Do you ever feel guilty when you head to the gym to workout leaving your kids behind? How about doing a workout with your kids while having fun at the same time? Five fun exercises you and your kids can do:
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1. Hopscotch
Grab a piece of chalk and head to the driveway for a game of hop scotch. All of the hopping and bending will make your legs burn and your heart race. A good game can last 15-20 minutes.
We all are familiar with Jumping Jacks, the heart pumps while having fun. Try 50 jacks, 4 times…my kids love these for some reason!
Challenge kids to use a variety of different skills by setting up an obstacle course at the park using playground equipment or other items, such as jump ropes, balls and cones. A fun workout!
4. Playground Health Club
Join your child on the exercise equipment. Swing, hang, slide, skip, crawl, climb, laugh.
5. Dancing
Turn the music on and dance away….if you have a toddler put a mirror out. Fun to watch their expressions!
-Maybe replace one day each week to the gym with some of these fitness fun activities? Your child will probably appreciate it and maybe even give you a big hug!
Children who get regular exercise have advantages over those who do not. They tend to have more stamina, less health problems, higher self-esteem, and an ability to control their weight more easily. So turn off the computer and the television, oh yes hide the handheld gaming machines. Encourage children to get more exercise.
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39 users commented in " Exercise With Your Kids "
Follow-up comment rss or Leave a TrackbackGreat ideas, they all sound a lot more fun than the treadmill!
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I don’t have kids, but they’re great tips for parents! What better than to exercise and still get quality time with the kiddos.
We like Simon Says too. You can really creative with active things that Simon Says to do!
i have my built in gym ready every day!!!! Those of us with kiddos have a great advantage 😉
Our winters are long, so we make a hopscotch board out of masking tape on the carpet. The kids love it. Its right in the middle of our family room, so they always feel like they are in the middle of the action.
@E,I agree!
@Diana, yes indeed!
@cathy, Simon Says! I like it!
@Annette, So true!
@Super Healthy Kids, Great idea…thanks!
By following your tips-not only are you getting in some good exercise-you are building a bond with your children 🙂
Oh we do these things! We also have one of those foam hopscotch mat and it is a blast for indoors!
Dancing is the BEST! The kids and I always do it 😛
@Tipper, so true, building a bond.
@KD,foam..very cool!
@marcy, The dancing is fun!
My two little nephews like to climb on a chair with wheels my sister has in her home office and have me push them around the apartment. I burn calories and they laugh non-stop 🙂
I love dancing with my 8 month old son! We both really enjoy it! 🙂
Exercise and play with your kids as much as they will let you. You will never regret it and always remember it. They will too.
I don’t have kids, but I do babysit my nieces, who, love to dance. So, we dance for what seems like hours and we even do dance routines with pom poms. We all work up a pretty good sweat. Thanks, Mark!
This is just the post I needed! Thanks so much!
We setup this obstacle course a couple of summers ago – and did it with our kids and another family. It ended up being a whole afternoon of fun. And by the end we were hot, sweaty, worn out, and tired – but it’s still a favorite memory here a couple of years later now.
Right now, I’m doing push ups with my kids – maybe I can mix some of these in there as well! Thanks Mark!
My children are young adults, but when they come over we can be found dancing around the kitchen and bouncing on the trampoline. Okay, not my son, because he’s too cool for such silliness, but my daughters and I have no trouble with silliness. And boy, is that trampoline ever a workout!!!!
Great suggestions Mark. Got your email and will respond this evening. Thanks!
@Marelisa,A fun aunt..how cool!
@Talli,Pretty soon he will be going for a run with you. 🙂
@Dr. Hubbard, so…so true!
@Rosy, pom poms….where do you get those? 🙂
@Munchkins and Music, Thank you!
@Lance, great memory Lance thanks for sharing!
@How fun! Yes, the trampoline is a great workout!
@Donnalouise, Got it..thanks!
This is good! Too many kids are glued to T.V. and video games!
Great ideas! I always feel so happy when I see parents who bring their kids to the track, or kids cycling alongside their running parents, and hope I can be as generous a parent as to include my kids in my exercise when the time comes.
WE play chase. It wears us both out
I love this post! Give you a super big hug! Thanks!
Sounds like fun – playing is always good. Can I do these with my cats?
@DaDivaStreet, I agree…keep em’ busy!
@tfh, Thanks for your feedback!
@suzie, chase is awesome…I like that one too!
@Rosabel, Thank you!
@Missicat, Yes your cats will have fun! 🙂
Okay okay..I cant argue this one, or even make excuses for this one. I can definitely do Hopscotch!
Exercising with kids can be exhausting! They prove that exercising is FUN.
I don’t have kids, but the hopscotching and dancing actually appeal to me! (Although my neighbors may think I’m a little goofy drawing and playing the hopscotch on the driveway.)
my daughter would often times go to the gym with me, not to work out though..they had a room for kids.
of course, exercise is everywhere, so incorporating your kid(s) into your activity is a great idea. Fun for them and fun for you too. Guilty? No, mama needs a break. 🙂
@Mark – so the silly thing is, I can post comments on your site from work, but not my site (on breaks of course!). Anyway, just wanted to thank you for your consistent support and compliments. And mind a stumble? I would be honoured, thank you!
I would add play some tag! I played tag with my niece and nephew last week – that’s some heavy duty running around!
I do play with my kids! I play with other peoples kids too. This week it’s basketball skills- amazed at what they can and can’t do yet with a b-ball!
I feel nothing but pure freedom when I head to the gym without my kids. JUST KIDDING! It is so much easier now that they are older, 15,12 and 10, I love going to the gym with the older two, it is a blast to work out with them and I can’t wait to till the 10 year is a couple years older, the whole family will work out together. And you know what they say about the family that works out together… : )
@meleah rebeccah, Yay Hopscotch!
@Sagan,Very true!
@Sherre,What a cool neighbor you are! 🙂
@Natural,have to get a break sometimes..of course. 🙂
@Urban, Thank you!
@Stacey, Tag takes some serious energy! 🙂
@Rachel, Good for you… bball is a good workout
@Audra,How fun. Thanks for sharing! 🙂
Even though my boys are getting older (12 and 11) they still love to dance with me to their music (R&B, etc). They probably won’t appreciate me announcing that though 🙂 hehe
@Melissa, Thanks for sharing…our secret! 🙂
Oh the dancing is definitely happening in this household 🙂
How did I miss this post last week? It’s great, i totally agree. And getting them to know exercise is fun is just setting them up for still enjoying excercising as older kids and teens.