Madalsa Sharma on the importance of including physical exercise in children’s lives

We are moving so fast in our day-to-day lives that we hardly get time to take care of our body. This is the reason why our fitness goes for a toss. Anupamaa actor Madalsa Sharma talks about the importance of exercise for self-care, both physical and mental.

“Compared to earlier generations, today’s youth is more career-oriented, ambitious and workaholic. From an early age, boys and girls opt for studies and jobs.  For recreation people prefer indoor games. Video games and social media also are preferred. Physical and outdoor activities have taken a back seat. But the good thing is sports slowly becoming a career choice too,” she says.

In an average person’s life there are no sports except for watching it on television. Schools do encourage sports for children, but still a lot of them end up playing more on mobile phones, computers or laptops. Agreeing, she adds,

“TV has brought global entertainment into our drawing rooms, via mobile phone, tablets and so on. You have more choices. TV takes you very close to the activity. Zoom, replays and now pre match and post match discussions have made watching sports on TV much more interesting and so a preferred choice,” she continues, “I feel if we fix a compulsory time in schools and at home for physical exercises and teach children its importance for a healthy life, things will get better.”

About what can be done to revive playing sports in our lives, Madalsa Sharma shares,

“We should teach the younger generation the importance of physical activities and how it helps. Nowadays since sports is becoming a very lucrative career as well.”

As a child, Madalsa enjoyed playing ‘I Spy’.

“It is my favorite game even today. I have a lot of memories associated with it. I spy is a fun and family-friendly guessing game that can be played by children of almost any age, because it’s a call and response game, you don’t need any tool, accessories, cards, or boards to play, meaning you can play anywhere and anytime, as long as you have at least two players. I spy test and develop the powers of perception and observation, expands vocabulary, and can be used to teach young children about letters, names, shapes, and objects. It’s also a fun way to pass time when you’re on a road trip, waiting to board a train, plane, or bus, on a family holiday, in a waiting room, while you’re out shopping, or if you’re looking for something to do with friends,” she adds.