Active Kids – 4 Ways to Encourage your Kids to be More Active

Parenting isn’t easy at all. Let’s face it, we compete with electronics and peer pressure and everything you can think of when it comes to raising kids. These days kids seem to have lost their sense of imaginatively, you know like those good old days of going outside to make a fort out of sticks and playing until the sun went down?! No more are those days for many families, but that doesn’t mean you can’t try to incorporate activity into your kids life. Today I will share 4 ways to raise active kids so that you can create a bit more balance and reduce the risk of obesity.

Raise Active Kids

Take Away Electronics

Set up a routine where electronics are simply not a part of your kids life. This may come with some arguments, angry kids and whatnot but remember if your kids are mad at you from time to time, you are doing something right. Set limits as to when electronics are going to be allowed and remain firm on this rule. Without electronics, you will see that your kids will figure out another activity to do that’s more active.

Indoor Tag

You can’t always rely on the weather to be friendly outside, so start considering some activity inside. Indoor tag is a game that kids can easily play, so as long as you have a designated area. Think about an opening in the hallway and home that will work, set up a boundary and let the kids play indoor tag. This will soon become a habit for them to play whenever electronics are taken away.

Be Interactive

There’s nothing kids love more than getting silly with their parents. Try to be active as well in your lifestyle, whether it’s getting outside and playing with the kids or doing daily exercise. There are many ways you can be active yourself and in turn set the bar on what you expect from your kids. After all, younger kids really enjoy doing exercises with their parents because they look up to you more than older kids tend to! Active Parents, Active Kids! 

Do not rely on Sports

While you may have sports star kids, do not rely strictly on organized sports. For one, all year round activity is important and sports don’t necessarily allow for year round participation. While you should have your kids interested in at least one organized sport, they won’t get the activity level necessary to ward off the health issues that come with in being inactive.  Sports are great, but they can’t be the only thing you rely on for keeping kids active.

Each of these 4 ways to raise active kids are meant to be a simply way to incorporate activity into your daily life. There’s no need to make it complicated, you are the parent so set the rules and be the example, soon your kids will follow suit.