Winter is not exactly the best time to stay committed to your fitness goals. For one, the cold weather always invites you back to the warmth of your beds and comfortable living rooms. For another, working out when the temperature is below zero is not exactly the best for your health.
However, staying fit during the holiday season is also important because you will be attending one party after another, which means you will also be consuming more. While it may be more difficult to stay physically active during winter, it’s still possible and also important.
Now that the cold season is coming, your family might not have the motivation to stay fit. Here are some fun ways to keep you and your kids physically active during winter.
Don’t Be Too Quick to Reject Outdoor Activities
Contrary to popular belief, it’s still possible to stay comfortable while doing some outdoor activities during winter. It’s all a matter of choosing the best time to go for a run or a walk, choosing the proper workout regimen, and wearing the proper gear. Here are some tips for ensuring you and your kids stay healthy and protected while doing some outdoor physical activities:
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Stay near your home
Consider staying near your house instead of going for a run all over the neighborhood. You have better chances of ensuring that you and your children don’t slip and fall on the snow since you have control over when you can shovel it, and you can better watch your children as well. Also, it might not be a bad idea to keep your garage door open. Even if you’re letting the cold in, but you can let your kids can get their toboggan out quickly. But you’ll also want to know you can close your garage door just as quickly. Consider getting residential garage door maintenance to ensure that your kids can run back inside anytime and that it’s ready for the harsh elements during this time.
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Have fun in the snow
Make snowmen with your kids or create a snow maze or a snow fort on days with snow. Lie down and make snow angels with them and throw snowballs around with each other. You can even go sledding.
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Why not go to a ski resort?
You can take a weekend trip to a ski resort and try a fun winter sport you have never tried before like skating, skiing, and snowshoeing.
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Bundle up
You and your kids can stay out for a long time as long as you’re wearing the proper gear. Invest in some thermal jackets and scarves, and bundle up. Wear as many layers as you can to help safeguard your body against sweating, overheating, and feeling the cold too much.
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Boost you and your children’s resistance to colds
Eat immune system-boosting foods like citrus fruits, red bell peppers, garlic, broccoli, spinach, ginger, yogurt, sunflower seeds, almonds, green tea, turmeric, kiwi, poultry, papaya, and shellfish. While the cold temperature itself will not cause infections, but it might cause you and your family to be physically closer to people who might be carrying disease-causing viruses.
Invest in Some Fun Indoor Activities
You also don’t need to leave your home to get your sweat going. Here are some fun ideas to keep you and your family up and moving during the holiday season:
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Try some video games
Invest in a game console that will allow you to move more, like Wii or Nintendo Switch. That might be enough to get your kids interested in moving around during one lazy afternoon.
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Why not board games?
If you want to stray a little from video games, an old-school family game like Twister is also a wonderful alternative. It’s a party classic that will always have a place in the family game night gallery of board games and activities, and it will allow your kids to roughhouse without hurting each other too much.
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Create a “big move” jar
This can be a game you and your kids can play during their winter break. In one jar, write down some ideas for fun movements they can do for a given amount of time. For example, you can write down something as random as a “flower blooming” or a “dinosaur walking.” Not only will these movements cause them to move a little more during their break, but these movement ideas will stretch their creativity and imagination too.
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Indoor exercise
Explore physical activity apps like Sworkit or Nike Training Club and set up some weights or a pull-up bar for your older kids. If they are interested in a specific sport, find ways to help them keep training even during the winter break and from the safety of your home.
It’s tempting to hibernate and stay in bed all day during the colder months, but you’ll be doing our bodies a world of favors if we stay physically active. Set you and your kids up for success by making it fun-filled and original, and stay safe and healthy by bundling up and eating nutritious food.
