Kids are always filled with so much energy and excitement that, at times, it becomes hard to keep up with them. Take them to any amusement center, an escape room Bangalore, for example, and you will see how much longer their enthusiasm lasts than any other adult. Even though this high energy helps kids stay active and supports their physical growth, it is also pretty common for parents to feel exhausted by it.
As parents, life gets busy as it is. Making time separately for working out becomes even harder when you have a kid to take care of at home. But without proper playtime, kids too are vulnerable to becoming inactive and staying stuck to their iPad or TV screens. The lack of physical exercise thus hurts both parents and kids in the long run. But there are some simple healthy practices that can help you stay on top of your fitness routine! Let’s take a look at a few methods that allow you to stay fit along with your kids:
1. Take a pre/post-dinner walk with your kid(s)
One of the coziest ways to kick start a healthier life with your kid would be going for a walk before or after your dinner. This lightweight exercise is not too difficult for children or for adults who are not in the fittest form. This can also double as a quality time where you can have personal conversations with your children and get to know what is going on in their lives currently.
2. Host dance parties
Dancing is an exciting and enjoyable way to stay fit. For this, all you need to do is host a small party with your kids, a few close friends, and maybe your favorite neighbors. With the sun going down, turn on the music high and dance to the beats till you drop down tired!
Creating such a fun atmosphere at home will also help your kids thrive psychologically and make them feel safe in their living space. It can also help with the parent-child dynamic where they feel more open to sharing their lives with you.
3. Chalk out a fun game out of the mundane household chores!
If executed correctly, this can be a useful way to work out as well as get your household work done in no time! So, engage all your creative muscles and try to come up with ways that can turn boring chores into a fun game. You can even go one step ahead and create a family scoreboard where everyone gets points based on how well they finished their “missions” and decide on a weekly winner!
This will not only keep you all physically active but also teach your kids basic life skills and introduce them to household work.
4. Make TV commercials the time for fitness breaks.
Each time TV commercials start to show up on your television set, make that a time when your child does a small workout with you. Coming up with short and catchy names for some simple squats, push-ups, or even the good old jumping jacks can do you good.
When you make TV-watching a dynamic activity like this, it prevents kids from forming the bad habit of staying stuck on the sofa for a long time while watching TV. This is the perfect balance between giving them what they want (TV time) while reigning back its adverse effects (addiction).
5. Host weekly or biweekly sports night sessions for the family!
Hosting a sports night session for your entire family can be a great way to encourage the healthy habit of physical exercise. You can come up with new self-curated games to play with your family together.
If you are lost on how to curate such an event, here is a basic blueprint for inspiration: design a couple of cards yourself, each with the logo or name of a suitable family-friendly activity. All the family members will take their turns to pick a card for themselves. Based on the card they pick, they will then have to do the designated exercise themselves!
6. Spend some time gardening together
Research data and analyses show that even gardening can be a good exercise that especially helps prevent osteoporosis. So, if gardening is something that you as a parent enjoy doing, then you can turn that into a family-friendly fitness routine. Your kids would surely love and enjoy digging up the soil with their bare hands and helping you with planting those bulbs that you bought. Plus, it will introduce them to a healing hobby and educate them about different plants and their life cycles.
Conclusion
Maintaining a healthy and fit lifestyle isn’t as boring as many perceive it to be. Rather, it can be made so much more exciting with just a little bit of creativity. Exercising together with your kids would also enable you to spend some quality time with them, which otherwise you might be missing out on.