Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Screen-Free Week: get back in shape with an old-fashioned hop, skip and jump

Screen-Free Week highlights how times have changed in terms of children's play
Screen-Free Week highlights how times have changed in terms of children's play

There was a time when a screen was something you saw at the cinema, or that large glass thing in front of your steering wheel which keeps the weather out.

Now it’s a small glass thing – or you may have several of different sizes- to which you have to remain glued all day long.

The only thing that’s being exercised are your thumbs and exhausted eyeballs.

Parents, guilty of same, worry about this for their children.

Half a century ago child obesity was a vanishingly small statistic.

Now almost one-third of children are overweight or obese.

The picture can’t wholly be blamed on screen-abuse, it’s more complicated than that of course.

Skipping at Kingswell School, 1977.  Photo by AJL

But remember those old playground games?

Turns out they burned a significant number of calories.

Children could eat like horses and stay thin and healthy.

Again, not a simple picture as the intake of junk and convenience food high in sugar, fat and salt has also spiralled in the past half century.

Screen-Free Week this week sets out to redress the inactivity balance with device-free fun and games all over the country.

So what if the old playground games were to make a comeback- mandatory even, or by social prescription?

Here’s the calorie and health dividend:

Skipping: 430 calories for 30 mins

So you wouldn’t be skipping for 30 mins on the trot, but in those days children would be playing outside morning, afternoon, lunchtime and evenings.

Skipping in the playground helped keep children healthy and active.  Photo by AJL

Even if they only skipped for a few minutes each time, it adds up and fits the bill of current fitness buzz High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) where short, sharp bursts of intense training are followed by the same length of time again, or longer, resting.

Hula hooping: up to 200 calories a half hour

Seven-year-old Bruce Metcalfe from Market Hill primary school in Turriff during the school’s Hula Hoop Guinness Book of Records attempt. Photo by AJL

The health benefits are impressive, ranging from improving cardiovascular fitness, whittling away body fat and inches and improving the balance.

Hopscotch: up to 450 calories for 30 mins

Children playing hopscotch in 1968. Photo by DCT

Leaping and jumping, counting, chanting- it’s not just good exercise, it’s sociable and fun, another benefit of screen-free time.

Playing tig/tag: up to 500 calories in 30 mins

It’s not just running about.

Caught up in the game, you barely notice you’re pumping your heart rate and developing a variety of physical skills including movement, agility, balance, coordination and spatial awareness.

Playing video games could burn up to 200 calories an hour. Image by Shutterstock

Playing video games: up to 100 calories in 30 mins

and

Looking at your phone: up to 50 calories an hour.

Lying looking at your phone burns a mere 50 calories an hour.  Image by Shutterstock

Says it all really, doesn’t it?

The organisers of Screen-Free Week state: “A healthy childhood depends on a surprising thing: play!

“Through creative play, kids explore their physical world, build their curiosity, and expand their imaginations.

“Not only does Screen-Free Week allow people to enjoy time away from news feeds, targeted ads, and autoplay videos, but it gives families and communities an opportunity to come together and connect with each other.”

More like this: