A interesting dicussion taking place between parents and personal trainers is about how to develop child fitness in the early years. One popular personal trainer advises parents to take their children as often as possible to playgrounds for the “circuit training approach” to fitness. The “circuit training approach” involves using all of the components of fitness training such as strength, power, muscular edurance, aerobic fitness, balance and flexibility being “trained within the same workout with little or no rest between exercises” instead of traditional approaches in which each compontent of fitness training is focused on separately. Playtime at the playground incorparates the use of the “circuit training approach”. For example, according to a popular fitness instructor “swinging on monkey bars builds muscle endurance for the entire upper body, running up the stairs repeatedly to go down slides builds lower body endurance….swining on swings, climbing rope walls all help develop balance and flexibility”.
Based on research the benefits of playgrounds do not stop at fitness, there are many other benefits playgrounds offer such as providing the opportunities for children to develop their motor, social, emotional, and coginitive skills all of this is based on much research. Futhermore research on the subject of child brain development shows that “children who do not get the crucial interaction obtained through free play in their first six years will face a lifetime of limited brain power.”
Seeing how playgrounds are such a vital part on child development it is worth the effort to make sure they are properly surfaced for safety, please see our products and how ProDek can help your local playground become your child’s favorite place for safe fun.
