There’s no denying it: Working out with your kids can be tough!
We discussed in an earlier article in this series the trials of finding time within your schedule to work out, but the real challenge comes when you don’t have time at all to work out. Sure, we can all probably find an hour or so to work out. But for some of us, that might only be once a week! Heck, I practically LIVE in my studio I’m there so much, and I really struggle some days to get time in to work out.
My son has football practice all the time, and daughters have piano to horseback riding to soccer etc. It’s crazy.
My wife Stephanie works at the studio too, teaching Zumba, as well as her own part-time job. And I have coaching duties for soccer at the high school, classics, and now through our newest venture, which is NW Premier Soccer. It’s crazy around here, so I think if kids are “the problem” in terms of time, then why not also make them a part of the solution?
There are many, many benefits of having your child work out with you in some capacity. Firstly, is their own health. Kids who work out are less obese, have more self-confidence, and usually fit in socially more often because most activities are team sports, so that helps with peer interaction.
Secondly, and the reason we started our studio, was that kids need to know the gym isn’t just a place that adults go and that fitness is something only they are concerned about. Being active should be a part of everyone’s lifestyle, and if your kids SEE you work out, then they are much more likely to be interested themselves. If they can join in, however, then you have the perfect scenario!
We have many young kids come to our beginner boot camps, as they are low-impact and a lot less pressure, so parents feel more at ease bringing them. You can certainly bring them along and try it out, too.
Another thing we offer is the after-school Fit Club, which is a three-hour daycare/fitness program that we teach kids after school. You can drop them off, we work them out, and then you pick them up, exhausted.
Barring either of these solutions there are a number of things you can try:
1. Sign up for a fun run together and train for it. There are so many themed races now that there will be something for everyone. You can train leading up to the race and I think you’d be surprised how much quality talking time you’d get on those runs, too.
2. Yard work. Sure, every kid needs to do it, and chances are most think of it as a chore. How about making a game of it? Pick up 300 leaves in 300 seconds. Try it… it ain’t easy, but it gets crazy, and they’ll be out of breath before they know it.
3. Ride bikes! Get out there and hit the streets. There are so many quiet neighborhoods around that you can safely go on bike rides. But if you’re looking for more seclusion, or a greater challenge, get your helmets on and take them up into the woods! Lots of trails!
4. Go swimming! No kid hates swimming! There are few activities that are better for your cardiovascular system than swimming. Maybe it’s not a “regular” pool. Pick a water park, or some other place where they have slides, and wave pools etc. Again, just like yard work, they’ll be tired before they know it.
5. Video games! What? Hang on — I mean the ‘good’ ones! Get a Wi, or an Xbox Kinect, and play one of the motion-activated games. They’re worth every penny once the kids get playing. There are Olympic events on most of them or skateboarding etc. I played Wii tennis the other day with my son, and it was awesome! Very tiring.
Those are just a few things you can do with your kids to promote a healthy lifestyle.
If you need other ideas, or are interested in our Fit Club after-school program, just drop us a line!
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