Thanks to TV shows such as Ninja Warrior and Beastmaster, the popularity of obstacle racing has grown, especially with kids who have been watching and want to be “just like” the contestants. However kids are often too small to participate in the main courses, leaving them stuck having to “make do” with the smaller selection of activities at their local playground… but not anymore.
Enter Ninja Parc Indoor Obstacle Course, a series of centres that are launching all around Australia, allowing kids – and their parents – to test themselves on the warped wall, pole maze, horizontal tables and more. While the obstacle course can be accessed 7-days a week, its drop in play passes are especially popular on school holidays and weekends. Ninja Parc is also in full-swing over school holiday periods as they have a fully-supervised holiday program during those times; where parents can take a breather on the sidelines.
The beauty of obstacle courses for kids is that they’re not only a great way for them to boost their activity levels, but it also allows them to problem solve, test out their skills, race against their own time (or their friends) and have fun in a safe environment.
With 1-4 Aussie kids currently classified as overweight or obese, obstacle play is a great way to get them excited about getting active. Best of all, unlike with an event, kids can unleash at Ninja Parc as often as they like.
So what are some of the benefits of obstacle courses?
A good combination of strength and cardio
While both strength and cardio based activities are important, does a kid care? Probably not.
A great bonus of obstacle play is that it engages both strength and cardio, helping kids burn off energy while boosting their cardiovascular capacity.
Improves their agility
The idea of an obstacle course – like those on Ninja Warrior and Beastmaster – is to swing, jump and climbthrough it as fast as possible. For the kids who want to be just like the contestants on these TV shows, trying the obstacles again and again to find better ways of mastering it, not only does this add an element of gamification for these kids, but it’s also great for improving their agility
A fun way of staying healthy and active
Few kids are excited about running around the block, fortunately obstacle courses, like Ninja Parc more or less provide both modalities, but you would never know it.
