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It should not be a big deal to be able to jump, throw, run fast, do push ups, do pull ups, squat comfortably and be able to move weight around. Being able to carry, hang, jump and climb should be the norm.
I know our generation loves to gloat about being the ‘active’ generation versus the current crop. But I am not entirely convinced our passive outdoor play carried over into higher strength levels or lean mass levels in adulthood. The evidence is there to see. Our obvious discomfort with basic physical capacities like hanging, push ups, pulling and climbing is evidence that we really were not subject to enough of those skills as kids. And why would we have these skills? Our environment had no such stimulus or play.
A terrific Montessori teacher trains with us. And she wanted a pull up bar for her wards.
So we made one. Using a 25 mm pipe and a simple box frame. It’s a shrunken down pull up bar. But the thinner pipe sans knurling makes it much more kid-friendly to grip.
So the kids walk around the yard, run into this and they hang. Their tolerance for pulls and hanging is built at a young age.
We’ve made a slightly larger hang station for another school too that sees a lot of love during lunch breaks.
I’d love to see local parks move beyond the ladders, slides, see-saws and swings. Playcubes that involve navigating, climbing and crawling through asymmetric, boxes stacked in a variety of patterns are placed throughout Singapore. They are terrific tools to facilitate varied movement that requires strength and coordination. This trumps rule-constrained, repetitive pattern laden sport.
Long story short. Litter your house with toys that force movement and expressions of strength. And find institutions that feel compelled to do the same. I would say our public spaces should have this too but let’s start with clean water and breathable air for kids.