Fitness Tips for Heart Healthy Kids

If you are dreading the conversation about diet and exercise with your children, have no fear; you are not alone. Many parents do not know how to approach this subject with their kids. While parents can think of many fun and creative ways to incorporate healthy foods into their child’s diet, fitness routines seem a little trickier.

It does not have to be that way, however. Fitness is easily incorporated into children’s routines as long as it is not a “drop and give me 20” mindset. Fitness should be fun for children. There are many ways to incorporate fun into fitness without your children knowing it.

The Great Outdoors

Sometimes, we as parents are so tired after a long day that the thought of going to the park or for a hike or bike ride is unappealing at best. However, once you begin to get into a routine of two or three times per week to venture out into the great outdoors, you will see and feel the difference in that fatigue in both you and your children.

There are many creative ways to incorporate fitness into your children’s daily routine. Studies have shown that various activities done outdoors burn calories such as:

• Raking leaves – not only is it great exercise and a necessary chore, what kid doesn’t love jumping in a pile of freshly raked leaves!
• Shoveling snow – once they have cleared the driveway, help them to build their very own luge. You can have them clear a pathway with snow piled higher at the sides going on a downward angle. Not only will building this burn calories, they get to have fun afterward sliding down and climbing back up again.
• Gardening – gardening is known to burn calories. Not only that, gardening is also a great way for kids to plant, grow, and eat their own vegetables.

Of course, there is also biking, walking, and swimming. Take a nature walk but make it one that includes some hills through a park or woods. Let your children look for various items in the woods such as pine cones, different colored rocks, etc.

Inside during Colder Months

When the weather gets cold outside, there is always dancing. A favorite game of children is to play “freeze” dance. This is where you control the radio and have your kids dance up a storm and then suddenly you stop the music! It gets their metabolism up without them even knowing they are exercising.

Technology

Technology has come to play a major role in the fitness levels of everyone – adults and children alike. Why not spend a few bucks on a gaming CD that will have them just dancing or doing yoga or playing virtual tennis!

They will have fun and will never even know that they are truly exercising.