Sophie and me off for her first run



I have been so impressed with my four-year old recently and her enthusiasm for exercise. We're an active family so it shouldn't really have been a surprise that she has being requesting to join me on my runs.

The first time we went running she was so excited! She rushed to get changed and was so happy that we were going for a run together. I was so proud of her and impressed that she wanted to run. Amazingly she managed to run most of the way, only stopping briefly to state she was "out of power". But each time, after a very brief break, she started running again with a smile on her face. In total we ran about 1km, not far for me but pretty impressive for a four-year old.

Although she had a busy day at pre-school on Wednesday, she was still keen to go running. So off we went with her 11-year old brother and his friend. This time Sophie found it tougher as she was already tired and enjoyed running part of the way holding either mine or her brother's hand. But she did it. Again she ran most of the way.

Indeed most of the children where I live seem to be quite active. The boys are often out on their bikes or playing football. Fortunately we live in a fairly safe cul-de-sac, so the older children can play in the street. And with a number of lovely parks close by there's plenty of opportunity for exercise.

In my opinion, children need lots of exercise, for the sake of their health and also to burn off some energy! I love running about with my children, bouncing on the trampoline and watching them participate in sport. I remember as a child cycling in the park with my parents, climbing trees and playing tennis as a family.

But it seems that active families like mine could soon be in the minority. Almost a quarter of 6-15 year olds cannot run even 400 metres, according to a survey that was published this week. A Generation of kids turn their back on sport That's only once around an athletics track! A shocking statistic.

Even worse, out of the 1,500 children interviewed, 225 had NEVER played a sport with their parents! In this glorious weather, what excuse is there? It's not expensive to buy a ball or a rounders kit and head to the park for some family fun.

A significant number of children questioned were also unable to swim or ride a bike. But more than three quarters had a games console and almost the same amount had a mobile phone. So it doesn't appear to be lack of money that is preventing children from learning these vital skills.

What kind of future can these kids expect?