Winter’s here and the temperature out there is no joke! And sure, sledding and snowball fights are great when there’s snow on the ground, but it’s not always feasible to get moving with your family outside once temperatures drop. Good news: There are plenty of fun and productive ways to integrate movement and exercise into your kids’ routines inside. Here are some of our favorites:
1. Put on a pedometer. We use pedometers to keep track of how active we’ve been, so why not do the same for kids? Give them a pedometer, explain how it works, and make a game of it! Set up rewards for every milestone number of steps they reach, or even make it a competition between family members to see who has been the most active each day. The Nike+ Sportband lets kids track their steps hands free.
2. Plan an obstacle course. Join forces with the kids to create a challenging obstacle course around the house. Include various exercises like jumping rope for one minute (to make it even more fun, pick up a book of jump rope rhymes that they can recite), completing 15 jumping jacks or hopping on one foot to the next stage. You can also try timing them to track how fast they are each time around.
3. Groove to the music. Whether your kids listen to Taylor Swift, Beyoncé, the ‘Beebs, Ariana or Adele, music is the answer to getting them away from their screens and onto the dance floor. After all, dancing to good music never goes out of style. So, turn up the hits and make a game of it with freeze dance! When the music stops, freeze in your pose and hold it until the music starts again. Need some music inspiration? Here are 10 Tunes to Keep You Going!
4. Glide with indoor ice-skating. No need to bundle up and brave the cold at a rink or frozen pond. All you need is some wax paper or an old magazine or catalog with “slippery” paper and tape for some indoor skating! Hold hands and glide across the carpet. Hopefully you’ll succeed in more gliding than sliding, but either way, it will be a thrill!
5. Keep a basket full of playful goodies. Having balls, Frisbees, jump ropes and pretty much any other fun toy that will get your child playing (and moving!) is a great idea. One strategy to keep your kid’s fitness levels up is to make it easy for them to run around. Give them gear to play physically active games, and they’ll figure out all kinds of things to do. Encourage your kids to develop skills in a favorite sport such as basketball dribbling or soccer footwork … just be sure to secure the valuables first!
6. Hallway bowling. Can’t make it to a bowling alley? No problem! Mom blogger Mommy Poppins offers tips for making your own bowling set using empty water bottles or other containers that you can find around the house.
