Advice from the heart foundation:

Children aged 5 to17 need a minimum of one hour a day of moderate physical activity and more is better.

“We also need to limit their sedentary recreational screen time to no more than two hours per day,” Professor Shilton said. “Break up the TV or movie with some fun activities with the kids. Keep them out of their bedrooms and on devices and be active together.”

Suggestions include:

• Go outside and invent some lawn games, or just play catch or handball in the driveway.

• Try something new, like hula hoops, or juggling.

• Play the kids’ favourite music and see how many “cool” moves you can do together.

• Backyard cricket (even in the tiniest space you can make your own rules).

• Dust off the Twister game or Wii Sports.

• Use a tennis ball to knock over plastic bottles filled with water (have a family competition)

• For strengthening muscles and bones, try skipping, yoga, jumping, push-ups, sit-ups, lifting weights, lungesand squats.

• Get adventurous, climbing trees or swinging on monkey bars.

• Build a cubby house together – even a makeshift one using re-purposed materials from around the house and yard.

• Get them helping with the gardening or housework.