15-Minute Exercises For Students Writing Exams

Students, especially those in classes that end in board exams, tend to spend an excessive amount of time holed up in their rooms, studying furiously with little to no scope for engaging in anything that can get them some much-needed exercise.

Sitting for long stretches of time, as pre-exam studying requires, can be harmful in the long run. Four experts and trainers from across the fitness industry listed the right workouts for children aged 10 to 15 that can be performed at home and without any equipment.

“Students are gradually losing touch with the outdoors, giving rise to obesity. This has especially been true after the outbreak of Covid-19. There is considerably reduced range of movement, which is leading to a number of health-related complications. Obesity rates have spiked considerably, along with bone joint-related problems. The lack of physical health is also reflecting on their mental capacity and well-being. Needless to say, this is affecting their studies as well,” said Soumyajit Sengupta, who has been a fitness trainer with Fit-With Gym for five years.

The solution is to engage in various types of physical activity by taking short breaks from studying, even if it’s just for 10-15 minutes. Along with keeping the body fit, these workouts also release feel-good hormones which can reduce stress and improve concentration.

Exercises For Children: What Not To Do

However, not all exercises are appropriate for young children as they are still growing; plus, different levels and types of exercises are right for different ages. “We don’t usually prescribe heavy exercises to kids who are under 13. For kids younger, or pre-teens, we make them practise throwing exercises, jumping and running. Since lunges and squats can easily pull some muscles in a very young kid, we make them participate in jumping and throwing exercises which help in toning the joints of the body and making it more flexible. Jumping also helps to strengthen the bones and spinal cord,” said Jahid-ur-Rehman, trainer at Encore Fitness.

Bilwadal of Karma -The Fitness Studio agreed. “We don’t make students do typical weight training, since it leads to early build-up of muscles which will bring forth a lot of dietary restrictions on them.”

However, children older than 13 can do squats, push-ups and lunges.

“Fifteen-minute workouts in a day are absolutely essential when preparing for exams, since these help in concentrating more on studies,” said Soumen Ghosh, instructor at Asian Fitness.

But there are also rules for starting a workout session. “First, start by doing some exercises which increase your mobility, such as neck rotations, walking hip openers, shoulder pass-through etc. After a few days, when their core strength is increased, they can advance to squats, hinges and lunges,” said Ghosh. “I also recommend breathing exercises to make them retain control over their breathing, so that kids don’t become breathless while performing these workouts.”

Fitness During Exams

Given below are the six exercises students can attempt at home.

Push Up

An easy exercise to do, this helps in strengthening the core of the body, including the spinal cord and chest. Push ups are good for the triceps, back and shoulders. It also enhances blood flow in the body. The push-ups should be done at least 10-20 times and beginners can do it against a wall. Push ups involve placing your body in a plank position and moving your body up and down in a slow motion.

Squat

Squats involve bending your knees to a semi-sitting posture, and then standing back up again. This exercise strengthens the thighs. The squat is largely considered a compound movement, which implies that it works more than one muscle group and across a large number of joints. This exercise benefits the quadriceps (muscles in the front of your thighs); glutes (the buttocks); the hamstrings (back of the thighs); the hip flexors; and the muscles of the knee. These, like push-ups, are quite easy to do and can be done within 15 minutes.

Jumping

Jumping and running are two of the most often-employed children’s exercises, especially when they are less than 14 years of age. Jumping is a good substitute for heavy exercises for young children. It helps to work the leg muscles such as the glutes and hamstrings. In the same manner as running, jumping also greatly helps to develop balance and coordination while strengthening the muscles of the leg and also the core muscles.

Skipping

Compared to running and jumping, skipping demands much more coordination and improves balance. It also helps develop a sense of timing and proprioception, which is the ability to accurately sense your body's position and movements. For children, skipping can be made more interesting – and challenging – by involving them in skipping games along with music playing in the background. This will also help them relax.

Forward Lunge

Forward lunges involve taking a large step forward and lowering the front leg and back leg in a way that they are at a 90-degree angle. Then, push into your front heel and foot to raise back up to a standing position, by lifting both feet at the same time. Hugely beneficial for kids, doing forward lunges helps activate the muscles throughout the lower body. This exercise benefits the muscles such as hamstrings, quadriceps, hip flexor muscles, glutes, and the adductor muscles.

Lateral Lunge

Lateral lunges, or side lunges, are known to develop core balance, stability, and general physical strength. Doing these lunges help your inner and outer thighs, and they may even assist in reducing cellulite which tends to accumulate with a sedentary lifestyle. Side lunges serve to train your body and leg muscles and make them more taut.