Exercise 24: 3 years - 7 years: Wheelbarrow

Wheelbarrow

Wheelbarrow exercises are a challenging, fun way to train the strength in the arms, shoulder area and trunk. The exercise is aimed at children from about 3 to 7 years of age, but can also be used by younger and older individuals where the arms need to be trained. For the exercise, you need a ball or roller and any toys that the child can walk towards or be used to entice the child to raise a hand towards.

Description

Let the child lie on her/his stomach on a pilates ball or roller with her/his arms outstretched in front of him, and tilt forward to receive with her/his hands, and then be allowed to push herself/himself back. The next step is to allow the child to remain in position for a while with straight arms and practice lifting one hand at a time. If the child has very strong arms, she/he can adopt the wheelbarrow position and try to move on her/his hands. Bear in mind that only when the child is able to support more weight, and can lift one arm at a time with good technique, is she/he then ready to move on to a “proper” wheelbarrow. Until then, only the lighter version where the child is supported under the stomach by the person training should be used. The degree of difficulty can then be increased further by holding the legs further out.