Brain - Body Research is foundation for Move with Me™ Action Adventures DVDs

Jan. 10, 2011 - PRLog -- www.move-with-me.com

Los Angeles, CA - Active play is the best preparatory activity for elementary school readiness.  Fit bodies and fit minds go together.  That is the consensus of the scientific research on the connection between movement, play, childhood development and academics, ongoing since the 1970’s.

Children need play, exercise and movement instruction to be fit physically, cognitively, socially and emotionally. Researchers have discovered that aerobic exercise can actually maximize emotional and cognitive function at any age. Harvard Medical Schools Department of Education has ongoing CEU courses on Exercise and the Brain instructing on the brain changes resulting from routines of physical exercise.  The courses teach the benefits of exercise as a prescription to manage mood, positively change attention, motivational, and impulse control levels.

Unfortunately, children’s level of physical activity has steadily declined over the past 40 years and the percentage of overweight children has tripled since the 1980’s.  The facts, per the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in the late 1970s, about 5% of children between 2 and 5 years old were overweight; in recent years that figure has climbed to nearly 14%. The prevalence of obesity among children aged 6 to 11 years increased from 6.5% in 1980 to 19.6% in 2008.

Studies indicate that when patterns of little physical activity are established early in childhood, the amount of physical activity continues to decline into adolescence and adulthood, leading to increased health problems & obesity and increased risk of cognitive disorders.  The physical activity patterns of childhood set up the physical patterns of adulthood, for better or for worse. The sooner this lack of physical activity is addressed; the better off the child’s overall health will be in the short and long-term.

Based on the current research the National Association for Sport and Physical Education suggests the following fitness guidelines for young children. Preschoolers (ages 3 to 5) should spend:
•   At least 60 minutes a day, cumulative, on structured physical activities
•   At least 60 minutes a day (and up to several hours) on unstructured physical activities
•   No more than 60 minutes at a time engaged in sedentary activities, unless they are sleeping

Move with Me™ is utilizing this research to revolutionize indoor active play. By combining stories with movement instruction, as well as self-care and self-reflection skills, called Adventure Skills,  Move with Me has created  a cutting-edge platform for preschool exercise programs and kids yoga and fitness DVDs.  Adventure Skills are woven into the action of all Move with Me follow-along stories.

Adventure skills are short exercises that help your child relax, reflect and connect with inner strength and knowledge when frustrated, confused, angry, sad or scared. Each technique is simple to do and can decrease stress and contribute to increased focus, coordination and self-control.  All 10 of Move with Me’s fun, creative, follow-along movement story DVDs enhance children's fitness, physical, mental and emotional, and make it easier for parents and teachers to involve children in more active play. Our DVDs are available on our online store: www.move-with-me.com .

About:  Move With Me™ Action Adventures (www.move-with-me.com) was founded by Mom-Movement Educator-Entrepreneur, Leah Kalish and her award-winning TV Writer/Producer husband Bruce Kalish.  After creating many successful activity and curriculum products for other companies such as Gaiam, Barefoot Books, Imaginazium  and Yoga Ed., Leah teamed up with Bruce to produce story and movement enrichment media.  Dedicated to her father, Howard Simpson, their intention is to engage, empower and educate the whole child through play.

Resources:

“Active Start: A Statement of Physical Activity Guidelines for Children Birth to Five Years. National Association for Sport and Physical Education.” National Association for Sport and Physical Education, 2009.

Burdette HL, Whitaker RC. “Resurrecting free play in young children: looking beyond
fitness and fatness to attention, affiliation, and affect.” Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med. 2005
Jan;159(1):46-50

“Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Obesity.”  U.S.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Updated August 17, 2010.

Hannaford, Carla.  Smart Moves: Why Learning is Not All in Your Head.  Salt Lake City, Utah: Great River Books, 2005.

Healthy Youth! “Childhood Obesity,” U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Health Promotion, Division of Adolescent and School Health. Updated June 03, 2010

Hillman, Charles H.; Castelli, Darla M.; Buck Sarah M. “Aerobic Fitness and Neurocognitive Function in Healthy Preadolescent Children.”Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise:
November 2005 - Volume 37 - Issue 11 - pp 1967-1974 doi: 10.1249/01.mss.0000176680.79702.ce

“Mind Out of Balance, Body Out of Balance.” Tel Aviv University, January 22, 2009

Ortega, F.B., Ruiz, J.R., Castillo, M.J., Sjöström, M. “Physical fitness in childhood and adolescence: a powerful marker.” International Journal of Obesity (2008). 32, 1–11; doi:10.1038/sj.ijo.0803774.
Pearce, Joseph C. Evolution’s End:  Claiming the Potential of Our Intelligence.  New York, NY: Harper Collins Publishers, 1992.

Sibley, B., and Etnier. “The relationship between physical activity and cognition in
children: a meta-analysis.” Pediatric Exercise Science 15:243–253, 2003

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Our specially children's fitness programs provide you with fun and interactive kids exercise and yoga programs designed with the intention of providing children with entertaining outlets to be active and learn how to lead a healthy lifestyle.