Physical Activities for Teens

Approximately 16 to 33 percent of children and teenagers are obese in the U.S., claims the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. While obesity is preventable, it is one of the most difficult medical conditions to treat. One of the first steps to preventing obesity is through physical activity. You don't need to be an Olympic swimmer to be healthy, simple activities such as jumping rope, doing yard work and walking are the first step in preventing obesity.

  1. Team/ Individual Activities

    • Team sports are a great way for teens to burn calories and gain physical strength while being social and interacting with kids their own age. Most schools throughout the U.S. provide team sports such as football, basketball and softball. Some communities even provide public basketball courts, tennis courts and ballpark diamonds where community members and visitors may play for free. However, for some teens the pressure of participating in team sports can cause anxiety for fear of disappointing their team members, according to Kids Health. There are plenty of physical activities that will keep teenagers active, if they choose not to participate in a team activity. Some individual sports include swimming, jogging, skiing, golfing and skating.

    Indoor Activities

    • Once the winter months start to creep in, it may be tempting to stay inside rather then bundling up and burning those extra holiday calories. Some high schools keep their gymnasium and weight rooms open during winter break for students to workout and stay in touch with their friends before classes resume. Many towns have indoor facilities that offer swimming pools with aquatic exercise programs and lap pools, tennis courts, equipment rooms and both jogging and walking tracks. If you are someone that prefers exercising only outside, be sure to bundle up. According to Mayoclinic.com, it is important to wear multiple layers, that way you take some off once you start to sweat and reapply those layers during your cool down. Mayoclinic.com also recommends not to wear cotton, for when you sweat cotton tends to get wet and sticks to your body.

    Non-Sport Activities

    • Some people may believe that the only way to burn calories is by participating in activities that produce an abundance of sweat, that is not always the case, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics. Many activities such as washing the car, mowing the lawn and shoveling the driveway can raise your heart rate and burn calories. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends shoveling for at least 15-minutes, waxing the car for 45-minutes and gardening for 40-minutes. While these activities may not produce a six-pack or build up strength to run marathons, it does burn calories and gets the blood pumping.