Encouraging Kids to Move During Summer 

With the warm summer season comes freedom from homework, studying, and other school requirements along with extra free time for kids. Looking for ways to encourage your children to be active throughout the summer season can sometimes be an issue without the after-school activities and the school’s structure. Thus, having a plan can be a useful way to keep your children healthy and active all summer long.  

 

Improved cognition, bone health, muscular fitness, and cardiovascular fitness are some of the advantages of being physically active for kids. It also increases the chance of being healthy as an adult. Kids need to participate in a minimum of 1-hour physical activity each day to achieve these health benefits. They also have to participate in vigorous activities at least 3 days each week. Furthermore, you have to incorporate resistance-training and bone-strengthening activities 3 days a week for 60 minutes a day.  

Aside from hiring a Fort Wayne fitness instructor, here are a couple of tips to keep your kids active during the summer season. 

Look for Structured Activities 

Enroll your children in structured programs if possible. Make sure it incorporates physical activities such as summer camps and sports. Furthermore, you have to take advantage of the various virtual programs that are provided to kids. This includes online creative fitness programming, martial arts lessons, and dance classes that are specifically made for kids. 

Make It a Family Activity 

Plan activities that get your entire family active. These can include backyard games like scavenger hunts, family Olympics, kickball, relay races, obstacle courses, and water balloon fights. It can also include simple things such as hikes and bike rides. Your kids will have higher chances of participating if the activity is more creative and enjoyable. It will help establish a great feeling toward physical activity.  

Assign Tasks that Incorporate Movement 

Assign your kids age-suitable tasks to keep them active. These tasks can include walking the dog, mowing the lawn, tending the garden, cleaning, or taking out the trash. Make a schedule every week and look for ways to hold your kids responsible for finishing their responsibilities every week. You can also make it fun if you turn these chores into games.  

Set Goals 

For the summer, establish physical activity-related goals. Take the time to talk with your kids so that the goals are relevant to them. Make sure the activity can relate to something they like. This can include finishing a particular number of movement-related chores every week, developing a particular skill such as doing a cartwheel, dribbling a basketball, or catching a baseball, or having an obstacle course in your yard. 

Keep an Organized Routine 

Establish a schedule every day that includes allotted time for activities that are movement-related. This will help guarantee your kids meet the minimum recommendation for physical activity. These can be scheduled in small intervals across the day or in bigger blocks. You can help your kids establish lifelong healthy habits if you make physical activity a priority and promoting your kids to participate in them.