With the huge increase of childhood obesity, it has never been more essential to make sure our children are leading enjoyable, active and healthy lives. Prior to the arrival of dedicated children's TV stations, video games and the internet children would naturally go to play outside with friends playing a diverse energetic games. Sadly these days encouraging a child to play outside is be a real struggle and one that is usually left too late. By encouraging a child to play outside at an early age they will rapidly realise the amount of fun they can have and start healthy habits they can carry through childhood. It is sad that in modern society a great many parents are worried about their kids playing outside away from home and that a great many council play and playgrounds have been closed in recent years. The ideal solution in this case is to have outdoor toys and play equipment children can use in their own back garden with other children and family.

In the past outdoor toys consisted of a bat and ball or a yo-yo and lashings of imagination, happily now the outdoor toy market is large and the collection of options available makes sure there is something for every child. However prior to spending any cash on outdoor toys you should try a little history and try to interest children in simple outdoor games from yesteryear such as British Bulldogs, Kick The Can or Dodge Ball all of which require little or no play equipment to play and are definitely active.

If you are considering buying a selection of outdoor toys to help stimulate your child's outdoor then there are a fantastic array of toys to assist you. For toddlers sandboxes are a great choice to make. Practicaly any youngster can benefit from playing in a sandbox and at the same time develop important motor skills as they shovel, build or even just run their hands through it. Obviously very young toddlers do tend to want to place things in their mouths so a good lookout is vital in the baby years. The range and quality of sandpits has altered dramatically since the early 1980'swhen the ugly 'shell' sandpit was all parents could purchase. Nowadays you can purchase quality wooden sandpits, garden benches that hide sandpits under the table top and even flexible mini sandpits that can be kept in the garage or shed and brought out as and when required. One rule to watch when selecting sand for your sandbox is to purchase specific 'play sand' that has been washed and processed to strip out staining clay components and to make it clean and soft to a child's. One other benefit of buying a wooden sandbox is that once the children have outgrown it you can use it as a delightful raised flowerbed and reclaim your garden!

Another newcomer to Britain has been wooden climbing frames or 'Swingsets' from Northern America These fantastic swingsets are normally constructed from cedar or redwood wood and range from basic slides and swings to multiple level play centres that cost thousands of pounds. These timber play centres are available in two catagories; pre-boxed or modular. Pre-Boxed climbing frames from manufacturers such as Adventure Playsets sell a single playcentre that will have all the elements you need to construct it in the box and lets anybody with basic DIY skills to construct a fantastic wooden swingset. Modular swingsets such as those from Rainbow Play Systems and Backyard Adventures allow the customer to pick modules that combine together to make their exclusive custom swingset. The difference between the two is quality, (with the modular sets traditionally being featuring slightly improved wood) and cost with boxed swingsets costing from a couple of hundred to a several thousand pounds and modular sets costing from a several thousand to over 20 thousand pounds. The other main difference is that boxed sets are manufactured to be erected by the home owner whereas modular sets are normally erected by professional installation teams trained by the manufacturer. With ten or fifteen year warranties you can be sure that whichever option you select your playset will definitely outlive your child's childhood years.

You needn't splurge thousands though to get your kids playing in the garden, there are a great selection of games and toys that are able to do just that for less than a fiver. On a warm day water pistols are a amazing toy and will have children charging around after one another for the whole day using up calories and developing agile and powerful muscles whilst they play

There are of course hundreds of alternative options to energise your kids and encourage a healthy lifestyle that we simply don't have time to go into. I hope this piece has however, assisted to galvanise you into driving your children to develop healthy lifestyles that will have implications years after they grow out of their outdoor toys.