TV fitness coach Joe Wicks has called on parents to start the day being active with their children during the summer holidays, using his free five-minute animated fitness series, Activate. The programme, backed by government funding, aims to combat inactivity among children during the six-week break.
Poll Reveals Parental Concerns Over Inactivity
A new poll of 2,000 parents of four to 11-year-olds in England, conducted by Censuswide in the first week of July, found that 88% worry their children will have too much sustained sedentary time over the summer holidays. Under one in five (18%) think their children will achieve the recommended 60 minutes of daily physical activity every day of the week during the break.
Speaking from Colindale Primary School in North London, Wicks told the Press Association: “What I’m trying to do is create resources to get kids active. We know that many parents struggle to get their children active during the summer holidays. I really do want to get more families exercising.”
Five Minutes of Exercise Can Make a Difference
Wicks emphasised that even short bursts of activity are beneficial. “One of the biggest barriers for people is time – they think they need an hour a day, or they need loads of activity and facilities and equipment. Actually, with these exercise workouts, you just need your body weight. It’s a five-minute little window and it’s a little win – it’s a small daily win.”
He added: “I always say that five minutes is better than no minutes. And maybe you do one, you feel great, and you do a second. What I’m really hoping is that parents see how much their children enjoy this and actually want to take part together, because then the children see this positive role modelling happening, and that would be a great way to start the day during the summer holiday.”
Government-Backed Programme Available on YouTube and CBeebies
Wicks was joined on the visit by Health Secretary James Murray to promote the use of the Activate programme, which is available on YouTube and CBeebies. Mr Murray told PA: “We know that even little bits of exercise are really important for people’s health, and we want to make sure the kids get into good habits. All those little bits of exercise really add up and make a real difference to people’s health.”
He added: “When kids are in school, there’s structured activity – there’s PE and there’s sport and so on. I think some parents are thinking: ‘Well, what’s going to happen over summer? How do I make sure my kids keep active?’ And this is an easy way for kids to put a little bit of activity into their daily lives, and it gives parents that reassurance that their kids are keeping active and keeping healthy.”
Created by Wicks and backed by funding from the Department of Health and Social Care, the series contains five-minute workouts set to popular songs from artists including Gala, Olly Alexander, Bastille, the Spice Girls, and Rizzle Kicks.
