I always try and keep my children entertained outside for as long as possible. I do this partly to encourage my family to lead a healthy lifestyle, but also because it’s considerably easier to keep the house tidy when the kids play outside.
Although I try my best, I recognise that I could do more to keep the kids active. Help has come from the most unlikely of sources; the World Cancer Research Fund, which has launched a campaign called the Move More Challenge (hashtag; #MoveMoreChallenge).
In case you haven’t heard of the WCRF, it’s a charity committed to promoting ways of preventing cancer. In a bid to encourage families to be more active, it has created an online ‘activity generator’. You answer a few simple questions, such as how much time you have and whether you are in an urban or rural environment. Based on your answers, the generator will come up with a list of ideas for you to try out.
The charity is encouraging families to sign up to the challenge and take part for two weeks. Some of the ideas are very straightforward i.e. playing with a bat and ball. Some are a bit more imaginative, such as tying a balloon to your ankles and tearing the garden as the children try to pop it.
I had a go trying out some of the ideas with the kids last night. They were a huge success and we had great fun.
You may be wondering what this has to do with cancer. The WCRF has just carried out some research in conjunction with the University of Bristol.
The research found that most children spend their time indoors at the end of the school day. The WCRF recommends that at least 30 minutes a day is spent undertaking physical activity to reduce the risk of getting cancer.
Like most people, I have lost relatives to cancer. I’m more than happy to undertake the challenge, both to reduce the cancer risk and also to keep the children active. I’ll write another blog post or two over the next couple of weeks and let you know how we get on.
Photo credit: FitnessFreakLA Published under Creative Commons agreement.
2 thoughts on “We’re doing the Move More Challenge”
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Glad you had a great time outdoors with your family. I’m a huge advocate of eating healthy, whole foods and keeping active. My daughter is only 7 months, but I show her how much I enjoy exercising and being outside so that hopefully she’ll join me soon!