Regular exercise breaks

How to do it

1. Decide together in the work group on a time in the weekly schedule for a regular exercise break. Example: every hour on certain days or a specific time every day.

2. Inform the young people about the new routine in advance and tell them what will happen. This increases engagement and lowers the threshold for participation.

3. Plan in advance what movements or activities you will do during the break. You can use ready-made ideas (e.g., from the section Activity right now) or come up with spontaneous movements together with the young people. These can be simple exercises such as shaking your hands, standing on your toes, stretching, or doing small balance exercises.

4. Keep the breaks fun and relaxed. The most important thing is to break up the sedentary activity in a pleasant way.

5. The idea can also be used in individual counseling by making the movement break part of the meeting. Agree with the young person at the beginning of the meeting when the break will take place. The break can consist of appropriate movement: get up to move around a bit, change seats, do break exercises, or possibly a short relaxation exercise.