Three Easy Ways To Improve Whole Family Fitness

Motivating your family to embrace fitness can be a challenge in the age of Xboxes and iPhones. Staying motivated is an even tougher feat. Though active living should be a priority for us all, busy schedules, time-consuming commitments, and the everyday demands of life can shift family fitness to the back burner.

Though it's easy to let fitness slide, as parents, it is vital for us to create an environment that supports wellness. Obesity, type two diabetes, and other health problems are ravaging our nation, many of them brought on by unhealthy food choices and lack of physical activity.

By setting basic fitness foundations early on, you can instill in your children the essentials of healthy living and set an example for their future. After all, children who are raised in a sedentary environment are affected by the side effects of inactivity, just like the adults in the household. For parents who are into fitness themselves, getting the family involved doesn't seem like much of a challenge. But if you already struggle with staying active yourself, pulling your family along might seem overwhelming.

The good news? Embracing whole family fitness is easier than you think. The key is finding interesting and achievable ways to keep your clan fitness focused. You don't have to be an athlete to help your children stay active, and even if they're already teens, it's not too late. There's always the opportunity to start fresh when it comes to family fitness. You can jump right in or start slow—as long as you are moving, you're improving.

Read on to find numerous ways to make physical fitness an integral part of your family life. You'll be surprised at how simple some of these tips are to implement and maintain!

#1 Focus on whole body wellness

When we think "fitness," we usually think working out, but overall wellness is so much more than that. Before you can implement any real changes when it comes to being more active, you have to make sure that you (and your family members) are in a good place mentally and emotionally. It is easy to forget that our brains are an organ, and our emotional state plays a major part in our overall health.

Before taking on any of the following tips, you should assess your current wellness and family relationships. Doing so could be the difference between success and failure.

This was the case with thirty-five-year-old Chelsea and her children. As a wife and mother of three, Chelsea had a hard time finding time to be active. Her boys exercised during PE at school and played baseball in the summer, but other than that they lived a couch-potato kind of lifestyle. It wasn't that Chelsea was lazy. It's just that after working double shifts at work and going to class at the local community college, she had little energy to give. Lack of family time combined with financial stress caused her relationship with her husband and sons to suffer.

After starting counseling through Regain, Chelsea began to realize that although she was in okay physical shape, her whole-body wellness was suffering. Following the advice of her Regain therapist, Chelsea dropped one of her extra shifts and started a family bowling night with her husband and boys. Within a few weeks, she saw significant improvements in their communication and overall happiness. By bonding over bowling, Chelsea and her family were able to improve their fitness and relationships. Today they're more active than ever and have even taken up roller skating!

#2 Play over pilates

If you want your family to embrace fitness, it has to be fun. Many adults dread the thought of going to the gym, so naturally, children aren't going to be very interested in structured (read: boring) workouts. Fitness can be fun; you just have to think outside the box. Consider these entertaining ways to get your family moving:

Run a race or two

Kids love races—use this to your advantage. If you have a large enough crew, you could create your own family Olympic games and compete in a relay race. Smaller families can start with a 50- or 100-yard dash. Can't agree on a winner? Grab a rope and settle it with a game of tug-of-war.

Shake a tail feather

The last few years, Zumba has been quite the craze—with good reason. Dancing is fun, and it can burn some serious calories. If your children have a gaming system, there are tons of dance games that allow you to move along with the on-screen dancers. Different from the exercise videos of your youth, these games are often interactive and will allow different family members to compete for the highest dance scores.

Create an exercise video

Speaking of exercise videos, another fun way to focus on fitness is to create one with the family. You can mimic Richard Simmons or come up with your fitness moves; it's really up to you. This activity can be a bonding experience because it requires both planning and practice. When the video is done, you can share it online so your friends and extended family can get into the fitness groove too.

