Holidays are a time for relaxing and having fun with family and friends - but it’s really important to stay active and eat healthy.

What do you think of when you hear the word holidays? While it’s fine to take it easy and kick back, it’s also important to continue to be active and enjoy healthy food

Screen overdose!

If you spend your holidays in front of the TV or catching up on playing computer games, remember that you still need to get up and be active.  It’s just not as good for your body to be still for hours and hours - even if you’re really enjoying it and don’t feel tired.

Try to keep your total screen time to no more than two hours a day - and make sure you have regular breaks while you’re playing or watching. Pushing the pause button and taking five minutes every half an hour is a good start.

It can be tough, particularly if you’ve just got a great new game you want to explore. If you tend to lose all sense of time, try setting a timer to remind you, or ask one of your parents to let you know.

And remember, if Mum or Dad or your carer is asking you to take a break from the screen and get some fresh air, they actually do have a good reason for it.

Summer of fun

With all that free time during the holidays, it’s a great chance to get out and be even more active than you are at school! But with so much time and freedom, it can actually be a bit difficult to decide what to do. This is particularly the case if you’re feeling a bit fed up and bored.

So take a minute now to think of all the active things you’d like to do. For example, your local pool and parks are also a great place to get active. You can also check out the bike paths if you like cycling. Of course, you need to get your parents’ or carer’s permission first.

And being at home doesn’t mean there’s nothing to do either. How about setting up a game of backyard cricket or football?  A couple of squares of concrete and a tennis ball and you can have a downball tournament.  If you’ve got a brick wall you can hit the ball against, you can hone your tennis shots or, if you’ve got a basketball or netball ring, use 30 minutes every day to practise your shooting  - you’ll amaze your friends with how much you’ve improved when school starts again.

Eat healthy

It can be harder to eat healthy during the holidays but remember that summer is a great time for enjoying sandwiches packed with vegetables and fantastic fruit. Perhaps you can use some of your free time to cook some healthy new recipes (get permission from an adult first) and try them out on your whole family.

Related reading:

- Think About Eating
- Too Much TV Bad for You
- Tap Water Best for Teeth