Family fitness ideas to prioritize movement together

Research shows active parents raise active children.

PHOTOGRAPHS BY WYNTER BYRD

Have fun with Family Fitness

Easy ways to prioritize movement together

BY STEPHANIE GIBSON LEPORE

The American Heart Association recommends that children six and older should get at least an hour of physical activity daily to maintain healthy brains and bodies. Besides reducing the risk of chronic health issues—diabetes, hypertension, osteoporosis, and obesity—down the road, exercise can also help kids do better in school, as well as burn off all the ants-in-their-pants energy leftover after the school day. One study at the University of British Columbia discovered that anaerobic exercise improves verbal memory, too, and additional research found that just five minutes post-moderate exercise, most people feel a mood boost. Creating movement memories your whole family will enjoy also means everyone is more likely to stick with it.

Making family activity a priority helps to strengthen the bond that is important for children’s social and emotional development. It also sets up kids for lifelong healthy habits. Leading by example is key—but don’t let the 60-minute recommendation intimidate you. Try incorporating activity into your regular routine, sneak in 10-minute increments throughout the day, make the most of weekends, and—most importantly—have fun together! Here are some ideas to try at home.

Get outside. As temperatures start to (slowly) cool down around Birmingham, take advantage of our great outdoor spaces, and take a family

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Get off the bench and back in the game.

Football, baseball, soccer, cross country and other activities are a way of life in Alabama. If you’re participating in any sport or outdoor activity, we’re here to cheer you on and let you know that the doctors at Precision Sports Medicine and Orthopedics are available in case you need care. The services we offer and conditions we treat include the following:

Sports injuries, trauma and sideline care

Arthroscopic surgery

Muscle, tendon and joint pain

Broken bones or stress fractures

Concussion management

Regenerative medicine

Shin splints, plantar fasciitis and iliotibial (IT) band pain Knee problems Sciatica (numbness or pain in or around lower back, hip or knee) Joint replacement surgeries Nonsurgical orthopedic care Musculoskeletal injuries Arthritic care Acute and chronic tendon injuries

To make an appointment, call 855-219-6200 or visit PrecisionSportsOrtho.com for a full list of providers.

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hike. Consider Oak Mountain State Park or Ruffner Mountain. Take bikes and scooters to Railroad Park, and race each other around the loop. Outside family time can be as simple as heading to the backyard for a half-hour before or after dinner a few times a week. Set aside 30 minutes to play hide-and-seek, kick or throw a ball, or run sprint races together.

Play together. It can be as simple as I Spy on a family walk in the neighborhood or a backyard game of tag. On the weekends, schedule a family date night at the bowling alley—try 3 Buck Bowling Sundays at Spare Time in Trussville—or compete in miniature golf at Hooligan’s Family Fun in Alabaster or Grand River Drive-In in Leeds. If you have older kids, book a green at Topgolf.

Tend a garden. Taking care of plants gives kids a reason to get outside each day. Learning how to grow a garden teaches about our food system, and a bonus of eating what you harvest is encouraging healthy eating habits. Dig, plant, water, and rake together.

Chip in with chores. Rake leaves, mow the grass, and do other small house projects as a family. Play music as kids pick up toys. To keep them interested, assign each child a color toy to

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pick up (brother collects all the red and yellow toys, sister grabs the blue and green ones), or have each person pick up 10 items to help with focus and practice counting. Older kids can dust, vacuum, sweep, load the dishwasher, and help make beds. Play a cleanup song in the background.

Set up a simple obstacle course. You can do this inside or outside. Try rounds of hopscotch, jump rope, and dribbling a soccer ball around cones.

Take advantage of TV time. Most kids today don’t know about commercial breaks, so hit “pause” on the digital show, and spend 30 seconds every 10 minutes or so doing high-knees, jumping jacks, or crab crawls.

Have a dance party! Blast the music and bust a move around the family room. Take turns choosing songs for a variety of beats. If you want to take it up a notch, pick up an inexpensive disco ball party light from Amazon or Party City.

Sign up for something new. If your family doesn’t already have a favorite fitness activity, find one! Rock climbing at Birmingham Boulders, iceskating at the Pelham Civic Complex, or a family martial arts class at World Class Tae Kwon Do in Inverness and Hoover. https://alabamatkd. com/classes/Family-Martial-Arts

Have a Nerf fight. Pile up all your soft darts and choose your boundaries and home base. Play individuals against each other, or set up teams. Use your imagination when it comes to rules and incorporate elements of games like Capture the Flag or find the mystery detractor/spy.

Follow the crowd. Games like Syderball and Crossnet are all the rage, so pick up one at a local toy shop like Snoozy’s or Homewood Toy & Hobby, and see what your family’s made of.

MORE ENTERTAINING ACTIVE-ITIES

Have teens? Choose a video game that incorporates dancing, and play it together. Purchase LED light-up hula hoops from Amazon, and host a glow-in-the-dark hoop-off.

Get your steps in with a friendly all-family walk-off. Set up a simple calendar for each member to record their daily steps, and see who has the most at the end of the week. (If kids are too small for smart watches, purchase simple, inexpensive pedometers.)

Train as a family for a charity walk or run. Visit active.com/birmingham-al/running/5k to choose one that works for your schedule.

Head to Central Alabama Paintball Park in Calera for some messy family fun. They even offer Gellyball for younger kids age 4–10.

Raining outside? No problem! Play Follow the Leader inside, and take turns leading each other through simple tasks like skipping, marching in place, hopping like a bunny, etc. Trade-off who gets to give instructions, so everyone has a turn.

Lots of Birmingham neighborhoods feature community parks, so head to a nearby one, and tackle some old-school favorites like monkey bars, swings, climbing, and chase.

Invite your neighbors and hold a family Olympics in the backyard, or set up a game of flag football or kickball. Try adults versus kids, or moms and sons against dads and daughters. Make standard playing cards into fitness cards. Hearts stand for push-ups, clubs for crunches, diamonds for jumping jacks, and spades for squats. Follow the number on the card for each action (ace of spades equals one squat, a six of hearts would equals six push-ups). Alternatively, write down these activities on slips of paper, and put them in plastic Easter eggs. Hide the eggs, set a timer, and send kids off to hunt them. Each family member must perform the activities found in the eggs.