Exercising with your kids is an easy and great way to spend some time with them. In this way, you will not just get closer to your child, but this will also help you both have an active lifestyle.
For most parents, especially parents of small children, their workout time is presumably minimal. This is no surprise as it is hard for them to make enough time for themselves to exercise.
Therefore we wanted to discuss this topic to help all the parents out there who are struggling to find enough time to exercise — especially as for most of us, finding someone to take care of your kids to give you the opportunity to work out on your own isn’t always possible.
Exercises You Can Actually Do
With Your Kids
A fitness expert from Vivotion.com believes, if you are considering working out with your kids, one action to take is to create a routine that is guaranteed fun. Think of it as exercise play instead of working out.
In this way, you don’t have to think about who is going to look after your children while you try and get your daily workout in because the exercises that will be provided in today’s write up is ideal for both you and your children.
Are you ready to workout with your kids?
Yes, you’ve read that correctly. These exercises are child-friendly workout routines where you can flex your body with your kids around.
Exercise as a Family
It turns out that training is not just about going to the gym and performing exhausting workout routines, lifting weights and running on a treadmill. Exercise can also mean being physically active and playing around—and this applies to the kids.
Some parents usually tend to ignore the benefits of forcing their kids to be active outside of school. Especially when you consider that gym classes, dance classes and soccer practices may be seen as enough exercise already.
Yes, if you allow your kids to participate in these kinds of activities, you are helping your child to stay physically active, but most often this is as little as once a week. So why is it important to share your workout routine with your kids and exercise as a family?
Benefits of Exercise for Parents and Kids
We all know how beneficial exercise is in our lifestyle if we do it regularly.
Both parents and kids who stay active will reap the benefits of:
- Stronger bones and muscles
- Lower blood pressure and blood cholesterol levels
- Leaner body
- Reduces the risk of diabetes
- Better lifestyle
Not only that, staying physically active will help not only you but also your kids to have a good quality of sleep. Also, this practice will help them to be better able to handle physical and emotional challenges.
Therefore you may say that it is essential for parents to allow their children to do a variety of outdoor activities so they can work out the three elements:
- Endurance
- Strength
- Flexibility
Did you know that doing aerobic exercises can be fun for both parents and kids? Here are the following aerobic exercises you can do with your children:
- Swimming
- Basketball
- Bicycling
- Jogging
- Running
- Walking
- Tennis
- Soccer
How Much Exercise Is Enough?
It is true that parents need to ensure that their children are getting enough regular exercise. So how much activity is enough for your kids?
Here are the specific recommendations from the National Association for Sport and Physical Education (NASPE) for kids:
Infant – As claimed by our sources, there are no minimum daily activity requirements for infants. Parents should focus more on motor development in the initial stages of a child’s development.
Toddler – For toddlers, the minimum daily activity requirements is an hour and a half. The 60 minutes is for the unstructured physical activity or free play, while the remaining 30 minutes is for physical activity.
Preschooler – Two hours is the ideal daily activity hour-time for preschoolers. Sixty minutes of physical activity and the remaining 60 minutes is for the unstructured physical activity.
School Age – The minimum daily activity hour requirement for school age is one hour. Remember to break up into bouts of 15 minutes or more.
10 Facile Exercises You Can Actually Do With Your Kids
1. Give Me 10 Push-Ups
One of the strength exercises that can match up your kid’s ability is pushups. For parents, do the regular pushups routine (toes on the floor, legs and back straight, elbows bent).
And as for your kids, they can do pushups from their knees or lie on their stomachs and straighten their arms. You can add simple triceps raises, bicep curls, and chest presses with a set of hand weights. 1 to 2-pound weights is ideal for older kids.
2. Yoga
Yoga doesn’t just have to be for young or old adults. In fact, now is the right time to teach your kids some yoga poses. You can show them some natural poses such as tree, cat and butterfly pose wherein they can stretch and twist their bodies alongside you.
Keep this in mind, don’t force or push your children to flex their bodies, instead allow them to take the lead and go at their own pace.
3. Dance Workout
One of the easiest ways to exercise with your children is to pump up the music (either your kids’ favorite music playlist or yours) and dance. By dancing vigorously, it will provide you with an intense cardiovascular workout.
This kind of exercise is ideal for those parents who wish to entertain their children and to exercise with them at the same time. So, what are you waiting for? Have a dance party workout with your child now!
4. Hit the Playground
Playground equipment is not just for kids, but they are also suitable for parents who wish to do their workout routine in the playground. Apparatus such as the swing wherein moms and dads can perform a variety of planks, squats and pushups.
If you have a playground near your house, don’t take it for granted because you can play around with the playground equipment and meet your children there for play anytime you want.
5. Run, Walk and Roll
If you’re a parent with a toddler, you can go for a run or a walk with them while they’re on a jogging stroller or bike seat. Or your child who’s good enough to ride a bike or jog with you, you can ask them to accompany you while you run or walk.
In this way, riding bicycles or scooters will help them to get their workout routine.
For the next five exercises, we will focus more on the exciting and fun part of the workout session. It is time to challenge your kids to get fit and have fun together!
6. Household Chores Game
Cleaning your house every single day can sometimes be exhausting, especially when you have kids who love to play around all day long. Cleaning doesn’t have to be boring, and it doesn’t have to be part of your everyday tasks.
This is the right time to teach your children household chores, but with fun. Parents can provide their kids with their own cleaning set where they can help you to tote around.
In this way, they are not just helping you with the household chores, but it will also allow them to move their muscles and work them out.
7. TV Commercials = Fitness Breaks
Calling the attention of all the parents out there! The time has come for you to stand as your kids’ at-home coach.
Make fitness activity with your children more entertaining by turning the TV commercials into fitness breaks. Challenge them with simple exercises like squats, pushups and sit-ups and do them together until your favorite TV show comes back on.
8. Walk/Run for a Cause
This idea will not only teach your children how to stay physically active and learn the value of exercise, but they will also learn to give back to society. To do this, you can team up with your children for a fund-raising marathon.
This idea is the perfect way to show your kids the importance of exercise while giving back to the community. It’s a win-win for every parent and child out there!
9. Weekly Sports Night
This weekly sports night idea is a great way to double your quality time with your children. To do this activity, pick a date wherein everyone in the household is free, then get everyone up and moving.
You can play a series of card games and incorporate them with friendly exercises where everyone can join. It could be an ape-walking or bear-crawling game or any game that will interest the whole family.
10. Walk the Dog
Did you know that walking your dog can give you eight hours of exercise a week? According to some research studies, a homeowner who has a pooch tends to get more exercise by walking their pet than someone who goes to the gym and pays for a membership.
On the Study of Obesity of the North American Association, it shows that dog owners have more fun in losing weight and they’re able to keep it off longer than non-puppy owners. So, if you have a dog of your own, it’s time to walk your dog and reap that eight hours of exercise benefits a week.
You do not have to lift heavy weights or run vigorously on a treadmill. All you have to do is to get your dog moving, and you’re good to go.
Therefore, next time you consider exercising, why not get your child involved? Alternatively, next time you’re craving to stretch your legs or get your lungs pumping, why not include your child for some fun family time spent together!
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