Exercise Ideas

Warming Up

To prevent injury, it is important for your child
to  warm up before exercising. This should include about five minutes of light activity, such as walking, calisthenics (jumping jacks, bending, knee lifts), and stretching. 


Get the Whole Family Involved

It can take time to get your child involved in a regular fitness routine.  Get the whole family involved.  Healthy eating habits and regular exercise should be a regular part of your family's life.  It is much easier if everyone in the house follows these guidelines, than if your child has to do it alone.  Prevent dehydration by having your child drink one to two eight ounce glasses of water before exercising and give them free access to water during their exercise routine.


Encourage Exercise

There are lots of ways to encourage regular physical activity as part of your child's regular daily routine: 

1)  Walk or ride your bike instead of driving for short distances.

2)  Take a walk with a friend or walk the family dog each afternoon.

3)  Use the stairs instead of escalators or elevators.

4)  Park your car at the end of the parking lot when visiting the mall or
grocery store.

5)  Give your child easy chores, such as doing yardwork, taking out the garbage, or light housework.
 
6)  Go for routine family walks or bike rides in the neighborhood or local park.

Nintendo Wii, Wii Fit & Wii Ski

Since we have purchased the Wii, Wii Fit and Wii Ski my daughter uses it almost daily.  The regular Wii provides tons of games and activities for all ages.  The best ones for a little exercise are the bowling and boxing.  The Wii Fit and Wii Ski is also a great way to get the kids moving. Although it's not a great weight loss tool, it's does provide excellent exercise for the whole family, even for kids, especially the yoga and aerobics.  My whole family uses the Wii regularly.  We have also been known to play during family functions and parties.  The great part is that you're having fun the whole time without realizing you're exercising!

Below are some great Nintendo Wii items, along with some other fun and easy exercise items, such as an exercise bike just for kids, basketball sets, regular bicycles and activity sets.  All these items can be viewed or purchased just by clicking on the item of interest (all items are from Amazon.com, one of my favorite sites to buy online from!)

_______________________________

Types of Exercises You Can Do
With Your Child
_______________________________

Balance:  This exercise is like a mirror game.  You start  by telling the child to follow your lead while you hold up one foot for several seconds, then the other.  You can squat down or get on your tiptoes.  Whatever you do, make sure you’re balancing.  After you’ve had a turn, tell them it’s his/her turn to lead.

Hop Dots:  This is a simple exercise that’s easy for children do, but it has great rewards.  Put dots on the floor and have them hop from dot to dot and maybe have them pick up a couple of things along the way.  You should do it too to make the experience more enjoyable for the kids.

Hold on:  With this one the child is simply trying to hold on to mommy or daddy’s leg while walking.  This is fun for all children.  What they don’t know is they’re working almost every muscle in their body just trying to hold on.

Quick on Your Feet:  Start off this exercise by kneeling.  Toss a ball in the air high enough that you can hop up to both feet and grab it before it touches the ground.  After you’ve mastered that, do the same thing from a sitting position. And after that, do it from a lying position.  Younger kids can also do this exercise by using a balloon and have them do the same movements. 

Gorilla Walk:  Spread your feet apart about as wide as your shoulders. Bend at your waist and grab your ankles. Hold your ankles and walk stiff-legged.

Worm Walk:  Get into a push-up position, with your body and arms straight and your hands on the floor.  Keep your hands still and walk feet up as close to your hands as possible.  Keep feet still and walk with your hands forward to the starting position.


Search here for more fun exercises to keep your kids healthy:

Custom Search

____________________________________________________

Contact Information:

Denise Stevens

dstevens@a-zfunforkids.com

____________________________________________________