Children need physical activity to build coordination, strength and confidence and whilst they do a variety of activities, sports, and games at school, it is important that they continue this at home too.
Getting the kids involved in physical activities not only helps keep them fit and healthy, but also lays the groundwork for a healthy lifestyle as they get older.
There are lots of fun ways to keep your kids moving at home and they often burn more calories when left to their own devices and allowed to free play. Eliza and Isaac love nothing more than zooming around on their bikes, whilst Sebby chases them on his scooter and they all love bouncing on the trampoline in the garden.
Having a variety of games and sports equipment also helps and we have an assortment of balls, hula-hoops, and skipping ropes that keeps kids busy for hours. In fact both Isaac and Eliza have mastered the art of hula hooping which they certainly don’t get from me!!
Take advantage of the area where you live. Do you have wide, smooth pathways where kids can race on their heeley’s, or a woodland area where they can practice their tree climbing?
Some children love organised team sports, where they can hone their skills and have fun with their friends. Most local sports clubs will have children’s football / rugby / hockey teams where you can join for as little as £2 a week.
Another great sport is to learn padel, a cross between tennis and squash. There are a growing number of clubs offering this sport, from a beginners how to play padel, to more advanced sessions. You can find a list of where to play Padel here.
Swimming is another great activity for getting the kids moving. If you can’t afford lessons, even teaching children swimming skills yourself will increase water safety and helps to build their muscles and lung capacity. Most pools now run wet and wacky fun sessions with inflatables which are great fun, if a little tiring.
Of course, sometimes the weather is just too miserable to venture outside but we have found a great way of getting exercise even when we are stuck indoors – Just Dance. We have it on the Nintendo Switch, but it is available on most games consoles and is great fun to watch the kids master their moves.
How do you keep your kids active?
Fantastic ideas! My daughters love swimming and it’s a great affordably family activity 🙂
Great tips! It’s so important to encourage children to be active from a young age!
Riding the scooters and bikes help my kids stay active. They love swimming too.
My nephew is someone who you can loose in the park and he will play for hours and he does love swimming too
Since moving to Portugal our son is outdoors a lot and quite often is found running around the garden with the dog or on his bike. Having good weather makes a huge difference to his outdoors activity levels. As soon as its warm enough we’ll be back in the pool!
Great advice and ideas – I used to love my hula hoop when I was a kid – add a bit of competition and kids will be well away!
My kids love all the things you’ve suggested and it’s so lovely to see them out enjoying activities
My girls are constantly on the go! I need to pick up a couple of hula hoops this week though so thanks for the reminder!