Towpath Trail YMCA Healthy Kids Day
THE TOWPATH TRAIL YMCA ENCOURAGES FAMILIES TO PUT PLAY IN THEIR DAY ON YMCA HEALTHY KIDS® DAY, APRIL 17th
As part of a nationwide effort to encourage kids to get moving, the Towpath Trail YMCA will host YMCA Healthy Kids Day, the nation’s largest health day for kids and families. YMCA Healthy Kids Day is filled with fun, engaging and creative activities that foster healthy living, and is a part of the YMCA’s larger efforts to help more kids and families become physically active. All activities are free and open to the public.
YMCA Healthy Kids Day at the Towpath Trail YMCA will provide resources to help educate grown-ups about making healthy choices for their families every day. There will be activities such as 10 minute pony rides, a bounce house, healthy snacks, and much, much more.
“Keeping kids healthy is at the core of what the YMCA stands for,” said Beth Alban, Associate Executive Director for the YMCA of Western Stark County. “The word ‘exercise’ doesn’t sound very enjoyable to many people, especially kids, but getting them to move more through play that requires physical activity is the key to building healthy habits that last a lifetime. On YMCA Healthy Kids Day, both kids and grown-ups will have the opportunity to get moving, to play and to have fun.”
Experts recommend that kids engage in at least 60 minutes of physical activity, including active play, each day. Studies show that kids who consistently engage in play are happier and healthier, and develop and enhance a variety of skills including motor skills, social skills, problem solving, and creativity. Kids who get 60 minutes of physical play also tend to have higher self-esteem and perform better academically.
To make more time for physical activity, the Towpath Trail YMCA offers simple ways to put more play in kids’ day, and to get the family moving more, too!
1. Make physical activity a regular part of family playtime – the more active kids are the more likely they are to continue being physically active later in life.
2. Allow kids to have unstructured playtime. All play is not created equal – kids need different types of play, including indoor and outdoor, active and inactive.
3. Reintroduce your child to the basics of active play: play hopscotch or basketball, jump rope, or enjoy games such as Red Light, Green Light and Simon Says.
4. Limit screen time and use of electronic media to allow more time for play.
“The goal of encouraging kids to play more is to build a lifetime of love for physical activity,” said Alban. “Play should not seem like a chore – it is an activity that is fun and brings joy, and allows a kid to just be a kid.”
More than 700,000 kids and families are expected to participate in YMCA Healthy Kids Day events at nearly 1,500 YMCAs nationwide. For more information about YMCA Healthy Kids Day, call the Towpath Trail YMCA at (330)879-0800 or visit www.weststarkymca.org.
About the Towpath Trail YMCA: The Towpath Trail YMCA, a branch of the YMCA of Western Stark County, has been serving its community since 2006 by providing programs that build a healthy spirit, mind, and body for all including child care, youth sports and recreation, health and wellness for youth, adults, and seniors, and social and community events. The Towpath Trail YMCA welcomes all who wish to participate and annually raises scholarship funds to help make that possible. In 2009, the Towpath Trail YMCA served 3320 members and 191 program participants from a diverse range of backgrounds. The Towpath Trail YMCA provided 232 people with financial assistance totaling more than $10,600.00 in 2009.
About YMCAs: The nation's 2,687 YMCAs serve 21 million people each year, including more than 9 million children under the age of 18. YMCAs respond to critical social needs by drawing on their collective strength as one of America's largest not-for-profit community service organizations. Through a variety of programs and services focused on the holistic development of children and youth, family strengthening, and health and well-being for all, YMCAs unite men, women and children of all ages, faiths, backgrounds, abilities and income levels. From urban areas to small towns, YMCAs have proudly served America's communities for nearly 160 years by building healthy spirit, mind and body for all. Visit www.ymca.net to find your local YMCA.
