Seara are running a "Grassroots To Greatness Competition" at the moment: enter your childs' football team into the competition for their chance to win a Seara football sponsorship for next season - worth £3,000! More details here //www.seara.co.uk

[poshme]

Sometimes 60 minutes a day- at weekends a dog walk or bike ride each day - at least an hour.Once a week cricket club after school. Most days at least 10-20 minutes trampolining unless weathers horrible. 10 minutes to and from School walking or scooting.
It is quite weather dependent.

[poshme]

Oops - forgot tips. Um- have a trampoline! Sometimes bribes- so eg when we take dog for walk we have treats along the way- maybe a haribo each or something.
Making it part of family life - we all go for walk or bike ride even though I'd rather sit on the sofa
We also do gardening which is quite active- digging etc which makes it fun.

[HomageToCannelloni]

No worries about our two, the difficulty is getting them to come IN from the garden at bath time! We are all out in the evenings in decent enough weather though. (by which I mean not freezing, none of us mind a spot of rain!)
Scooters, dens, bikes, ride on vehicles that need peddaling, trampoline, gym bar, jumps...they are real outdoorsy kids.

[HomageToCannelloni]

Oh and tips....well I'm not sure we have consciously done anything. Except be out there a lot ourselves. they do have a Wii, but I can't remember the last time it was used...ditto the tv. Though we do use them more in the winter. We did though rent a house with a huge garden with wild spaces, rather than buy a house with a small garden...for which we will probably pay through the teeth when we get older...ho hum!

[QueenandKingMum]

My 5 and 7 year old get their 60 minutes a day by scootering or walking to school, playtime at school, after school sports clubs or swim lessons. We also have a trampoline in the garden which is a daily exercise!

My children are naturally active, getting them to move is never a hardship, we are a very active family, but I would just recommend it's fun and child centred.

[Ragwort]

My DS (12) is really into cricket and plays most nights but not sure how active that is - involves a lot of standing around .

Generally though he is a pretty active child, often walks to school (40 mins each way), goes out on his bike, loves all school sports etc etc. Is a very healthy weight and doesn't even like sweets/chocolates/puddings etc

Now I just wish I had the motivation to do 60 mins exercise a day - perhaps he could encourage me !

[megandraper]

My 5yo definitely does - 15 mins each way walking/scooting to/from school, plus PE, running around at playtime at school, running around with siblings at home, swimming and cycling at weekends.

My 3yo only walks/scoots one way to school/nursery and rides in pram other way (tired), but does all the other stuff.

My 1yo just dashes about everywhere at home, but rides in the pram for school run.

My tips.

• Build it in to your day, so walk to school (or part of the way) if at all possible. Walk to places at the weekend, make the walk part of the outing.
  
• Don't have TV on in the day. We don't, and my 3 just play together (with some outbreaks of arguing, natch, all the time, running around and keeping active. Doesn't occur to them not to.
  
• At the weekend, make getting outside a priority, and start young with activities that involve walking but are fun for kids.

[AnAirOfHope]

I have a 4 & 1yo.

4yo walks to and back from school five days a week
An hour football training Monday. Tue and Wednesday
swimming an hour an half on Thursday
Two hours running round at soft play on Fridays
Saturday is playing at home with an hour playing in garden with football or playing raceing cars
Sunday is playing at gp so walking their dog, playing chase and football.

So yes he gets at least 60 minutes per day. He also plays out at school and has pe and sports day.

He is just that type of person that wants to be active and I couldnt keep him still if I tried.
1yo is not the same and I have to make her walk or play outside. She perfers reading and talking and sitting a lot.

[NorkyButNice]

DS1 (5) would sit on the sofa and watch TV all day if I let him so luckily his school is hot on getting them all up and moving at every opportunity.

He also does swimming, gymnastics and athletics which he loves.

[AtYourCervix]

Both of mine do with just the walk to and from school and always have.

Apart from that.....

DD1 (17) does 2 hours dance, gym, tennis and general bouncing around all evening.

DD2 (15) does virtually nothing and is bone idle.

[iseenodust]

DS (8) does as a minimum in a week
3.5 hrs tennis
1.5 hrs cricket
2 hrs football club
(more of any of above if there are team matches)
football every lunchtime at school
ball games in the back garden
sometimes walks the dog with me
but no walking to school as rural/too far.

[meglet]

yes, 6yo DS ad 4yo DD get an hour a day. As do I, I go mad when I'm ill and unable to get out the house.

They walk to school / nursery every day (barring torrential rain).
Swimming lessons one day a week.
Playing in the park for up to an hour some days after school.
Long walks at the weekend.
If I'm doing an exercise DVD they join in.

