In praise of exercise: we all know how active kids can be, racing around yards and playgrounds, playing with the dog, dancing in the living room, riding bikes and more, but sometimes a less active child needs a bit of encouragement to get moving. Once in a while a child will spend too much time on electronic devices or watching TV and need a bit of motivation to get his/her body moving. Now that summer is imminent it’s a great time to get in shape for all the activities that accompany better weather and spending time outside in the sun.
The best motivation is to lead by example. Exercising together, everybody works out at their own pace. Don’t get your hopes up — this is no intense gym experience. It’s mainly an opportunity to introduce a little fitness to the kids and give them a chance to have fun with exercise. In the meantime, encourage good form with certain exercises, because learning to do it right is just as important as doing it at all.
Anyway, here are some of the things to do at home. They’re hard enough that parents feel they’re getting some good exercise, but simple enough that the kids can mostly keep up.
1. Planking
Put your elbows on the floor, raise up on the tips of your toes, and keep your back straight and your abs tight in a line. Hold that position  as long as you can. 30 seconds is pretty good if your kids can hold it that long.
2. Squats
Put your feet a shoulders’ width apart and do deep knee bends as if you’re sitting down on an invisible box. Put your arms out. Make sure your knees don’t extend past your toes.
3. Push-ups
Keep your abs tight and your back straight; you can do this with a straight or bent knee.
4. Crunches
Sit-ups, but not all the way from floor to knee. Just curl your chest toward your knees.
5. Lunges
Take a step. Touch your back knee to the floor, and make sure your front knee doesn’t extend past the toes.
6. Side leg raises
Just like Jane Fonda used to do! Keep your legs straight.
7. Mountain Climbers
Start in a push-up position, then alternate bringing one foot at a time forward toward your armpit and then extend it back out. It almost looks like a stationary bear crawl.
8. Butterfly Kicks
Lie on your back. Keeping your abs tight, raise your feet just barely off the floor and flutter-kick them.
9. V-ups
This one’s like a sit-up, but in the shape of a V. Lie back, extend your arms out above your head on the floor, then lift your legs and raise your torso and hands until you make a V. Reach toward your feet, then back down again.
Thanks to Babble (https://www.babble.com/parenting/working-out-with-kids/) for the major content for this blog post.
Global Montessori has been offering primary child care, after school care, and the Montessori method of schooling since 1988. We accept infants, toddlers, kindergarten and elementary school students living in and around the Langley area and beyond. For more information, visit https://globalmontessorischool.com.