Belgian insurer creates playful playground benches to slow muscle loss in those over 30

Visit a playground, and you'll likely see children energetically engaged while their parents, seated on park benches, divide their attention between their offspring and their phones. Most remain blissfully unaware that age-related muscle loss, termed sarcopenia, begins around the age of 30. But that loss of muscle and strength is why Belgian health insurer Helan wants to get adults moving — so it rejigged the very benches they gravitate towards.

One bench, balanced on a coil spring, prompts sitters to engage their core to counter its wobbly motions. Two others require a clamber up a climbing rack or a steep slide, and a fourth barely has legs, compelling people to exercise their own legs to stand up. The four benches, crafted by RAAK Design Studio, have been installed at a recreational site in Ghent. Six other Belgian cities have also expressed interest.