Do crunches during commercials

Most fitness articles will tell you to turn off the television for good, but that's not a realistic suggestion. Children and parents alike enjoy watching television, and that's okay. The trick is finding a way to make this sedentary activity a moving one. One way to do this is to do exercises during a commercial. It doesn't matter which move you choose: jumping jacks, crunches, squats, etc. When the show you're watching transitions into a commercial, get up off the couch and start exercising.

Spice up your walk

Research shows that simply walking thirty minutes a few days a week can improve your overall physical health tremendously. So why is it that so many people hate going for a stroll? For many, it's boring! If you want to get your kids to walk more, make it a game. For example, take turns looking for objects that start with letters of the alphabet as you walk (S…stop sign, T…telephone pole). You can also pick a category before you leave the house and compete to see who can find the most objects that fall into group (red things, green things, plants, round things, etc.).

Put on your own field day

For most kids, Field Day is one of the best days of the school year. They get the chance to take part in many fun activities, all in one day. Some activities you can consider are: a three-legged race, a wheelbarrow race, a bean bag toss, cartwheels, and parachute games. Ask your kids for ideas from their school event and incorporate them into your Family Field Day.

Speed sporting

Of the top of your head, how many sports can you name in twenty seconds? You probably thought of some of the most common—football, baseball, basketball, and soccer—maybe even pickleball. But what about balloonist or racket hockey? Or windmill or friz? There are so many new and unique sports out there, and it would be almost impossible to master them all. Instead of playing the same old same old, try speed sporting. Just like speed dating, challenge yourself to try out as many new sports as possible in a set period. Not only will you get rid of the monotony of playing the same sports, but you might discover that a sport you never knew existed is a perfect fit for you.

Hit the park

Parks and playgrounds aren't just for toddlers; they can be a fun way to get moving for older children and parents alike. Swinging, sliding, climbing the monkey bars, and the like can be good sources of exercise for the young and the young at heart. If you're not comfortable "monkeying around" on the playground equipment, many parks have walking trails, basketball courts, or tennis courts where you can spend your time while the children play.

#3 Keep it simple

Mixing your fitness activities up can keep things fun and interesting, but don't feel pressured to spend a lot of money or make yourself exhausted doing so. Simple activities can be just as fun as planned sports when you're with the family. As long as you're moving and focusing on improving your whole family fitness, anything goes. Some simple activities that your family might enjoy:

• Playing tag, hide-and-go-seek, or follow the leader
• Going swimming or having a splash/water balloon fight
• Playing monkey in the middle with a ball or a game of keep away
• Hiking, exploring a new park, or running on the beach
• Playing in the snow, sledding, or skiing
• Having a cartwheel or push up competition
• Making an indoor or outdoor obstacle course and racing to complete it
• Jumping on a trampoline, playing leapfrog, or throwing around a frisbee
• Planting a garden, raking a garden, or weeding a garden
• Doing yoga, going roller skating, or playing hopscotch
• Cleaning the house (while dancing) or volunteering to do chores for a neighbor
• Jumping on a pogo stick, jumping rope, or riding a skateboard around the neighborhood

Looking for more ways to improve your family's fitness? This list includes 101 fun 

activities and ways to promote family fitness and can keep your crew moving for the rest of the year.

Online therapy for improving family fitness

When you're dealing with everyday stresses, it isn't always easy to keep up with all you need to do with the family, including finding time for family fitness. Finding a balance can be difficult. You don't need to find that balance alone. A professional therapist can talk you through the stresses you're dealing with and help you figure out the best way to balance all the different parts of your life.

Many busy people have chosen to find help online. This can save time since you don't have to travel to a physical location for therapy. Online therapy is also often less costly than in-person therapy, making it easier to fit into a tight budget.

Regain is an online therapy platform that is both affordable and convenient. After you sign up and get matched with a licensed therapist, individual sessions are less than $100 each. You can meet with a therapist on your own or with you partner, and sessions can take place whenever and wherever works best for you.

Taking the time to figure out how to make everything fit in may be the key to making time for family fitness. Before too long, you may find that not only is everyone healthier, but your family fitness times are family favorite times.