Fun home exercises for families to start this new year on a healthy note
January is often the time for fitness resolutions, but balancing exercise with parenting can be tricky, especially if you’ve got little ones to care for. Instead of finding time away from the kids to hit the gym, why not turn fitness into a family affair?
Exercising together not only eliminates the need for childcare but also teaches kids the importance of staying active while enjoying quality time as a team.
“Families focusing on fitness together is a great way to stay motivated,” says Jack Claxton, a personal trainer at David Lloyd Clubs. “It’s amazing being able to build a strong relationship with the kids while enjoying a healthy benefit at the same time.”
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And personal trainer Sarah Campus, founder of LDN Mums Fitness, explains: “Exercise releases feel-good hormones – dopamine, serotonin and endorphins – and it doesn’t only improve your mood, but will also improve your self-esteem, and decrease feelings of stress, anxiety and depression.
“All these effects don’t just benefit you but your family, too. You’re the biggest role model to your own children and it’s said that children move better when you move with them.”
Campus, a mum-of-three, says families don’t need to do a lot of exercise to feel the benefits, explaining that studies have shown a 15-minute functional workout is enough. So instead of walking with the pram, run with it instead!
“Rewards can be felt instantly and last far longer than the movement itself,” says Campus. “I encourage the whole family to take part in short and speedy workouts to crank up the heart rate, boost blood flow around the body and get those happy hormones flowing.”
Want to start at home? Try these simple bodyweight exercises that the whole family can do together for a fun and effective full-body workout.
Top 10 exercises that can be done at home by the whole family are…
1. Climbing stairs
Campus suggests the whole family climb the stairs one behind the other, and asks: “How many times can you go up and down in a certain amount of time?”
2. Stair workouts
As well as using it for walking exercises, Campus suggests turning the stairs into a fun workout space for the whole family. Try exercises like press-ups, lunges, or tricep dips using the steps.
You could also mix things up with shoulder taps, where you hold a plank position with your hands on the stairs and tap your shoulders one at a time, or knee drives for an added challenge.
3. Brushing teeth squats
“Do squats for the duration of brushing teeth, or while the kettle’s boiling do a squat hold, a plank or mountain climbers,” suggests Campus.
4. Kitchen workouts
Campus says you can make use of tins in the kitchen by getting everyone in the family to hold them as they do bicep curls, overhead presses, or tricep pulses - where you hold a tin in each hand with your palms facing away from you, and push your palms back until your triceps at the top back of your arm tighten, and then perform a pulsing motion.
5. Joint effort exercises
Make exercise interactive and fun with activities like ball twists - passing a ball or weighted item between family members. You can also try planks with high-fives to keep everyone moving, or set up cardio equipment side by side to work out together while staying connected. “Kids love being able to compete with the adults,” stresses Claxton.
6. Simply dance
“Put on some music and dance for an energetic and joyful workout all together,” suggests Campus.
7. Work out in front of the TV
Instead of being the classic couch potato family as you watch TV, use the time to exercise as you watch. Campus suggests sofa exercises in front of the telly such as jogging on the spot, split squats, press-ups, glute bridges, lying side leg raises, or squats.
8. Active treasure hunts
Design a treasure hunt – indoor or outdoor, depending on the weather. “It gets everyone moving and encourages the whole family to use their cognitive function and imagination,” says Campus.
9. Create a DIY obstacle course
It’s easy to make your own obstacle course in the garden or the park, says Campus, who suggests using cones to go round, ropes to jump over and other household items.
10. Gardening games
Head outdoors and get active with some family-friendly gardening. Turn it into a fun game by timing how many leaves you can gather into a pile or bucket. It’s a playful way to enjoy the fresh air and get moving together.
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