11 Ways to Keep Your School Age Child Active

I tend to get a little nostalgic as my daughter’s birthday comes around. This January she turned 8! I of course scrolled into the abyss of my camera roll to admire how she has changed over the years. One thing that stood out to me is how active she has always been, and how I do different things to facilitate that as she’s gotten older.

It is challenging when your child is really young to find and make time to work out, especially at home and without interruption. I always tell new moms that all of the effort they put in early to prioritize exercise will pay off as their child gets older. However, now that my daughter is older, I realize that the effort doesn’t stop…it just looks different. Here are some things that have worked well for me since she’s become a physically active school-age child.

1. Continue to prioritize your own exercise, especially home workouts. I now look forward to being a role model and doing my weekend workouts at home. They’re usually shorter, which is perfect because sometimes my daughter will join in. At the very least, she sees me making time for activity.

2. Teach them how their body works and how physical activity helps it work better. I never miss an opportunity to educate my daughter about her body. How many of us had no idea what the pelvic floor was until we were pregnant? I encourage her to notice how her heart rate gets faster when she runs or teach her about the muscles that need to be strong for the monkey bars.

3. Give active toys for rewards or gifts. It’s pretty hard to encourage your child to be active when you just gave them a brand-new tablet for their birthday. Instead consider things like scooters, inline skates, hula hoops, and jump ropes. It’s not that I don’t give sedentary gifts, but I make sure she has active options that are just as fun.

4. Talk about their strength and ability more than their body type. My daughter is tall and lean, and she’s constantly hearing comments about it. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, but I like to take the focus off of her physical appearance and compliment her on how strong her legs are when she runs, or how I’m lucky she is strong enough to help me carry groceries up the stairs.

5. Let them jump around from activity to activity without specializing. Most elite athletes were multi-sport athletes as a child. Now days there is pressure for your child to specialize in a sport at an early age, and if it’s driven by them by all means support it. But, just as their taste in food fluctuates almost daily, so can their interests. I try to support all of the sports and activities my daughter wants to try…even if she quits after one session or season. How else will she find what she loves or is good at? There’s plenty of time later to instill commitment once you start something, but let them explore when they’re young.

6. Walk as part of the commute. I admit, I used to be a lot better at this. We never seem to have enough time to walk to school versus drive. But I do purposefully make sure to include her in any errands I can do on foot. I want her to realize that moving often is a way of daily life.

7. Choose sneakers. Have you ever tried to run in “dress shoes”, or jump rope in boots? Although it can be cute to see your child in a variety of shoes, remember kids are supposed to be active, and their footwear should encourage that. Have fun with different colors and styles, but keep your child in comfortable shoes.

8. Choose physically active family time. This might seem simple, but as most kids get older, it becomes a little harder to get them to participate in activities with you. I’ve tried to follow her lead as much as possible to make it a bit easier. She started tennis lessons so I did as well. She likes to swim (I do not), but I make sure we go to the pools. I bought us both a pair of rollerblades so we could enjoy it together. There was a stage where I was relieved to be able to sit on the park bench while she played on the playground but to promote lifestyle activities, I’m back to moving with her again.

9. Plan active birthday parties. Last year we planned a skate party and this year her celebration consisted of dancing and cartwheels at home. Your child already has a positive association with their birthday, so why not make the positive connection between celebrating/special days and being active? Fortunately, Philly has a ton of active party options (if I have to go to another trampoline park!), but walking to your favorite restaurant, or dancing to the birthday song are also simple things you can do to connect celebration with movement.

10. Applaud them for being a good example to other kids. Just as we admire moms who are able to stay consistent with exercise, or manage to stay strong during pregnancy, kids take note of other kids’ abilities. Let your child know that they’re being a good example for others with their exercise and activity. My daughter has seen me help other people be active and she often talks about teaching kids how to do different “moves” and “tricks” on the playground.

11. Teach them new skills. As you already know, kids are sponges and they love to mimic us. We spend a lot of time focusing on teaching them academics and manners, but are you taking the time to expose them to different motor skills and movements? Sure they have P.E. class, but a little practice outside of school goes a long way in building their confidence in physical activity.

