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Feb 26, 2011

Fitness for Kids and Children Should be Fun Exercise Activities and Sports for Maximum Benefits

Teaching children about fitness is easiest if they learn by example, and you're the example they see the most. Exercise at home often falls by the wayside as homework, chores and other household duties claim the time of parents and children, who are increasingly weighed down by over scheduled days and high-fat, high sugar diets.
There's only so much you can do about your kids' food choices once they start school, but physical fitness is vitally important to the health of kids as well as Mom and Dad.
With obesity and its related illnesses on the rise for all ages, families that exercise together have a better chance of staying healthy. And children whose parents work exercise into their early lives are more apt to exercise throughout their lives.
Kids Can Easily Exercise at Home
Playing sports and engaging in tennis, soccer, swimming and other outdoor classes is one way for kids to reap the benefits of exercise. But you don't have to leave home to devise a fun exercise program for your kids. DVDs with music and aerobics make working out at home something you can do whenever you have the time and inclination. Indoor fitness activities and minimal equipment like free weights, bands or exercise balls can turn your home into a movable gym and make fitness an easy and accessible part of your children's lives.

What are the best fitness and physical activities your children can do

The best activities are the ones that let your child play while getting fit: for very young children, try pairing a favorite cartoon video with a dance routine they can do while watching their show. Look for programs with music and dancing in them and sing and dance along with your child. Older kids may enjoy videos that teach hip hop dancing, aerobics, kick boxing or Pilates. Yoga videos may help stressed out moms and dads recuperate after a long day at work, and even if your kids don't join you, you will be modeling exercise as a way of enjoying life.

Benefits your kids will have due to increased aerobic exercise and activity

The importance of increased physical activity in all our lives can't be overstated: from cool, sedentary offices to stuffy, crowded classrooms, North Americans and Europeans are suffering the ill effects of simply not walking around enough. At this point, most people are overweight and childhood diabetes is on the increase along with obesity and other diseases. Whatever your income level and wherever you live, you can give your children the most precious gift available to anyone; a strong, healthy body. From taking a daily walk after dinner to dancing in the living-room to your kids' favorite rockers (however horrible they may be), you can show your kids fun ways to stay fit, while enjoying the benefits of fitness right along with them. (Okay, so you might need earplugs. It's worth it.)

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