Healthy Bodies

• Build a healthy heart, bones, and muscles
• Helps to maintain a healthy weight

Positive Self Esteem

• Helps children feel good about themselves, and provides opportunities to master a skill
• Fosters confidence to resist peer pressure to do drugs, sex etc

Good Mental Health

• Reduces anxiety and depression
• Helps children to deal with stress

Better Grades

• Improves memory and concentration, fosters creativity and problem-solving skills/abilities
• Burns excess energy

Drug Free Lives

• Shows children how to have fun without turning to alcohol and other drugs

Social Skills

• Provides opportunities to make friends, learn team building skills and self-discipline

How much is enough?

The Canadian Physical Activity Guidelines for Children (5-11 years of age) and Youth (12 - 17 years of age) recommend that children get 60 minutes of moderate (brisk walking, etc) to vigorous activity (running etc) each day. This means that children need to be active at home, at school or day care, and at play.

Is my child active enough?

Active Facts

Only 7% of Canadian children and youth are meeting the new Canadian Physical Activity Guidelines of at least 60 minutes of MVPA per day (2007-09 CHMS).

Canada has developed a set of sedentary guidelines to help parents and caregivers set limits for time spent inactive. Click here for guidelines for children between the ages of 5 - 11. Click here for guidelines for chilren aged 12 - 17.

Sadly, "… by the age of six, both girls and boys believe that boys are better than girls at physical activity … the cardiovascular fitness levels of girls begins to decline at age 10 …" Dahlgren, 1988

Interestingly, mothers have a higher impact than fathers on whether their child is active. "The father’s participation in sport increases the participation of his children by 11%, while the mother had a greater effect (an increase of 22%)." statistics Canada 1994

Links to Get Kids Active

• Sign up for our Happy, Healthy Kids for our seasonal, low-cost, local tips and recipes coming to your inbox each month!
• Download a copy of The Busy Parents Guide to Healthy, Happy Kids for some more great tips to get kids growing up healthy and feeling good about themselves.
• Explore the Big Boreal Adventure, which is an interactive way to encourage people to get outside, explore Thunder Bay, have fun with family & friends and learn about natural areas in the city.
• Help your child develop "physical literacy" skills, which are basic movement skills that help a child move comfortably and confidently in physical activity situations. 
• Find more information on healthy eating and physical activity for preschool age children (2-5 years) see the Dietitians of Canada Website.
• View Eat Right Be Active, which is a guide for parents and caregivers of preschoolers ages 3 to 5. Topics covered include: how much food to offer; suggested ideas for breakfast, snacks, lunch and dinner; feeding challenges; active living ideas to do together; and sample activities to build physical skills.
• View Eat Right Be Active, which is a guide for parents and caregivers of children ages 6 to 8, which provides information and tips to support parents and caregivers to help ensure that children have access to environments that support healthy eating and physical activity at school and in the community as well as at home.