I'm concerned about how they will be able to be active when they are teenagers, don't some schools have short lunch breaks these days? Barely time for them to eat and stretch their legs. I have vague plans to join them up to my gym as they can do the classes from age 14 .

[unadulterateddad]

I'm lucky my DS loves being active

Swimming and cycling are great activities that can last for over an hour.

Getting a dog also helped - hour long walks are happily undertaken come rain or shine

[InMySpareTime]

My two easily get 60 minutes exercise a day, sometimes before breakfast. On nice days they're out on bikes at every opportunity, or we'll go for walks along the river/ transpennine trail. DS plays rugby, we walk the school run etc.
DD likes doing yoga and Pilates on the wii fit, between us we do a fair bit of exercise.

[Tee2072]

Well, he's only four, but yes he does. At least.

He walks 3 miles round trip to school and usually has a run around the garden for at least 30 minutes an afternoon.

[nenevomito]

DS easily gets 60 mins + on the weekend as he does swimming, is constantly on the trampoline and we go for bike rides that easily last over an hour.

Weekdays are bit more tricky, but he runs around in the playground at breaks and lunch, does gymnastics and JuJitsu and goes on the trampoline a lot so long as its not raining.

When its light in the evenings its a lot easier for them to do the 60 mins. When its winter, so they can't go out in the garden all the time, its more difficult.

[Taffeta]

DS (9) plays football for 2 hours x 4 pw in season, cricket 2 hours pw, tennis 1 hr pw, rugby 1 hr pw as well as playing football tennis and cricket in the garden whenever he can talk someone into it.
DD (6) does gym 1 hr pw, swimming 1 hr pw, horse riding once pw and plays in the garden a lot. They also usually run around at school on the playground and grass for min 45 minutes each day. Often they will stay on the school playground or grass for 30 mins at the end of the day playing.

We cycle irregularly as a family as DS and DD are at very different levels. We should walk to school more, it's a mile, but I try to start work ASAP after dropping them off and getting home eats into this time. When and if the weather ever improves I will try and walk them twice a week.

DD likes the climbing frame, the bars especially. Other than that, friends round to play usually ensures some running round in the garden.

[Kveta]

god, my kids get at least 60 minutes active time every night, let alone during the day! they are 1 and 3.8 though.

[Wishihadabs]

Yes. Ds 9, dd 6. They do something every night after school. Even if it's just going to the park to kick a ball. At the weekend we all go on bikerides, /swimming/roller disco together.They do PE twice a week at school and swim everyday in the summer.

TBH the school is great they offer football, rugby, ballet, swimming and caporeia classes after school for minimal cost (2:50) so that helps. I take who ever doesn't have a club to the park for a run whilst the other does their activity. The only day with no clubs is Friday, so I suppose on a wet Friday in winter they might not getan hour otherwise always.

[LittleAbruzzenBear]

DS1 is 4YO and we walk to school so that is 45mins a day for him, then playing on his scooter/cycling/running around in th garden for 20mins a day (longer if the weather is better). I think the weather is against us in the UK. Other countries watch less tv and are able to spend more time outside because it's sunny. Who wants to muck about with wet weather gear all the time! He had his first sports day today and was nimble and had stamina, definitely the walking helping.

[Alanna1]

Mine struggle. My toddler DD1 is in full time nursery with limited outdoor space. She is supposed to go out twice a day at nursery, weather permitting. We both work FT. We try to take her home via the park at least twice a week, and she runs about in the garden at home in the evenings and where possible in the mornings, weather permitting. We try to prioritise activities involving exercise and outdoor time for at least two hours both days at the weekend, morning and afternoon - swimming, walking to shops, etc. And I use every excuse to get her to go up and down the stairs at home! But its tough and I don't think she gets enough. When she can walk the distance to nursery with me it will be better I hope.

[ChunkyPickle]

Yes. He's 2, and we spend an hour a day just walking about (not to go anywhere, he just demands walks like a puppy).

Then he'll run (and jump) to the station and back to meet his dad (15 mins), and of course there's the general running and jumping around the house that all toddlers do, and whatever he gets up to at nursery!

This is with pregnant me lagging behind being encouraged to 'come on mum' 'mama JUMP' 'ready, steady, GO... Run mama!' at least I get my exercise too

[skyeskyeskye]

DD is 5yo. She doesn't get an hour a day, but she walks to school and back every day, which is about ten minutes. She spends most of her school break running around.

She has a trampoline that she loves and is out bouncing around on it at every opportunity. We always walk to the shops and she does PE once a week. She goes to after school club once a week and they are outside running around when the weather is good.

Best thing we ever did was to get the trampoline