The following facts join some of the dots I've covered this week:
44% of adults currently look at a smartphone screen for over 4 hours each day.
20% of adults look at smartphone screens for 6 hours or more.
34% of men and 42% of women are not active enough for good health (Source: Gov.uk).
Regular physical activity reduces your risk of depression and anxiety by up to 30%.
Is the future brighter?
Science would probably say my peers and I are partially addicted to our phones, and we grew up in households with one TV, a computer that shared the internet with a landline and a polyphonic mobile phone with 12p texts.
Today, 75% of 12-and-a-half-year-olds have a smart phone in their pocket that is linked to every piece of information ever known to man and has over 100,000 times the processing power of the computer that landed man on the moon 50 years ago.
If the generations that had a chance to experience childhood without phones can be so entirely all-consumed by screens…how hard will it be when these kids who can’t remember life without them try to self-moderate?
Take Responsibility, For Yourself and as a Role Model
Researching and writing the blog made it clear to me that we shouldn’t, and let’s be honest couldn’t, remove screens entirely from anyone’s life. They are immensely powerful tools for education, connection and entertainment.
But…we all know we’d benefit from less screen time.
With that in mind, challenge yourself to try some, or all, of the following:
Track your screen time: Set up a weekly notification telling you how many hours you spent on your phone in the last week. Find out where your time went. Shock therapy might be the trigger you need.
Turn off your phone’s notifications: According to a study by the University of California Irvine, it takes an average of 23 minutes and 15 seconds to get back to the deep focus you had on a task once you have been distracted. 50% of screen time sessions start within 3 minutes of the previous one. Don’t get sucked in!
Cleanse your phone of time-wasting apps: Or at least put time limits on them.
Set your screen to appear monochrome during work hours: We’re simple creatures that gravitate to colour like flies to a lamp!
Allot times for no devices: No phones in bed. Look at what you want to look and set your alarm on the sofa…just try it!
Perhaps most importantly, we should pay special attention to how much time our God kids, children, siblings, nephews, nieces, grandkids and any other children or young people in our lives are spending on their screens.
For their safety, wellness and happiness.
They’re people and they will make their own decisions. But we have a responsibility to encourage them to adopt an alternative way to spend their free time.
One which in the short term enhances their physical health, in the medium term develops their sense of pride, achievement, social dynamics and self-esteem, and in the long term gives them the building blocks to succeed under pressure.
Exercise, in all forms, meets all of those requirements and for that reason simply must be or become a standard, non-negotiable part of every child’s daily routine.
Conclusion
Throughout writing this I have been surprised and shocked by some of the statistics I’ve stumbled across, but that aside, I know it’s not too late.
Making changes at any point in life isn’t easy, but once people take the first step they might just be surprised that it’s easier than they thought. I was brought up with the phrase ‘thinking about things is always worse than doing them’ – so what have you got to lose?
If you are a young person reading this – Consider how much time you spend on your screen. Is there one day a week where you could challenge yourself to no screen time and replace it with exercise? Is there a sport you want to try but never have done? Speak to your parents about it!
If you are a parent/guardian/loving family member or friend of a young person reading this – Look at their screen/exercise balance. Are you doing enough to improve their chances of a happy, fulfilled life by introducing them to the right exercise options?
If you don’t know where to turn, or how to start yourself – Connect with me and I would love to share some ideas with you.
As a Fitness and Nutrition Coach I’m passionate about helping people introduce exercise into their lives. If you feel you’re ready to do that, I’d love to work with you.
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