Weekly Fitness Challenge

This weeks challenge is a little different than normal. This week, the challenge is for the entire family. One thing that has always driven me nuts is that when parents workout, many times kids are distracted in a way that is counter productive to the reason why we are working out in the first time. For peace and quiet without distractions, kids may watch tv or be put in a gym day care. I am guilty of doing those and things of the sort. I do try to make it a priority to give back to my kids equal to what I give myself. When we were going to the gym, I would instantly do a physical activity with my kids right after my workout so they got their fair share too. We would follow my gym time up with swimming, rock wall climbing, and playing at the park.
This week, I challenge you to get in 30 minutes of exercise as an entire family. This will have so many benefits! Many times, kids don't share much about their day at school but if you go for a walk or bike ride, they loosen up a little bit and start to share details about their day. There is also research that ties the physical activity with achievement. Childhood obesity rates go hand in hand with achievement data. In Colorado, we are right around the  30% rate for childhood obesity and that is exactly what the rate is for students below where they need to be at school.
At our house, we love to get out for a little bit right after dinner. Our favorite after dinner activities are to go for a walk or ride out bikes through the neighborhood. It is a great time of year to explore and appreciate the beginning signs of fall too! If you do this challenge, check in at the end of the week and see how everyone is feeling and doing. I bet it will be a great experience and worth every minute of it!
Some other family exercise activities:
Park Play- leave the phone at home and actually play with your kids
scooters
soccer
scavenger hunt
highschool track
circuits
dance aprty
walks
bike rides
yard work

Nina Pears