5 Ways to Workout with Kids!

As a parent I can attest to somedays I can't fit doing exercise in our day, my son is with me 24 hours a day and though he does go to preschool twice a week I still take that time to run errands. Basically working out without him is rare. I've been coming up with ideas on how to accomplish doing exercise even with my children. 

I figure it's a win-win situation, first of all you get to move and burn calories but also your heart thanks you for it and your body feels amazing after you've worked out. Ever notice how you can feel your blood flow rush through your body after a great workout?? I have and I love it!

Second you teach them to be active, nowadays I know people complain about kids not playing outside as much. Have you ever thought if you are leading by example? If you are teaching them and encouraging them to go outside and play? 

Third they burn energy and are ready for a good night's sleep! This is key for me, because the past couple of days after a whole month of our son waking up he is sleeping through the night again :D 

Here is a short list of ways I figured out to include exercise and get it done even with my own children in tow. This is what I am doing to stay active and healthy.

1.- Bike Ride: You know how much I love riding my bike, back in 2010 a close friend in San Diego invited me on a bike ride along Coronado Island. My son was only a year old, she offered to loan me her bike trailer so that was my first time using one. I was hooked after that ride! It was a 7 mile bike ride alongside the beach, the city and beautiful views my son was safe and comfortable in the trailer and he was enjoying the bike ride as much. A couple of weeks later I got my own bike trailer and have used it so much. The trailers are very stable and run anywhere from $89 - $600 depending on brand. They hook -up to any bike and they fold flat which makes it easy to store.

2.- Walk: I love walking, it's easy and you can do it anywhere! We have gotten into the habit of doing pickup walking. Leave the car parked at home and walk to pickup or drop off your child, I have been giving my son the option of walking or sitting in his stroller for our almost 4 mile roundtrip to school and back. Sometimes he chooses to walk and others he chooses the stroller, but when he is in his stroller I can do a brisk walk while pushing him {this is double the work and helps me burn more calories}. We also like taking walks to our local park, it's a great way to get to and from places too. 

3.- Dancing: It's late afternoon, homework is done and the kids are in a bad mood. They are cranky and have energy to go well until next week, you could use some fun. What do you do??? You put on some music and dance with them! It will shortly change their moods into happy ones sometimes even silly ones and you don't even notice you are exercising. You feel happy and your body is moving left to right, front to back. Did you know that when you dance for 30 minutes you burn at least 200 calories? 

4.- Play at the park: I can't count how many times we've been to the park and I join in the fun! We chase each other or play kick ball or even try to finish the monkey bars. Climbing the structures is also a great way to have fun with your kids and burn calories. Plus your children will always remember how much fun they had at the park with you. ;)

5.- Another great way to exercise with kids is to just do a routine at home, every time my kids see me doing jumping jacks, ab-crunches, squats they are sure to join in without me telling them. Then they ask me to count how many jumping jacks they do. 

You can get creative with exercising with your family, the important thing is that you do it. Don't make it too complicated and have fun because when you enjoy exercising they learn to enjoy it too and then it becomes part of your life.

For more routines and ideas make sure you check out my "I'm a work in progress" board on Pinterest where I share my journey as well as others and have pinned workouts I enjoy or products that help keep me inspired to exercise.