Home Exercises To Do With Your Kids
It’s not always easy to fit a good workout into your schedule when you also have kids that rely on you at all hours of the day, but it doesn’t have to be. Rather than separating your responsibilities as a mother from your workout routine, why not get your kids involved? Exercising with your kids can be a fun bonding experience that will keep you and them active while the COVID-19 quarantine forces us all to stay inside. Here are some home exercises to do with your kids.
Games and Activities
Framing exercise as a game is a great way to motivate your kids and prevent the activity from feeling like a chore. Kids already spend a lot of time running, skipping, and jumping—all of which are great ways to get some good cardio exercise—so games like tag and obstacle courses are great home exercises to do with your kids. A goal or objective is the best way to drive motivation, and while your goal may be to lose weight or build muscle, kids don’t even think about such things, so find them a different goal to entice them.
Friendly Competition
In a similar vein, if you want to get your kids into more typical forms of exercise, such as yoga or interval training, then you should ignite some competitive spirit within them. No matter your age, friendly competition is a powerful motivator, and the promise of a reward makes it all the sweeter. Offer your kids a small prize if they perform well, or add a point system that awards a point to the child who did the exercise the best. This little motivational push will drive you and your kids to try their hardest to exercise with proper form.
Useful Equipment
Kids have a real knack for making anything a toy, and you can convince them to do the same with home gym accessories like yoga balls or rubber resistance bands. If it’s something they can touch and manipulate, kids will want to have it. Once they’ve attached themselves to an accessory, teach them how to use it so that they can exercise alongside you. A good tip to remember is that kids are learning about the world around them. If they see you using equipment or accessories, their natural curiosity will compel them to mimic you, which will give you the opportunity to guide them.