• Skip to content
  • Skip to secondary menu
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Home
  • Shop ModernMom
  • Become An Insider

ModernMom

The premiere destination for moms

  • Parenting
    • Pregnancy
    • Baby
    • Kids
    • Tweens and Teens
    • ModernMom Monday Videos
  • Cooking
  • Living Healthy
    • Breast Cancer
    • Health & Fitness
    • Body after Baby
    • Beauty
    • Relationships
    • Love
  • Lifestyle
    • Crafts
    • At Home
    • Education
    • Travel
    • Pets
    • Decorate
    • Money
    • Brooke Burke
  • Celebrate
    • Holidays
      • Easter
      • Valentine’s Day
      • New Year’s
      • Christmas
      • Hanukah
      • Halloween
      • Thanksgiving
    • Birthdays
    • Parties
  • Must Have
  • Contests
  • Entertainment

Exercises for Kids at Home

December 10, 2010 by ds_48512 Leave a Comment

Your children need at least an hour of physical activity every day, according to the American Heart Association. The presence of television, video games and high-tech phone gadgets often gets in the way of children getting the exercise they need. Encourage your child to get off the couch by showing him a few engaging exercises.

Jumping Rope

If your child doesn’t already know how to jump rope, teach her how. Jumping rope is a great way to convince children to exercise, since it’s an enjoyable activity that doesn’t seem too difficult. Even if your child only jumps rope for 10 minutes a day, she can burn a decent amount of calories and get her heart rate up. Teach her rhymes to try out while jumping or tricks such as crossing her arms in front or jumping on one foot. Have a jump rope contest with her and her siblings to see who can jump the longest without tripping.

Pull Ups

In addition to aerobic exercise, children need to work on building muscle strength. While push-ups are one way to develop strength in the arms, pull-ups may be more fun for children, since they involve special equipment and don’t have the stigma push-ups do. You can rig up a pull-up in a doorway by screwing a closet rod to the door frame, or you can purchase a removable pull-up bar. Set a goal with your child, such as 10 consecutive pull-ups by the end of the month and reward her when she reaches that goal.

Yoga Routine

Children need to build their flexibility and balance too. Show your child a few basic yoga poses, such as the downward dog, in which you support yourself on your feet and hands, sticking your back and buttocks high into the air. Marsha Wenig, who created the YogaKids program, claims that children enjoy imitating other beings, such as a dog or eagle while doing yoga, so stress the imitation while guiding your child through the poses. She recommends letting them bark while in downward dog or meow while doing the cat stretch. Improve your child’s balance by showing her the tree pose, in which she stands on one foot and places the other foot against her calf. Encourage her to wave her hands in the air, like a tree’s branches blowing in the wind.

Jumping Jacks, Sit-Ups and Other Calisthenics

Think back to your days in gym class. You typically warmed up with a series of calisthenic exercises, such as jumping jacks, lunges and sit-ups. Spend 15 minutes a day with your children doing a similar routine. Eliminate any whining that may occur when you say it’s time for jumping jacks by doing the exercises during the commercial breaks of your children’s favorite television shows. Keep a chart to track how many of each exercise your children are able to do during each commercial.

Comments

comments

Filed Under: Living Healthy

About ds_48512

Based in Pennsylvania, Emily Weller has been writing professionally since 2007, when she started writing theater reviews. Her writing covers a wide range of topics including theater, vegetarianism, travel and news. Weller has a Master of Fine Arts in dramaturgy and theater criticism from CUNY/Brooklyn College.

Reader Interactions

Primary Sidebar

Tell a friend

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Search

ModernMom Boutique

ModernMom TV

Featured

20 Things I Wish I Knew Before I Had Kids

After seeing and holding the newest member of our family … [Read More...] about 20 Things I Wish I Knew Before I Had Kids

Must Have

ToniBox

Meet Toniebox – A Loveable Storytime Friend For Your Kids

If you are looking for something to occupy your children … [Read More...] about Meet Toniebox – A Loveable Storytime Friend For Your Kids

Did you know?

Mild Cramping During Early Stages of Pregnancy

What Can I Use as an Egg Substitute When Baking Corn Bread

What Can I Use as an Egg Substitute When Baking Corn Bread?

Cover a Pork Roast

Should You Cover a Pork Roast & Add Liquid When Baking?

Advantages & Disadvantages for Children in a Single-Parent Family

Repair Scratches in Glass Tabletops

How to Repair Scratches in Glass Tabletops

women get pregnant if she Is not ovulating

Can a Women Get Pregnant if She Is Not Ovulating?

Soothe Red and Irritated Skin After a Brazilian Wax

How to Soothe Red and Irritated Skin After a Brazilian Wax

Footer

  • About Us
  • Contact ModernMom
  • Advertise With Us
  • Press
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use
  • Contributors

Copyright © 2021 Modern Mom. All Rights Reserved.

Reproduction of any portion of this website only at the express permission of Mom, Inc.

The information provided on ModernMom is for educational use only. It should not be used as a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment.