Remember when you were a kid and you spent the entire weekend outside simply playing? Well, those childhood games can actually help get and keep you in shape.  These are fun, engaging activities that fall under the title “play,” which is very important for participation and adherence. People need to play and not think of it as exercise, says Fabio Comana, M.A., M.S., an exercise physiologist for the American Council on Exercise. “Plus, many of these are performed in a group-like setting, integrating a social aspect to the activity (a concept I like to call ‘relational fitness’). This, too, is very important to older adults, who generally become more isolated and withdraw as they age,” he adds.  

Here are a few of the more popular children’s activities, how to play them, and their benefits.

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Hopscotch

Benefits: According to Mieke Scripps, P.T., D.T., a physical therapist for the Miami City Ballet, hopscotch is great for balance, because of the alternating one- and two-foot stance, as well as strength. Hopping works all the leg muscles, and when on one leg the core or center muscles will be challenged. Bending down to pick up stones while on one leg is also great for balance and gluteal strength. In fact, hopping may improve “overall lower extremity mobility given the different movement planes (forward-back, sideways and rotational),” says Comana.

What You Need: Chalk or masking tape, a sidewalk, safe street and/or flat surface and a stone.

How You Play/Participate: Using chalk or masking tape, draw the following: A single box with the number one in it, then two boxes side-by-side centered right above the first box. These boxes should be labeled two and three. Next, draw a single box, centered above the two and three boxes. This box is labeled four. Continue with two more boxes labeled five and six, one centered above those boxes labeled seven, and finally two more — eight and nine — with a semicircle or half-moon at the top.

You play the game with two to four players (or more if you want). One person starts by tossing a stone into the first box. If you miss the box, you lose your turn. If the stone falls within the box, you get to go through the hopscotch course putting only one foot in each box. This means you alternately hop on one foot and land on two feet side by side. Skip the box with the stone in it along the way. The idea is to go through the entire course without losing your balance. After you get to the top, you head back down the course, picking up the stone when you come to it. If you complete the course without losing your balance, stepping on a line or missing one of the boxes, you then throw the stone to the next numbered box and repeat the process. If you do not complete the course, you must wait your turn and then start in the box where you ended your previous turn. Whoever completes the full course first wins.

How Many Calories You Burn*: About 5.9 calories per minute and 175.8 calories per half-hour.

Flying a Kite

Benefits: “It’s not much of a cardio workout, but it does get the body moving around, so I like it for a little challenge to overall body flexibility,” says Comana. Additionally, flying kites offers “scapular stability on the side you are flying. It also builds core strength and balance to stabilize the kite in strong wind,” says Scripps. But keep in mind that the “constant upward gaze might aggravate neck problems for some people,” adds H. James Phillips, P.T., Ph.D., School of Graduate Medical Education, Seton Hall University.

What You Need: A kite, wind, a wide open space.

How You Play: According to David Gomberg of Gomberg Kites (www.Gombergkites.com) in Oregon, “Before you can fly your kite, you need wind. The amount of wind you need depends on the kind of kite you have. Some kites are heavier and need more wind. Others are especially made to fly in light wind. But most kites are made to fly in average winds of between 4 and 10 miles per hour.”  How do you get the kite off the ground? 

“Stand with your back to the wind and hold your kite up as high as you can. Make sure the nose is pointing straight up, and then gently let it go. If the breeze is strong enough, the kite will start to rise. Slowly let out a little flying line, and the kite will fly back. Then, before it reaches the ground, tighten your grip on the line and the kite will start to rise again. All you need to do is repeat this process until the kite gets up into steady winds,” says Gomberg.

In lighter winds, have a friend hold your kite about 50 feet away and release it into the wind as you pull in on the flying line. The kite should shoot up into the sky. When you get a little height, let out more line, then pull in again to gain altitude.

Buying a kite? There are many types. Each has been designed to do something different in the sky. Gomberg recommends that beginners go with a simple design like a Delta Kite. “Look for a kite 5 to 7 feet wide and made of durable, lightweight materials. Expect to spend $20 to $30,” he adds.

How Many Calories You Burn*: About 3.5 calories per minute and 105.5 calories per half-hour.

Musical Chairs

Benefits: Great for agility, reflexes and balance, says Scripps.

What You Need: Chairs, a semi-open space, a person to manage the music. 

How You Play: You’ll need to move some furniture to clear some space. Then take about five or six chairs (depending on the number of players) – to be fair, they should be the same type. Place the chairs in a circle with the seats facing outward. You must have one less chair than the number of participants. The music starts, and the group walks around the chairs. When the music stops, everyone vies to sit in a chair. The player left standing is out of the game. You then eliminate one chair and start all over again. You keep taking away chairs until there is only one chair and two participants left. The one who gets the last chair wins.

How Many Calories You Burn*: About 5.9 calories per minute and 175.8 calories per half-hour.

Seesaw

Benefits: “It works the quads, hamstrings and calves for pushing off, hamstring and calf eccentrically when landing, and the up-and-down motion is good stimulus for the vestibular system, which helps with balance,” says Scripps. 

What You Need: A playground or back yard with a seesaw and one other person. A seesaw or teeter-totter is basically a long, narrow plank that is balanced perfectly on some sort of center piece. You can buy a seesaw (www.SwingSet.com) or build one with a kit (www.7thpeak.com).

How You Play: A seesaw needs two people. One person sits on each end, and then you start. One person pushes off the ground, while the other is automatically lowered. That person then pushes off, and the one opposite is lowered. This continues until you get tired.

How Many Calories You Burn*: About 2.9 calories per minute or 88 calories per half-hour.

*Based on a 155-pound person.
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CHARLES STUART PLATKIN is a nutrition and public health advocate, founder and editor of DietDetective.com, the health and fitness network. Copyright 2008 by Charles Stuart Platkin. All rights reserved. Sign up for the free Diet Detective newsletter and iTunes podcast at www.DietDetective.com.

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