Active Living

Active Living

 

Active Living - Physical Activity, Sedentary Behaviour and Sleep

Grey Bruce understands that physical activity is more than just about exercise, its about a lifestyle, the environment, our supports and resources to keep us active in our daily lives.

Play Grey Bruce LogoPLAY in Bruce Grey is the collaborative, physical activity initiative for the Grey Bruce region. PLAY in Bruce Grey is a strategy designed to help residents of Bruce and Grey counties become more physically active through regular play in every day. It is a partnership of 17 municipalities in Grey and Bruce; Grey County; Bruce County; Grey Bruce Health Unit, two School Boards, Grey Sauble Conservation as well as many community volunteers.

Our focus is encouraging communities to provide active and safe places to PLAY, live, work and go to school. There are many challenges for people and communities to get active so we try to find ways to make it possible for everyone to have opportunities to be healthy. Sometimes this means focusing on populations that face inequities and impacted by the social determinants of health. In recent reports following COVID-19, youth and in-particular girls and young women, newcomers and those on lower incomes are participating less physical activity.

Through education, promotion and local events, we hope to encourage residents young and old to stay active with fun activities in their community. With regular PLAY we believe our communities will thrive in health, wellness and communication. Check out PLAY in Bruce Grey for active living tips, local events and the latest news.

Visit at www.playbrucegrey.com and https://www.facebook.com/PLAYBruceGrey/, Twitter https://twitter.com/PLAYBruceGrey?lang=en and Instagram

PLAY in Bruce Grey is the physical activity strategy for Grey and Bruce counties. This initiative encourages all residents to join the physical activity movement and make physical activity an important part of every day.

  • Funding was received from the Ministry of Health Promotion under the Active 2010 Strategy to develop a physical strategy for Bruce Grey including PLAY Bruce Grey Advocacy Toolkit
  • The physical activity strategy was launched on June 13, 2007 with municipalities signing a PLAY Charter and affirming their commitment to become a “play friendly” community. Silken Laumann was the keynote speaker and organized play games for the children.
  • In 2018, PLAY Bruce Grey successfully received a four year grant from Bruce Power that supported website updates and rebranding along with funds to support initiatives
  • Community PLAY Networks help support the initiative in local municipalities.
  • Two marquee events – the Longest Day of PLAY (June 21st) and Family Day of PLAY are held each year

 

Schools, Day Cares and Camps

Municipal Camp Recommendations https://playbrucegrey.com/download/camp-recommendation-a-public-health-handbook/

Early Years Webinar (Physical Literacy): Reigniting Passion through Active Play

Download Slides (PDF) 

Recording Available Soon

Physical Literacy Training https://playbrucegrey.com/education/ contact Sarah Milne s.milne@publichealthgreybruce.on.ca

Health and Physical Activity Curriculum supports https://playbrucegrey.com/education/

ParticipACTION - Check it out! Build Your Best Day  is a fun, interactive and educational tool to help children and youth aged 5-17 and their parents learn about the Canadian 24-Hour Movement Guidelines

Daily Physical Activity in Schools (DPA) - Strategies and resources for teachers to help Grade 1-8 students achieve their minimum 20 minutes of sustained moderate to vigorous physical activity each school day.

Recess Programs - An organized approach to recess and nutrition breaks, through the introduction of games and activities is a viable solution to reducing the sedentary behaviour of young children: Recess | Canadian Public Health Association - play_recess_e.pdf

Raise the Bar Intramural Program - Ophea’s Raise the Bar Intramural Program for students or educators to help plan and run quality, inclusive, and sustainable intramurals. The Intramural Program is free-of-charge and guides you through an easy-to-follow 4-step process, and the opportunity to be recognized as an Ophea Intramural Participant School.

Communities and Environment

In order to make your school community healthier check out the following resources:

Active Transportation

Canada’s National Active Transportation Strategy (pdf)The Active Transportation Strategy's is to build new and expanded active transportation networks and to create safe environments for more equitable, healthy, active and sustainable travel options to thrive.

The Active Transportation Fund supports Canada's National Active Transportation Strategy, which was launched on July 28, 2021. Canada's National Active Transportation Strategy is the country's first coast-to-coast-to-coast strategic approach for promoting active transportation and its benefits

Canada Walks - Green Communities Canada - WALK Friendly Ontario - Green Communities Canada

NATN_Sustainable_Calgary_2020_Nov_17_20MB.pdf (squarespace.com)

Advocacy and Policy Work

The Impact of Physical Activity on Mental Health Outcomes during the COVID-19 Pandemic - Ontario 2022 - A report from Ontario’s COVID-19 science advisory table has found that reduced opportunities for physical activity greatly impacted the mental health of Canadians during the pandemic.

Healthy Public Policy brings health and equity considerations to all areas of policy, with the end goal of improving health outcomes for all. To do so, existing public policies must be analyzed and evaluated for their impact on health equity and population health. Both applied research and academic research are used to help to inform where improvements can be made. Then, new policy approaches can be introduced that address these health impact. Public Policy Models and Their Usefulness in Public Health: The Stages Model (ncchpp.ca)

Links and Resources

 

Adult Physical Activity

56% of Grey Bruce adults are getting enough exercise, which is similar to the Ontario rate

Youth Physical Activity

64% of youth in Grey Bruce are getting enough exercise, which is similar to the Ontario rate

 

Read the full Physical Activity, Fruit and Vegetable Consumption: CCHS 2015-16 Grey Bruce Part 1 report here

Grey Bruce Walking Groups Resource

 

Grey Bruce Screen Use and Sedentary Behaviour

Screen Time – PLAY in Bruce Grey Resources for Kid's and Parents (playbrucegrey.com)

55% of Grey Bruce residents spend 2+ hours of their daily free time using screens, which is lower than the Ontario rate

 

Sleep

Getting enough sleep is not a luxury, it is something everyone needs for good health. Not getting enough sleep is linked with many chronic diseases and conditions, such as diabetes, heart disease, obesity, injuries (such as motor vehicle accidents) and depression.

 Sleep Time – PLAY in Bruce Grey – Resources for Kid's and Parents (playbrucegrey.com)

 

Recommended Hours of Sleep by Age

Age

Hours of Sleep per Night

Infants (0 - 3 months)

14 to 17 hours of good-quality sleep, including naps

Infants (4 – 11 months)

12 to 16 hours of good-quality sleep, including naps

Toddlers (1 – 2 years)

11 to 14 hours of good-quality sleep, including naps

Preschoolers (3 – 4 years)

10 to 14 hours of good-quality sleep, which may include a nap, with consistent bedtimes and wake-up times

School-aged (5 – 13 years)

9-11 hours per night with consistent bed and wake-up times

Adolescents (14-17 years)

8-10 hours per night with consistent bed and wake-up times

Adults (18 – 64 years)

7-9 hours per night

Older Adults (65+ years)

7-8 hours per night

*Hours of Sleep are based on recommendations from the 24-Hour Movement Guidelines for the Early Years and Children and Youth. Adult and Older Adult hours of sleep are based on recommendations from the National Foundation of Sleep and the Adult 24-Hour Movement Guidelines released in 2021

 

Infographics

Are Adults Getting Enough Sleep

Are Canadian Adults getting enough sleep?

 
Sleep Hygiene Poster

Healthy Sleep Hygiene in Kids Poster

Sleep

64% of adults in Grey Bruce are getting enough sleep, as are 60% of children and youth in Grey Bruce.

 

Read the full Sleep, Screen Use, Sun Safety: CCHS 2015-16 Grey Bruce Part 2 report here

 

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