Here is how to encourage your children to be more active
Before getting into the subject it’s important to tell you that you can’t do this wrong, you have the best intentions, so you will succeed.
Physical activity is essential for both adults and children. For children, it promotes healthy development and growth so you should encourage them to be active throughout the day. Being active for an hour a day helps children to have strong bones and muscles, improve their endurance, and maintain a healthy weight. You need no scientific evidence to understand that an active life will enhance your children’s thinking skills, and help them dive into a healthy lifestyle.
But as a parent, you know that there’s no easy way to convince your children to get out of the house and be active. You may find working out your second nature because you love being active. Your children’s refuse to be active may sound surprising. Well, you can get them on the right path, but you need to find an effective way to encourage them to do it.
Here are our suggestions.
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Engage them into activities early
You may think that it’s too late to introduce your children to something they already hate. But, it’s never too early to engage them in physical activities. For infant and toddlers, exercises and moving are part of the activities they are doing naturally, so they will not refuse playing games. If they are active since a young age, convincing them to try a sport should not be difficult.
Establish a new routine
Sometimes the power of example is the best strategy to convince your children to do something. Ideally, when you all are at home you should do an activity together, like walking in the park, playing with your dog, and riding bikes. It can be whatever activity your children find interesting. You can do the same thing for a longer period or you can try something different. As long as you are active and getting your 60 minutes of moving it’s perfect. Decide what time of the day is more suitable for your family to do it.
Show them you are an active person
What physical activity do you like? Do you like attending yoga classes? Do you play tennis or another sport? Do you run with your dog in the park? Do you work out at the gym? You should be a role model for your children if you want to encourage them to get out of the house. If you are not an active person, it’s never too late to start, you can do it together with your kids.
Leave your car at home
It’s easy to get into your car and drive to your office, at the local market or to a friend, but it’s an unhealthy habit. Whenever possible, you should leave the car at home and walk or you’re your bike. You should do it especially when your children join you. At the start, they may not like to walk or bike daily, but as the time would pass they will find it a pleasant activity. Adopt this habit since a young age and they will take their bike everywhere. When biking or walking with your children you should leave plenty of time to arrive at your destination because kids don’t like to be rushed.
Ask them to help you with house chores
Children don’t like doing chores around the house, but it’s a great way to get them away from their computer. You should encourage them to help you with house chores like washing dishes, cleaning the house, watering the plants, pulling weeds, raking leaves and other similar tasks. For every task they complete successfully, they should receive a small prize, everything comes at a cost so you should adopt this healthy habit. It will teach them that hard-working is the key to obtain what they want. It’s advisable to allow them to choose the chores they would like to do because the entire process should be fun and enjoyable if you want to convince them to commit to it. Some days they may want to bring their friends to jump into the pool of leaves they raked in the back of the house. It’s ok to do it as long as they will rake them again.
Expose them to different sports and activities
Children who specialize early in a certain sport can get injured or burned out, and this is the last thing you want. You should introduce them to multiple activities and sports, and encourage them to experience as many as possible until they find the one they are passionate about. Trying different sports helps them to grow multiple skills, find new ways to connects with people, and enjoyably spend their time. Swimming classes for kids are a great opportunity for them to learn to swim under the supervision of an expert and to bond with other children. Swimming is a full-body workout and it will help them grow healthy and strong. And where do you count that it doesn’t require specialization until their teenage years?
Introduce them to fun activities
If you want to convince them to be active, you have to introduce them to ventures that keep them entertained. At a young age, children aren’t ready for competitions. Actually, if they get involved in competitive activity and they don’t win it, they feel discouraged to continue and they may give up. Being the loser is not funny. Kids under ten should be introduced to non-competitive games and activities because they will help them cope with stress and gain new skills.
Encourage them to spend time outdoors
Children get bored easily so you should take them outdoors because nature is a source of entertainment for people of any age. Going outdoors guarantees physical activity so you should plan outdoor trips regularly. Exploring the surroundings will help them improve their skills and appreciate the environment. It’s crucial for children to love nature and animals from a young age if you want them to be caring adults.
