More than 70% of the earth’s surface is covered in water and most countries have plenty of lakes, lochs,rivers, and reservoirs that give enough access to engage in watersports. However, it’s rather a common pattern among parents to show reluctance to engage their kids with water sports due to safety concerns.
Thankfully nowadays there are many watersports like jet skiing and flyboarding that are kid-friendly. Aside from giving a wonderful experience in a totally different exhilarating environment, here are some other reasons why watersports can be beneficial for your kids.
Although it may look like your kid is just playing around water, water sports helps alot with improving children’s balance and strength. It’s almost like playing in a brand new playground where even the simplest movements are a new sensory experience. It allows kids to experiment without worrying of falling or crashing into hard surfaces (Make sure they are with safety-wears, gears, and other equipment depending on the sport even if they are engaging with an adult) . Moreover as water adds more resistance , watersports work as strength training as well. It usually takes more muscle strength to move your body through water than in air on land.
If you take swimming , a common watersport, it develops muscles, and motor skills while improving coordination. Kicking movements involved in swimming teaches children how to coordinate both the sides of their body and move through the water surface. Similarly, most watersports demand for proper body-mind coordination to fully engage in the sport. Especially if you take sports like flyboarding which are also kid-friendly, they need coordination skills to operate the flyboard and to remain up in the air without falling.
Playing watersports requires a lot of concentration as most of them focus either on performing against the force of water or making sure not to fall into the water. This nature allows kids to lose themselves in the activity and spend long periods exploring different methods, tricks, and techniques. Any activity that holds a kid’s attention for a lengthy time naturally contributes to increasing their concentration span, which can be extremely beneficial for academic performance.
Water is normally a calming and soothing substance which kids naturally can get much pleasure from getting splashed on. It relieves stress and tension and allows your kids to unwind themselves during school breaks. These benefits can be of good importance for kids who often feel frustrated, angry, or moody.
In addition, as most watersports demand the effort of every part of the body, it helps your children stay active and burn calories. This in turn improves metabolism and thus proves beneficial for their fluid intake and appetite, avoiding the development of binge eating.
Group water sport activities lets kids explore and interact with other kids. New experiences and discoveries within a shared sport is a great way to develop social skills. Kids will be open to share their discoveries with those around and even learn a few from others. This acts as a great confidence booster for kids, and helps them get rid of anxiety and uneasiness around crowds or the public as they grow.
Whichever watersport you choose to engage your kids in, be mindful of the minimum age requirements. Some watersports allow kids to take part alone after a prior training, where some watersports like jet skiing require a parent, guardian, or a trainer’s assistance.