Program To Keep Kids Active Now Helps Seniors Online In Quarantine
BOSTON (CBS) - There's a new focus on getting seniors to work out during the coronavirus pandemic and the idea started with kids in school. BOKS Kids is in schools across the country, including Boston. The program makes sure kids are physically active as part of their daily routine.
Now the whole family is getting involved with the focus on grandparents. Barry Levitz lives in California and quarantine has limited his activity. He's almost 80, so his family in Massachusetts wanted to make sure he was staying physically active. They're using Zoom meetings to work out together, using the BOKS Bursts that kids typically do in school, to get him working out using things around the house.
BOKS Bursts last anywhere from one-to-ten minutes, focusing on different parts of the body. The goal is to keep the workout short, fun and different to keep things interesting.
"It's been very helpful. I started out with small cans, I'm getting into the bigger cans and pretty soon I think I'll be getting into the weights," said Barry. "It's really a fun way to work out and it's something that I wasn't really doing."
Barry's son Mike has been leading the family classes. He says it's a good way to stay connected and anyone can participate.
"The fact that my father and I are the ones talking to you, anybody can do this," Mike said. "I'm a finance guy, I'm not what you would normally imagine the person teaching an exercise thing. It's just easy."
Mike and Barry agree, it's obviously a great tool for physical workouts for the whole family but it's also great for the mind. With Mike's kids home from college, they're taking part too, getting the whole family moving together.
For more information on BOKS Kids and BOKS Bursts visit bokskids.org.
