Planning healthy activities for your children this summer is an important step for them both in terms of physical development but also in terms of setting their future attitude towards health and fitness. If children are encouraged to be active from a young age, this trend often continues throughout their life.

At Hertsmere Leisure, they are great advocates of healthy activities for all the family. During the summer holidays, it can be difficult to create and plan wholesome exercises everyday for your children. Allowing a couple of hours of TV time can be a great way for you to reclaim some time to do your tasks.

While there a hundreds of great outdoor activities that you can do with your children, with little to no cost, such as going to the park and playing football or hopscotch in the backyard. If you are struggling for time, perhaps you could team up with other parents and take turns taking the kids to a class at your local leisure centre. While swimming classes are the classic summer option, it will be a complicated routine to get multiple children showered and dry unless they are at the age when they do most of the work themselves. For younger children, a trip to a Playzoneor a runaround centre offers a chance for them to interact with other children and to work on their climbing skills (while surrounded by padding).

For children over five the range of structured classes is more realistic with options such as junior cricket, basketball or martial arts.  Some leisure centres have even introduced junior Zumba, so your little one can dance their way to fitness, while listening to the latest tunes.

This said keeping your kids be healthy and happy this summer, need not mean eight weeks of shipping them from class to class. There are tonnes of everyday activities that can be added to your day, without stopping you from getting things done. Parking the car further away from your destination, or tasking older children with fetching items at the supermarket both add to your general activity level.