From Getting Better Grades to Making New Friends: The Healing Power of Movement (Movement Matters Part 3)
You learned in our last blog post about how movement can help you think and enhance learning, but did you also know it can heal?
In part 3, the final part of our “Movement Matters” series, we explore the healing power of movement and how it relates to neuroplasticity. We also delve into the power we hold as parents, examining our leadership role in creating healthy habits.
The Healing Power of Movement
Exercise is therapeutic.
Physical activity not only fosters coordination and balance but also builds new neural network pathways in the brain, a concept known as neuroplasticity. Daniel Lane, BSc DC (UK) from The Perth Brain Centre explains:
Yet it is not uncommon for individuals with Developmental Coordination Disorder to shy away from physical activity. Difficulties with balance and coordination often hinder participation in team or individual sports, learning to ride a bike, or even playing on the playground. Feeling awkward moving around in one’s body can also negatively impact self-esteem and perpetuate the avoidance cycle further.
So how do we overcome this hurdle of getting our children to engage in the very activities they dread the most but which could also be the most beneficial for them?
We lead by example.
Habits
As a parent who has watched her child struggle with motor planning and sensory processing issues, I understand all too well the challenge of encouraging physical activity in a child living with Sensory Processing Disorder and Developmental Coordination Disorder. As with any other healthy habit we want to instill in our child, we start not with the child, but with ourselves.
We are role models.
If you happen to be one of those people who absolutely LIVE to work out, then feel free to skip this section.
If you are more like me and view it as a necessary evil, please read on.
I have never actually loved exercise. It requires a time commitment from my already time-crunched days. On occasion, it can be physically unpleasant. Furthermore, it requires additional planning and preparation when I really just do not want “one more thing” on my plate.
Don’t get me wrong, I understand the science behind the benefits. I have experienced them! I have reaped the rewards of even inconsistent exercise throughout my lifetime (i.e., naturally lowered cholesterol, healthy weight, improved sleep, and regulated mood). I have felt the differences, physical, and spiritual, from even my most half-hearted attempts.
But I struggle.
I struggle with maintenance acceptance. 🤔
I have started and stopped more exercise programs than I can count on fingers and toes combined (mine and my family’s) TWICE. In the beginning, I am always super excited thinking this time I have found the Holy Grail solution only to abandon my newest venture a few weeks later as an “unfortunate misstep.”
It took learning how to help my son overcome his challenges to help me realize I have been going about this all wrong.
The problem is not poorly chosen programs. The problem is MY unrealistic expectations and limited patterns of thinking.
I have fought this battle with myself over the years. (Ok, I still do.) I have worked through (and continue to still revisit occasionally) the stages of grief over this issue (Denial, Anger, Bargaining, Depression, and Acceptance).
I am a work in progress.
Exercise may never be a love of mine but I try to make it less of a “frenemy.” I am not particularly excited about brushing my teeth twice daily. I just do it. Why should exercise be any different?
Like any other healthy habit, I want to instill in my child, I must first start with me. I need to model good habits and do my best to have a happy heart while doing so.
Period.
Show yourself in all respects to be a model of good works, and in your teaching show integrity, dignity,
Titus 2:7
Types of Activities
Attitude adjustment aside, let’s talk about the different kinds of sports and activities that may help encourage participation for you and your child.
- Gauge Interest. Ask your child what sorts of activities he or she is interested in trying. Curiosity is often the first spark needed to encourage buy-in. Let them try out a few different activities to find the right “fit.”
- Party of One. While team sports are not necessarily a bad option for very young children where the development of coordination and balance skills is ongoing, they may present an extra challenge for older children with DCD or SPD. Consider activities or sports where your child competes against themselves, such as dance, swimming, martial arts, golf, horseback riding, or gymnastics.
- Lifestyle Sports or Activities. These are more hobby-like with individuals being able to engage in them throughout their lifespan, such as bicycling, skating, skiing, running, swimming, rollerblading, surfing, or canoeing. (Note: Some physiotherapy interventions can prove helpful when learning these skills.)
- Family Time. Incorporate movement into your family’s daily routines, weekend activities, and vacations. Go for family walks (or in our house geocaching adventures because it just makes it more fun). Plan a weekend canoe trip. Book your next family vacation with mother nature and enjoy daily hikes or walks.
- Game On. Not all screen time is “bad.” In our home, we have healthy Fruit Ninja competitions on our old Xbox Kinect. At the grandparents’ house, we bowl, play golf, or some other virtual sport on the Nintendo Wii as a family. As I write this article, we are learning the Nintendo Switch Ring. We liven up our weekly geocaching adventures by playing Pokemon Go. Make tech your partner, not your nemesis.
Movement Matters: Other Socio-Emotional Benefits
Incorporating bits of daily movement as one component of a healthy lifestyle has numerous other benefits for children struggling with motor coordination difficulties and sensory integration issues.
These include:
- Social Interaction – Physical activity is important for healthy development in general, but it also helps kids develop their social skills. Team sports, for example, help children understand rules, learn how to read nonverbal cues, work as a team, and adopt leadership roles.
- Making New Friends – The more exposure kids have to new group activities, the more opportunities they have for widening their social circle. Voila! A “healthy” way to make new friends!
- Improves Self-Discipline and Motivation – Encourage your kids to set mini goals for themselves. Set goals along with them. Challenge them to race around the block to see who has the best time. Then set goals for each person to improve their personal best.
- Promotes Laughter and Fun – You simply cannot go wrong with daily infusions of dopamine and serotonin! We all could use a bit more silly. Play is the natural language of children and how children learn best. Make movement fun instead of a chore. Chase your kids around the house. Play a game of hopscotch. Hide their favorite stuffies around the house for an impromptu scavenger hunt (our personal fave. In a two-story house like ours, you can get in enough cardio to make your Fitbit happy.)
- Assists in Emotional Regulation – Double-dose benefits for those “feel-good” chemicals in the brain! Dopamine and serotonin also help alleviate anxiety and reduce the likelihood of depression. Want to ward off a meltdown? Boost self-confidence? Get moving!
- Increased Self-Esteem – We all want to feel good in the skin we live in. Research supports the positive impacts of regular exercise on how we view ourselves. I challenge you to find a child who does not want to feel STRONG, EMPOWERED, CAPABLE, and CONFIDENT.
Let’s Keep in Touch
We hope you enjoyed our three-part “Movement Matters” series.
In the upcoming months, be sure to check back in with us as we introduce more new series. In our “Movie Schooling” series, we’ll talk about how we use movies as a teaching tool in our homeschool. In our “The Power of TheraPlay” series, we’ll show you how playing with your kids is so much more than fun, it’s therapeutic. In our “Living With Labels” series, we’ll weigh the pros and cons of seeking diagnostic labels. And in our “Your Brain on Music” series, we’ll explore the benefits of Therapeutic Listening.
Be sure you do not miss a blog post by signing up for my email list, liking my Facebook or Instagram pages, or subscribing to my YouTube channel.
Blessings,
Kimberly
IOH Mom
This website is not a professional counseling website and nothing here should be construed as professional counseling advice. Although Kimberly Bennett, LPC is a Licensed Professional Counselor, she is not your counselor, and no counselor-client relationship is established unless she has signed an agreement with you. All information provided through this website is for informational and educational purposes only.This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure statement. Thanks for visiting!
