There is no doubt that regular exercise is vital for good health, and this is true for everyone, young and old. Children need exercise so that they can maintain a healthy weight (child obesity is a reality), develop muscle strength and coordination, get better sleep, and simply have a good time playing with their friends and peers. On top of that, studies show that proper exercise can also aid a child’s mental development. Often, children get exercise from playing at parks or in a backyard, joining sports teams or clubs, or even taking martial arts classes. Anytime these options are not available, the child’s parents can take them to an indoor playground for kids. During heavy rain or snow, or a heat wave, kids indoor play structures can be a fine chance for a child to get out of the house and exert themselves safely and comfortably. Where might an indoor playground for kids, and what sort of features do these indoor playgrounds have?
Children and Exercise
There are good reasons for parents to bring their children to commercial indoor jungle gyms, according to the American Heart Association and similar agencies. The AHA, for its part, recommends that all children aged two and up engage in at least one hour’s worth of moderate physical activity per day, and elevate their heart rate. Similarly, the Sports and Fitness Industry Association classifies “active to a healthy level” as 25 minutes of high-calorie-burning physical work or play three times per week. The bad news is that many American children are falling short of these public standards, and just under one in three children to meet those standards for high-calorie-burning activity. What are children doing instead? Often, they are using electronic entertainment devices, ranging from computers to TV to handheld items, and very few of them involve physical activity. This leads to a sedentary lifestyle, and that, combined with fatty and sugary fast food, contributes to high obesity rates among children and adults alike.
Fortunately, it is never too late for anyone to get active, and children are often taken to parks or casual sports events to exert themselves. During rainy weather, or if the day’s schedule is busy, then an indoor playground for kids will be a fine alternative.
Where to Find an Indoor Playground for Kids
An indoor play area may have many of the same features as an outdoor one, such as slides, climbable surfaces, ramps, and even play balls or ball pits. Often, these structures are either in their own dedicated room, or they are separated by a low wall to keep the kids and general foot traffic apart. As for where to find them, commercial indoor play equipment may be found at a shopping mall, for example, often right there in the mall’s general area. Such play zones usually come with benches where responsible parents and guardians can sit and keep watch, and busy parents can drop off their children at an indoor playground for kids while they conduct their own business in the mall elsewhere.
Not only do malls have these play areas, but so do a variety of fast food restaurants. These play areas are built into large annexes, and those annexes have large windows so traffic can see them, and to keep them well lit. These indoor play zones often feature ball pits, slides, and plastic tubes where kids can climb inside, though kids may be urged to wash their hand after using this equipment. Also, many houses of worship feature play areas for children, both indoor and outdoor. Outdoor play areas may be fenced off, and indoor areas may feature small jungle gyms, play balls, and the like. Finally, regular gyms or fitness centers may also feature indoor play equipment for kids, since the gym’s main equipment and exercise areas are not child-friendly. A patron can drop off their child at the play zone (which will probably be its own dedicated room), and use this free time for their own exercise. The child will get a chance to play with the other patrons’ children and use play balls, jungle gyms, jump ropes, child-sized basketball hoops, and the like.
