Exercising on a regular basis is one of the most effective ways to stay fit and healthy and to also keep common but dangerous diseases at bay. A lot of awareness is sweeping the world these days about the benefits of working out on a daily basis on both our physical as well as mental health. This is the reason why a lot of people are prioritising exercising over other activities. There are still others who recognise the benefits of being active but are just not able to stay on the exercise bandwagon for too long.
This usually happens when people have not developed the habit of living an active lifestyle right from their childhood years. For them to suddenly give up their sedentary lifestyle and to start working out every day can prove to be a struggle as the body takes time to acclimatise itself to newer routines. To avoid this from happening to your children, it is a great idea to inculcate the love of exercising in them right from their formative years. This habit will keep them fit and healthy throughout their adult life as well. If you have young children, you should definitely read this article to know how to induce them to start exercising regularly.
- Set An Example:
Children lead by example. They do not do as you say, but follow what you yourself do. So just asking them to exercise without them seeing you doing it yourself will most probably not yield favourable results. So set aside a chunk from your daily routine to exercise with your child. This can not only keep everyone involved healthy but also serve as a bonding activity. This will also help them to develop a genuine interest in being physically capable as opposed to exercising in isolation without any meaning attached to it.
- Show Them How To Do It Right:
This is a point which ties in with the last point of exercising with your child. It is also important to do so as children may not understand the correct way to exercise without hurting or straining themselves. The best way to avoid this is to teach them how to do it right. Set an example for them by showing them how to properly exercise. You can also teach them a basic stretching routine which can help them to warm up and cool down in a proper manner. Although you can do everything to avoid injuries, they can sometimes creep in very unexpectedly. So for such a case, keep a hot and cool pack handy to provide instantaneous relief to your child so that they do not get dissuaded from exercising itself because of minor strains.
- Incentivise Exercising For Them:
Children may not be able to fully understand why exercising daily is good for them, so instead of forcing them into it and eventually antagonising them against it, try using certain incentives instead. These can be anything that your child likes. For example, if your child loves a certain dish, make it for them once they complete a week of exercise daily. Or you can buy them their favourite toy for continuing to be physically active without any complaints.
- Do Not Stick To Rigid Workouts:
While strictness is important to inculcate routine into a child’s life, if you do not give them a breather once in a while, it can actually put them off of it quite soon. A great way to avoid this situation from occurring is to set rules such as they have to exercise everyday but let them choose which exercise they want to do once every few days. A healthy mix of enjoyable activities like cycling, climbing, running and playing competitive sports among others can aid your child in being engaged for longer and avoid any boredom. Switching it up on a regular basis will also help to avoid any burn out in your little one.
- Make It Competitive:
Exercising just with you or in isolation can actually not be that fun for your child. And just bringing their friends over for a workout may result in a non serious attitude. So the best way to counteract this problem is to make it competitive. Sign up your child for weekly competitive sports like football, basketball, tennis etc. Kids love competition and that makes it fun for them. This will make them want to continue to exercise and they may even pick up a sport along the way which is always a good thing in the long run for their physical health and mental well-being. Make sure to inculcate a competitive spirit in your child but try to teach them to keep it healthy as much as possible.
- Fuse Learning With Exercise:
What is better than getting your kid to exercise? That is making them learn something worthwhile whilst doing so. If there is a subject at school which they find especially challenging, try to fuse that in with their exercise time to kill both birds with one stone. For example, shapes and angles in Maths can be learnt through sports like basketball and football. You can also put them in active hobby classes for the same. Innovative ways of learning and exercising are galore in today’s times so make sure to look for the right method for your child.
- Give Them Some Autonomy:
Constantly instructing your child about doing something can make a rebel out of them. Instead of that, try to build a more collaborative environment for them to grow in. Give them enough autonomy to decide what time they will exercise at, for how long and which ones they will do. This will also keep them much more engaged as everything is their decision so they will be less likely to back out of such routines.
Inculcating the habit of being and staying active in children can be quite a task initially. But once they get used to it and see the numerous benefits such a lifestyle provides, they are sure to continue following it throughout their lives. We hope that this article was able to guide you in how to start doing that. Do share this blog with your near and dear ones who may be struggling to get their kids to stay active in these mostly online times.