Family Activities to Keep Fit

I heard a recent report stating that the average American adult gains 5-7 pounds during the Holiday season.  Oh, NO!!!  This is the time of year when both adults and children consume the most amounts of sugar and junk food.  It seems there are tempting treats everywhere!  I work in a teaching business, and the children and families love to bring all of us treats.  Our staff room is full of fudge, cookies, candy, sweet breads and other homemade snacks.  So, we are all facing  serious temptation every day from now until after Christmas.    Avoiding the average Holiday weight gain is a major challenge.

To make matters worse, we live in Michigan.  In the last few weeks we have gotten ice, sleet, and over a foot of snow.  The temperature has been in the teens with wind chills even colder.  It is REALLY tempting to just curl up in front of the fire or cuddle with a warm afghan and a book, but it is critical during this time to have an exercise routine in place.  And, there are plenty of ways for you and your family to be active.  Check out the list below (from the PE4Life Newsletter) for some ideas on how to keep your family physically active during the winter season:

• Visit the local Christmas tree farm and pick out a tree
• Go sledding
• Build a snowman or an igloo
• Make an obstacle course in the house
• Haven a jump rope contest
• Conduct a dance-off in the living room
• Visit your local YMCA for a day of swimming
• Find a local gym and play basketball (check your elementary or high school)
• Take up yoga
• Put on a kid’s exercise DVD (check out www.gymtrix.net)
• Practice your moves with Dance Dance Revolution Extreme
• Host a family XaviX night
• Plant a winter garden
• Play leapfrog
• Go ice skating, either indoors or outdoors
• Take a winter nature hike
• Use food coloring to create a hopscotch pattern in the snow
• Decorate your outdoor trees with popcorn, lights, and berries
• Bowl in the snow
• Have a snowball fight
• Build a snow fort
• Visit a roller-rink for roller skating
• Go bowling
• Bundle up for an evening walk and enjoy the lights in your neighborhood

The best way to ensure your child remains active during the winter is by joining in on their physical activities.  Children pick up on and model their parents’ lifestyle habits and behaviors, and studies have shown that parents who are healthy and fit tend to raise healthy and fit children.  If you join in on your child’s play, you will become a healthier adult!   So remember, before you settle in front of the fireplace with a cup of hot cocoa and a board game, make sure your family has it’s dose of daily activity.  You CAN make it through the Holiday season without that weight gain!

For other great ideas, check out these books: “Best New Games”, “Chicken and Noodle Games”, and “Play as if Your Life Depends on It.”