National Kids Fitness Day

National Kids Fitness Day is celebrated annually on May 4th to commemorate the power of physical fitness has to change lives.

National Kids Fitness Day gives kids a voice to share how fitness empowers us. Throughout this day, participate in community events and advocacy. Accumulate sweat and share your inspiration. Whether you're just starting out on your path or have a full journey to share, this is the day to say it. While doing so, focus on your physical goals and take a step towards empowering yourself.

Some of the benefits that physical activity offers kids

1. It strengthens the heart. The heart is a muscle and like other muscles, its performance improves when it is regularly challenged with exercise. The heart responds to exercise by becoming increasingly stronger and healthier. Strengthening the heart muscle can help prevent heart disease the leading cause of death in the United States, according to the US Department of Health and Human Services even in childhood.

2. It helps keep the arteries and veins clear. Exercise lowers the amount of cholesterol and harmful fats in a person's blood. It increases the flexibility of blood vessel walls and helps to lower blood pressure. It can prevent a person from the risk of heart attack and stroke.

3. It strengthens the lungs. Hard work increases the capacity of the lungs and their efficiency in moving air in and out of the body. As a result, more oxygen is drawn into the body and more carbon dioxide and other waste products are expelled. Regular exercise helps prevent the decline in oxygen levels that occur naturally with age or due to inactivity.

4. It lowers blood sugar. Exercise prevents sugar from building up in the blood by triggering the muscles to absorb more glucose from the blood and use it for energy, which can protect a person from the risk of developing diabetes.

5. It controls the weight. If you are sedentary, you tend to absorb more calories than your demand. These unused calories are stored as fat. A physically active person can go into a calorie deficit, which helps to lose fat and lose weight. Losing weight is good for the heart and may benefit people with diabetes.

6. It strengthens bones. Just as muscles grow stronger under physical stress, so do bones respond by getting stronger. Adults start to lose bone mass in their 20s, but those who exercise regularly achieve higher peak bone density (before the loss) than those who don't, according to the National Institutes of Health. Increasing bone density helps prevent osteoporosis, a condition in which bones lose density, weaken, and become porous and brittle.

7. It helps prevent cancer. If you do exercise regularly, you will have lower rates of cancer. The most affected cancers include colon, prostate, uterine and breast cancers.

8. It regulates blood pressure. Exercise has been demonstrated to reduce stress levels. When stress levels in a person's body drop, their blood pressure and risk of heart disease drop.

9. It improves energy levels. Regular exercise makes people feel more energetic, allows them to be more active, and reduces the likelihood that they will be tired during the day.

10. It enhances emotional well-being. Most people report feeling calm and refreshed after exercising. According to one theory, exercise releases beta-endorphin, a naturally occurring substance in the body hundreds of times more potent than morphine.

How to celebrate National Kids Fitness Day

• Try something new. Incorporating another exercise creates a whole new perspective on physical fitness. If you are a runner, yoga can help increase flexibility and reduce injury.
• Add spice to your playlist. When was the last time you changed your workout song? Play around for a bit and see if you don't have much spring left in the step-by-step class.
• Invite new faces. The more the merrier and we all need motivation some days.
• Find some inspiration. Whether it's the feeling of sweating on your face or the satisfaction of doing that hill, find a reason to feel better and keep going.