Physical Development In Early Childhood

Early childhood is primetime for shaping a child’s health and happiness. From nutrition to playtime, physical development in early childhood should be handled with care.

One of the key components in kids’ healthy development is weight bearing. Weight-bearing activities are exercises that force you to work against gravity, causing your muscles and bones to support your body weight, thereby strengthening them.

Crawling on all fours, jumping rope, climbing monkey bars, playing on a swing set, and bouncing on a trampoline are examples of weight-bearing activities, and are great ways to kickstart your little one’s physical development in early childhood.

Let's delve deeper into Vuly’s guide on the importance of weight-bearing for strong kiddos!

Why We Should Not Wait with Weight Bearing 

• Bone Strength: Weight-bearing exercises help in building and strengthening bones, reducing the risk of osteoporosis later in life.
  
  
• Muscle Development: These activities promote muscle growth and strength, enhancing overall physical fitness.
  
  
• Joint Health: Regular weight-bearing activities improve joint function and flexibility, which is crucial for growing children.
  
  
• Coordination and Balance: Engaging in these exercises helps develop better coordination and balance, essential for motor skills.
  
  
• Healthy Weight Management: Such activities can help maintain a healthy weight, reducing the risk of childhood obesity.
  
  
• Cardiovascular Health: Weight-bearing exercises improve heart health and increase cardiovascular endurance.
  
  
• Improved Posture: These activities can aid in developing proper posture and alignment.
  
  
• Enhanced Physical Stamina: Regular participation in weight-bearing exercises boosts overall stamina and energy levels.
  
  
• Boosted Immune System: Physical activity can strengthen the immune system, helping children stay healthier.
  
  
• Foundation for Lifelong Fitness: Early engagement in weight-bearing activities can instill a lifelong habit of physical fitness and well-being.

Weight-Bearing for Babies

Crawling is the first weight-bearing activity children do. This is great weight-bearing for the knees, wrists, hands, and hips. Before you know it, your little one is taking their first monumental steps, bearing their weight on their legs alone. 

While a baby will naturally go through these stages of development, a little nudge from mom and dad can help support physical development in early childhood. Remember that nature needs nurture!

Play is The Solution 

The best way to help children work on their overall development is through play. Walking, running and jumping strengthen the lower body from the hips and knees down to the ankles and feet. The upper body, on the other hand, can be developed by playground activities like hanging and climbing.

The Best Weight Bearing Activities for Children:

1. Jumping on a Trampoline

Trampolining is the physical activity equivalent of a superfood. It’s an activity that is fun and healthy at the same time; kind of like if a candy bar would be chock full with the benefits of broccoli. 

Apart from supporting strong bone development, proper balance, and laser-sharp coordination, trampoline time helps boost cardiovascular health, supports the lymphatic system, magnifies a happy mood, and amplifies social skills when your kids’ friends join in.   

Jumping on a trampoline also stimulates the muscles in the glutes, legs, back, and abdomen. Over time, this can increase the strength of muscles and bones. 

At the end of the day, all we want—and all kids want—is happiness - and trampolines provide fun in abundance. 

2. Animal Walks 

At some point in our lives, we all wanted to know what it felt like to be a cute puppy or a majestic horse walking on all fours. While this stance may be unnatural for us two-legged humans, adopting the posture for short periods of time can significantly build upper body strength and resilience.

Especially in early childhood development, animal walks can really stimulate children and can be a fun way to incorporate core strength into play. Many different animal walks exist, including bear walks, crab walks and dragon walks - all of which can make exercise for for children. 

 3. Monkey Bar Climbing  

Let’s be honest; the monkey bar challenge is not easy (even for adults!) However, this iconic playground staple is excellent for enhancing upper body strength, especially for the muscle groups on the back, shoulders, and arms. 

Children find doing the monkey bars much easier due to their relatively light weight. By practicing every day, the monkey bars can become instrumental in building confidence, coordination and even conquering the fear of heights. 

Backyard monkey bars also have many attachments. For example, Vuly's monkey bars have attachable soccer goals, basketball hoops and boxing bags - all of which can enhance the development of your kids. 

Check out our guide: How To Do The Monkey Bars 

 4. Swinging

Physical development in early childhood would not be complete without a swing set. Swinging is an effective means to stimulate various parts of a child’s brain at the same time. It helps the brain develop spatial awareness, balance, muscle control, and rhythm - in combination these develop proprioception. 

Novel swing sets like Vuly's also provide a great opportunity for weight bearing activities. Swing set attachments like the monkey swing give kids the opportunity to develop upper body strength, others like the 360 spin swing require kids to swing standing up, improving their lower body strength. 

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5. Running

Children's development is also highly dependent on activities that involve running. So make sure to sneak a game of tag into your kid's playtime. 

Running offers a myriad of benefits for child development, touching on physical, mental, emotional, and social aspects. Physically, running enhances cardiovascular health, strength, and endurance, while also aiding in healthy weight management and bone health. It helps develop motor skills, improving coordination, balance, and agility.

Mentally, running has been linked to better cognitive development, enhancing concentration, memory, and academic performance. It also acts as a stress reliever, promoting a sense of well-being and better sleep patterns, which are crucial for overall development.

Weight Bearing the Vuly Way

Since 2007, Vuly has been among the frontrunners for top-quality trampolines, swing sets, and monkey bars across the globe. 

Bringing smiles and functional playtime to households beyond borders, Vuly understands the importance of physical development in early childhood. 

Don’t wait to make weight bearing activities fun—browse our vast catalogue today! 

Take a look at our other guides below:

• The Importance of Physical Activity for Kids

• Recommended Amount of Physical Activity for Children & Adults?