Nobody knows your child better than you, so I encourage you to try these suggestions or do what works for your family. Either way, if you want your child to remain active, we have to create an environment that supports it. If you’re struggling with modeling. it, I invite you to join the Active Mom community with private or group training.

Five Tips To Raise a Physically Active Child

Family hikes, holiday 5Ks, vacation swims, and weekend bike rides. Many of us have that vision of being a strong and healthy mom so that we can enjoy those activities with our kids. So how do we create the active family lifestyle we dream of? The truth is that it starts early, and it starts with you. Here are a few tips I’ve discovered in my professional and personal journey to encourage physical activity in kids and my daughter:

1. Speak positively about your body and your physical ability: Comment on what you’re good at. Don’t equate body positivity with perfection. Set a good example of appreciating what your body can do physically. They’re always listening.

2. Do home workouts: Honestly to get a full workout in with your kids in the room can be frustrating and can take years to get to a point with no interruption, but it’s well worth the effort. Model prioritizing your health and fitness and eventually they’ll be your biggest cheer leader, or better yet, they’ll join you!

3. Give them space at the playground: It’s easy to worry about their safety as they’re learning to climb and run, but it’s important for them to build confidence in their own abilities. To be a physically active “big kid”, they have to learn to trust their bodies at an early age. Rather than telling them “be careful”, ask them if they feel safe, or comment on the slippery surface and ask them if they feel comfortable they won’t slip.

4. Educate and complement: Don’t wait for health class. Use meal time or trips to the playground to educate them. For example: “your bones are going to get stronger with all of that jumping”, “your heart is going to be healthy with all that running” Make connections for them that their personal actions are responsible for their health.

5. Play the games: it can be oh so nice when your kids reach the age of playing independently, but on occasion it’s important to get out there with them. Hopscotch, swing pushing and tag may not be your dream family bike trip, but you have to start somewhere. Make those activities enjoyable now and they’ll be receptive to your ideas later. Make it about the fun and not about the exercise/activity.

   Being physically active as a family is great for physical/emotional health, fun and bonding. Put these strategies to work and you’ll be running a Turkey Trot with your 7 year old in no time.

3 Exciting Games to Give Your Kids a Workout (and you too!)

(guest contributor)

As a parent, your child’s health and happiness are always your main concern, which is why it’s important that you teach them the importance of exercise from a young age. However, a lot of parents have trouble balancing family and exercise and they don’t know how to get their kids excited about staying active. Not every child is going to love structured “workouts/exercise”. But most will love playing games, and they will be way more engaged. There are some great active games you can try that will get them outside and moving around, so they can stay healthy (and you can move with them!).

Here are some active games to help your kids get more exercise. Get out there and have fun!

Scavenger Hunts 

Scavenger hunts are always a great way to get your kids moving, and it’s a great option if you want a fun activity to keep them busy at home. All you need to do is hide some items around the house or yard, and challenge your kids to find them. Give them a few clues to get them started and they’ll soon be running around all over the place. If you want to turn it into a workout in disguise, you can put tasks with each item, like do 10 jumping jacks, for example. 

Bean Bag Toss 

Bean bag toss isn’t the first thing that comes to mind when you are thinking of fitness games, but it’s actually very beneficial. It improves hand-eye coordination and there is a bit of cardio involved as your child runs back and forth to collect their bean bags. This article that answers questions like, how far apart are the boards in bean bag toss, will help you set up your own game in the yard or park. It’s a great way to spend an afternoon and it’s also fun for parties too. Your kids will have so much fun and they won’t even realize they are exercising. 

Capture The Flag

Capture the flag is a fun way to get your kids running around and get their heart rate up. It’s a simple game you can play with two to four teams of any size, and a few items to use as flags (they don’t need to be actual flags). Set up the flags and assign a base for each team. The aim is then to catch the other team's flag without being tagged. If you want to add an extra element of fitness, you can have the kids do some frog jumpss each time they get tagged before returning to their base and rejoining the game, or change the movement from running to base to skipping. You can have endless hours of fun with this one and it can be played anywhere, but it’s particularly good in a large open space, so it’s perfect for the park. 

Getting kids to exercise can be a battle against toys and screens, but if you play these exciting games with them, you can get them to do a workout without even realizing it.  And I’ll add once again, you get your workout in too!