Sixteen-year-old Vishnu points to a wild playground that seems to have wrestled its way in between two concrete walls. “This was where we used to play badminton,” says the Hyderabad boy. Used to? “Before we started Class XI. Now, with so many exams and tuitions, none of us has the time,” he says.

He reminds me of the panic I had felt a day before every exam. My computer-engineer father would lay his palm on my forehead and say, “Your CPU is heating up, time to take a break,” and ask me to join him on his evening walk.

“You have your exams this week, what are you doing outside playing!” is not something any parent or teacher should say. “Any form of physical activity increases blood circulation, as well as the amount of oxygen flowing to the brain, which makes learning more efficient,” explains Dr Lakshminarayanan, Senior Consultant, Paediatric Neurology & Epileptology, Rainbow Children’s Hospital, Chennai.

Moreover, he adds that working out the body is a great way to relax the mind. “The more you exercise, the more endorphins — happy hormones — will be produced, to put you in a better mood to study,” he says.

Stressing on the importance of striking a study-play balance, Vellore-based paediatrician Dr Gita Mathai, says, “Children can’t concentrate for more than 45 minutes without a break, and that doesn’t mean watching TV, or playing computer games,” she says.

An hour of physical activity per day is recommended for all children above the age of five, but is commonly lacking in girls aged nine-18. “It helps against the early onset of lifestyle diseases like diabetes, hypertension and heart disease, PCOS and menstrual irregularities,” she explains. Sitting in itself slows down metabolism. “When we sit, the large skeletal muscles in the legs and back practically go into hibernation. They do not utilise glucose, as they require very little energy to ‘be still’. This is why ‘fidgety’ children do not gain weight,” she adds.

Yoga

Sitting at home, studying all day, induces ‘cabin fever’ which reduces productivity, believes Mind.Fit yoga practitioner Divya Rolla. Having worked with kids, she points out three types of asanas that are useful during exam time:

Young woman in casual wear doing yoga.   | Photo Credit: Sujay_Govindaraj

Twisting poses: After a long day of sitting, poses such as the ardha matsyendrasana release compression in the spine.

Surya namaskars are also easy to learn and fun to do. These help expend the excess energy in the body, and reduce distractions.

Most kids enjoy doing inversions like sirsasana, as it calms them down by reducing the tempo of your breathing, and sends blood to the shoulders, neck and brain, areas that you should be relaxing. This should be done with support, with a parent, against the wall.

Simple rhythmic breathing helps increase focus and memory power, and reduces anxiety. One deep breath, followed by one short breath.

Delhi-based Gunjan Kochhar, a yoga practitioner and mother of three kids, aged one, 11 and 16, points out that it’s important to lead by example. “If you practise yoga yourself, it is natural that your kids will take an interest,” she says. “Kids intuitively know what their bodies want; you just need to listen to them.”

She also recommends the balasana (child pose). For children younger than 10, animal postures help make yoga fun. “I like adding storytelling to yoga. Children can growl like lions, jump around like frogs, or walk like bears.”

Cardio

“Imagine you’re in a forest, and you see a tiger. Your adrenaline levels would shoot right up. For the modern human being, this is what exercise does, without the danger, of course,” says Dr Kannan, Chennai-based sports physician. “When children exercise regularly, their threshold for stress increases, and so before exams, they are less likely to be nervous.”

Running, cycling, swimming, walking, dancing and playing sports such as cricket, badminton, football, or basketball, all pump up cardiovascular activities, even if children have just 40 minutes for it. On days that they don’t have a lot of time, help them find at least 15 minutes for light exercise, whatever they enjoy doing. Stretching at least once every hour is important. “But for it to be effective, it is important not to think about a study plan, and instead focus on your breathing,” he says.

The assumption that cardio will tire you out, and leave you with no energy to study is false. “At moderate intensity, cardio can actually refresh your muscles and your mind. Moreover, you will sleep better. Just lie down for the night, and you’ll be knocked out; the next morning, you will wake up energised,” he says.

Free play

Ask any kid, and she’ll tell you she enjoys recess more than PT periods. Unmonitored free play elicits joy and contentment among children, says psychologist Sneha George, who conducts a workshop at Fortis Malar, Chennai, to reduce exam stress among children and parents.

Group of children playing football at local football stadium located at South Mumbai, India   | Photo Credit: SJPailkar

The mere act of moving about, doing whatever eases the mind, whether it’s playing games or walking and gossiping with friends, or riding a cycle alone, counts as free play.

It’s something that children would be doing anyway, had they not been guilt-tripped into refraining from having fun during exams. “Free play develops cognitive skills, problem solving and creativity. It keeps cortisol levels — the hormone responsible for causing stress — at bay,” says Sneha.

At her workshop, she took a survey of children, asking them to tick the number of hours they should be studying before exams: from 45 minutes to all day. Most chose ‘all day’: a chilling reminder of how much we’ve brainwashed our children into believing that studying is everything.

Maybe, instead, let them take a clue from comics’ most famous five-year-old, and invent their own ‘Calvinball’.