Teaching children to be active and healthy from birth

Rae Pica, a children’s physical activity specialist for 25 years and the author of 15 books wrote an article that reports: Recent evidence indicates infants are spending upwards of sixty waking hours a week in things; in high chairs and walkers, playpens and portable cribs, plastic seats, bouncy seats, and seats that swing. We push them in strollers until they’re four or five years old!

We unthinkingly teach a sedentary lifestyle from babyhood!Babies need to move for the sake of their motor and cognitive development. When they spend too much time containerized, they never strengthen their muscles – to lift and turn their heads, to push up on their arms, to develop optimal balance, stability, and motor skills. Early movement experiences are also considered essential to the neural stimulation (the use-it-or-lose-it principle involved in the keeping or pruning of brain cells) needed for healthy brain development. Touch and movement spark the neurons in a babies brain to grow and branch out encompass other neurons.

Adults assume that until an infant is at least able to creep, play and movement experiences are severely limited. But that’s just not so! There are many ways babies can move and play without the ability to transport themselves from place to place. Children learn to play just as they learn to walk and talk – by having it modeled and by experiencing it and practicing it.

Parents only want the best for their children. The simple truth is that babies don’t need fancy gadgets and gear. The best we have to offer them is what their brains were “hardwired” for before birth. It’s free and accessible to all. It is touch, movement and play!

Baby GYMTRIX is a new product that we love! It motivates kids to try new physical experiences and discover how it feels to succeed; it gives them a positive attitude about physical activity that can influence their whole lives. These great DVDs teach parents and caregivers how to help baby move, kick, balance, twist, roll and jump – a must-have for families that want to develop physical strength and a healthy lifestyle for exercise from birth.