From Lockdown To Walkdown

Time to take steps and get exercise back on track

- Heather Greenaway

How are children going to cope after the longest summer holiday in history?

Health professionals are warning that schoolkids could be mentally and physically unhealthier than ever after Covid-19.

Four months of late nights, constant snacking, excessive screen time and limited exercise will have taken a physical and mental toll on the nation’s kids, making the return to school in August challenging.

But Dr Colin Moran, who is an associate professor of health sciences and sport at Stirling University and a dad of two, says there is still time to get them back on track.

When lockdown was announced, one of the things my wife and I decided to do was to change our kids’ day as little as possible and maintain a structure.

Bedtime is relatively unchanged – much to their disgust – but they need their sleep and we have kept meal and snack times the same.

We also have rules around snacking. They know if they eat fruit or something healthy at break times during the day, they can have chocolate after their dinner. It works because we are consistent and they know what’s happening – it’s all about sticking to a structure.