Wellbeing

Welcome to our Wellbeing Page

Hi everyone,

Each fortnight I hope to pass on ideas, information and tips for maintaining our wellbeing. The information on this page will be for everyone in our family; children, teenagers and parents and carers. I hope that you find some time to read the information and possibly put something into practice.

This week I wanted to focus on our Physical Wellbeing, which along with our Mental and Emotional Wellbeing during a Covid lockdown, is just as important to think about. Many of us are sitting at home in front of screens for longer periods of time than we usually would be.

I would like to introduce you to Tom Collier who is a Physiotherapist at Back in Motion, located at 1/256 Bolton Street, Eltham. Tom has a special interest in working with children and adolescents to help manage injuries, keep them doing the things they love and to optimise sports performance.

Tom has kindly offered to provide our Monty PS community with information and ideas on various aspects of maintaining good Physical Health. This week I have attached two of his blogs; the first is about the benefits of kids being involved in sport and the second blog gives a good idea of how much exercise kids should aim for.

Enjoy reading and I am sure that you will find some valuable information in Tom’s blogs.

Take care and remember to dig deep for that extra dose of resilience required during this Lockdown 5.0.

Fiona

Kids sport – variety is the spice of life!

Growing up, I dreamt of being an AFL footballer. Full forward for Collingwood. Brownlow Medal. Premierships. The works.

For various reasons, the largest being a lack of skill, this did not pan out.

Many children have the same dream, to be a star in their given sport. They pursue this sport passionately from a young age, pouring blood, sweat, tears and countless hours into reaching this goal.

It turns out however, that focusing heavily on just one sport is not the greatest idea at a young age! There are many benefits in kids playing multiple, varying sports. These include:

Avoiding burnout: variation in sport helps to keep it fun, the main reason kids play sport!
Avoiding overuse injury: playing one sport uses growing bones and muscles in one way. Variety helps to develop different muscle groups rather than overloading the same ones.
Developing different skills: the more sports a child plays, the more opportunity they have to develop as a well-rounded athlete by learning different skills.
More opportunity to make friends: social interaction with a wider range of people.
Good life learning opportunities: as kids adapt to different challenges, coaches, teammates, and game styles, they will learn to be resilient and adaptable.

So, what does this mean practically for your child? It is okay to have a sport that your child is particularly good at and focuses on. But don’t forget to mix it up – help growing bones and muscles to encounter different loads, develop different athletic skill sets, help them to enjoy sport and have fun! This will ultimately lead to a better athlete in the long run.

This article is written by Tom Collier, Physiotherapist at Back In Motion Eltham.

If you would like further information, please contact our practice on 9439 6776 to book in a consultation with Tom.

How much exercise should my child be doing?

We live in a society where young people are spending more time on screens and less time being active. A recent government report suggests that a staggering 9 in 10 Australian young people don’t move enough 1! This raises serious concerns for the long-term health of our next generation.

As a parent, do you know how much activity your child should be doing? These are the recommendations according to “The National Physical Activity Guidelines 1”:

Young people aged 5-17 years should accumulate at least 60 minutes of moderate to vigorous intensity physical activity every day. 1
Young people’s physical activity should include a variety of aerobic activities, including some vigorous intensity activity. 1
On at least three days per week, young people should engage in activities that strengthen muscle and bone. 1
To achieve additional health benefits, young people should engage in more activity – up to several hours per day. 1
Young people aged 5-17 years should minimise the time they spend being sedentary every day. 1
Limit use of electronic media for entertainment (e.g. television, seated electronic games and computer use) to no more than two hours a day - lower levels are associated with reduced health risks. 1
Break up long periods of sitting as often as possible. 1

Why is this important? There are many benefits:

Social benefits

Creates opportunities to have fun with friends;
Reduces anti-social behaviour, including aggressive and disruptive actions; and
Develops cooperation and teamwork skills.

Emotional benefits

Improves self-esteem and confidence;
Helps you manage anxiety and stress; and
Improves concentration.

Physical benefits

Promotes healthy growth and development;
Builds strong muscles and bones;
Improves physical fitness, including coordination and movement skills; and
Reduces your risk of disease and unhealthy weight gain.

As a nation, we simply don’t move enough! The behaviours learnt at a young age will carry through life; this is why it is extremely important that children are being active. This does not have to be specific, organised sport – it can simply mean riding a bike for short trips instead of being driven, kicking the footy instead of playing on the iPad, going for a family walk instead of watching a movie. Physiotherapists love to get people moving, and here at Back In Motion Eltham our philosophy is ‘Movement for Life”, please get in touch if you would like to take steps towards a healthier lifestyle!

References:

The Australian Government: Department of Health: https://www1.health.gov.au/internet/main/publishing.nsf/Content/health-pubhlth-strateg-active-evidence.htm

This article is written by Tom Collier, Physiotherapist at Back In Motion Eltham.

If you would like further information in taking steps towards a healthier lifestyle for yourself or a family member, please contact our practice on 9439 6776 to book in an appoinment.