Spring into Fitness – Just Like a Kid
| 2 min read
Ever notice that when the weather gets nice come spring, kids just want to be outside having fun? They can spend a whole day jumping rope, playing in the pool and hanging off some monkey bars. While it might look like they’re just goofing around, they are actually being really active. And as a parent, you could learn something from that. Exercise doesn’t have to be boring or something you do in a gym—you can have a blast alongside your kids while working your muscles and burning calories.
Now that springtime has sprung and the days are getting nicer, combine fitness and fun by joining in on these kid-friendly activities:
- Jumping rope. Grab a rope and just start jumping—you’ll quickly see how tough this can be. Try it for 10 minutes and you’ll feel it later in your shoulders, chest, arms and legs. You can even “fake jump rope” by making the motion without the actual rope.
- Hula hooping. Get an intense cardio workout in by moving your hips to the beat of a fun playlist. If you want to turn it up even more, you can lift your knees up one at a time or add arm movements into the mix. For the sake of your home’s valuables, we’d recommend trying this outside in the yard or driveway. And just like jumping rope, you can mimic the movement even if you don’t have a hula hoop.
- Playing on the monkey bars. The next time you take your kids to the playground, use the monkey bars for traditional pullups, side to side swinging pullups, hanging leg raises and more.
- Jumping on a trampoline. You can stick to jumping up and down for a full body workout that gets your heart rate up and works your leg muscles. Or try moves like squats and lunges on the trampoline—keeping yourself stable engages and helps tighten your entire core.
- Playing in the pool. One of the best warm-weather workouts is simply swimming laps for about 15 minutes. Another option: Get your kids involved by handing everyone a kickboard and racing each other across the pool using flutter kicks. Even walking through the water is a good workout!
Which of these fun kids’ exercises are you going to try? Tell us in the comments!
Photo credit: RawPixel
