As a rule, active parents make for active kids. If you’re a naturally outdoorsy parent who loves being outside, the chances are your kids will also enjoy it too.
Being outside and having family time together will usually involve leaving the house and venturing into the great outdoors. However, some people simply don’t like sport and are far more inclined to curl up with a good book or bake cakes than go for a run or play tennis.
Given that children need exercise, not only for their fitness, but to make their brains function, it may be a challenge to incorporate sport and the great outdoors into your daily routine. Here are some ways to build exercise into the daily activities.
Walk or cycle to school
If it’s possible to do so, walk or cycle to school. It’s the easiest way to add exercise into your daily routine, give kids fresh air and get their blood circulating so their brain cells are firing at their best when they reach the classroom. It’s also a good way to get fit together, you can even get adult scooters and, of course you could all cycle together.
Bounce into action
Trampoline parks are popping up across the country and offer a fantastic opportunity to get some exercise and have stacks of fun as a family. Some even run family fitness classes where you can all bounce together. Most parents state lack of time as the main reason for a lack of exercise, so by finding a fun environment that the kids will enjoy just as much as you, you tick two boxes in one go.
Translate digital into physical
Most games consoles have an active game or programme that the whole family can enjoy. The Wii Fit comes into its own here, but XBOX and other consoles also have their own range of high octane competitive fun.
There are programmes that include running, tennis, bowling or dancing. Start a family competition and keep a chart of progress as the whole family enjoy getting fit together and it means that there are no excuses when it’s cold or wet outside.
The kids won’t even think of the Wednesday night family dance-off as being exercise, it’s purely a chance to get your groove on and beat your brother or sister (not to mention Mum or Dad).
When the weather allows, take the family exercise fun outdoors by playing rounders, tennis, football, swing ball or even setting up an assault course in the garden.
As the saying goes, a family that plays together, stays together. So inject some much needed exercise into your weekly routine and reap the benefits, whilst still having fun.
