Exercise for high school age children/adolescents

Most parents will attest to wanting to keep their children ‘busy’ during this stage of life to prevent them from having idle time and getting up to no good! Participation in sport/exercise is a great way to do this and has a bunch of other benefits such as providing a good social outlet for your kids, teaching them the enjoyment of movement through sport of activity and even providing an opportunity for you to connect with your child through shared physical activity (think walking, bike riding, kicking the footy together).

Key exercise tips for high school age kids

Some kids will enjoy being part of sporting teams and competing, others won’t like the ‘spot light’ of competitive sport but should be encouraged to participate for the ‘fun’ of it.

Sport/exercise can be a great outlet for teaching your young ones skills to manage ‘stress’……this could be as basic as taking an evening walk.

Gym based training/weight training can be introduced at this age if your child shows an interest but spinal safety and correct lifting technique are really important for developing bodies. In addition the loads lifted need to be moderated for growing bodies so getting some professional input is important so that kids don’t just learn their way around the gym from their mates who may not know any better.

Making some of your family time ‘physical’ is a great way to encourage your kids to enjoy exercise for how it makes them feel and for the opportunity to spend time together

Overall, physical activity/exercise should still be about having fun but also with the idea that it’s really good for you as well

-Kristin Lewis