There are many adults who don’t like sports and many that do. While sport is a great way to get your exercise, if you don’t like it there are alternatives that can be found to keep fit. However, when raising a child it is important to involve them in sports from a young age. Studies have shown that playing sports as a child is the best way to ensure they don’t become overweight or obese in later years. Not only that but it is also a fantastic way to form social bonds. Sports help children to learn how to solve problems, deal with challenges, and deal with stress in a positive way. It is important to introduce your child to sports so they can get these key benefits and if later in life they choose not to pursue them any further that is totally fine. Here are the best sports for your child’s health.
Swimming
It will come as no surprise to most to see swimming at the top of the pile. This is not just a sport but a key skill in life. Teaching your child to swim will mean they can enjoy the water for the rest of their life instead of being afraid. It is also incredibly good for their physical fitness. While some sports are high impact swimming is zero impact. This means that people can train for swimming a lot more than other sports without the same risk of injury. It is a fantastic full-body workout that will leave the body toned.
Basketball
Basketball is not a zero-impact sport. The hard floor does involve impact and that is why we rank swimming ahead of it but Basketball is not far behind. Basketball requires excellent cardio fitness and teaches children to form social bonds and understanding. It gives them the opportunity to learn how to solve problems and it sets them up for the challenges of everyday life. If you can understand and solve the problems of the basketball court the world can seem a lot less scary.
Tennis
If you want your child to be a millionaire get them started young on either tennis or golf. These are the sports where children can become rich and famous by simply practicing. If your aim is not to use your child for financial gain, tennis is still a great sport. It is fun, competitive, and burns a lot of calories in a short amount of time. While it can be tricky to master it is easy to learn meaning that most kids will be able to pick up the sport relatively quickly and start to love it.
Cycling
Cycling is another low impact sport that is worth considering. This sport is particularly suited to children who won’t work well with others. If your child is shy you may be tempted to get them interested in cycling but it may not actually address the problem. Instead of cycling try an individual yet more directly competitive sport like table tennis. This allows them to have their own space but still to interact with others. Cycling is a fantastic way of keeping fit and is particularly beneficial for endurance in the lower body. This is a great sport but should be mixed with something that benefits the upper body as well.
These are a few of our favorite sports that you can introduce to children. As long as the sport you are considering is not high impact or dangerous then it can likely be introduced to your child. Ensure you check in with them regularly to be certain that they are having fun, being treated well, and want to be doing. Never force a child to do something they hate or they will resent you and the sport for it.