6 Ways to Get Fit With the Whole Family

There are few things that bring a family together like sharing a challenge. Overcoming an obstacle together forces family members to depend on one another, and to encourage and uplift each other in order to succeed.

So why not make fitness your family’s challenge, and spend some time bonding while becoming healthier?

Finding time to exercise as a family can be tough, especially when trying to respect everyone’s work schedules, extracurricular activities, study time, and free time. But you can always take advantage of those moments when most families would be slouched in front of the television to gather everyone together and start in on some physical activity.

The key, here, is to make it fun! Where family activities are concerned, there’s no need for boring pushing-ups, crunches, or other formalized exercises. Learning how to take advantage of everyday activities to sneak in some exercise is an art, but one that you can easily learn.

Our sedentary lifestyles are hurting our health—that’s true for every family member, from youngest to eldest. So why not take care of your loved ones by getting them to move, all while having fun and sharing an experience together?

To help you do that, let’s take a look at 6 fun-filled ways to get fit with the whole family.

Break Out the Bikes

Bicycling is one of the best ways to exercise as a family—it’s fun, scenic, and gives a great workout.

First of all, biking is great for your body. It’s a low-impact exercise that gets your heart pumping—your family will burn around 300 calories for each hour they bike. This means that a few rides around the neighborhood will help all of your family members stay in shape for optimum health.

Even more importantly, though, biking is just plain fun! Where kids might grow bored on a walk, the quicker pace of biking will hold their attention, and the constantly changing scenery will give your ride a sense of exploration and excitement. Vary your route as time goes on, and don’t forget that you can always pack your bikes up for a family excursion to a public park or trail system for a day of adventure.

Before you lead your family on a ride, though, plan things out. Drive the route to make sure there aren’t obstacles, and avoid areas with a lot of fast-moving vehicle traffic. Ensure, also, that all riders have proper safety equipment—namely, helmets.

Biking can be a fun family activity that helps everyone stay in shape, so why not incorporate it into your family routine a few days a week?

Make Chores Fun

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Chores. The very word fills even the most adult heart with dread. But with a few, simple changes, you can turn these mundane, household tasks into fun exercise sessions.

One way to transform chores into fun workouts for the entire family is to get competitive. This means that tasks like mopping the floors are divided up between family members, who each mop as quickly as they can—while still doing a great job—and call out “done” when finished to determine the winner.

Another way to make chores more of a workout is to incorporate real exercises. For example, you could have everyone do squats with grocery bags, or pass that new gallon of milk around to use for bicep curls. Making exercise novel and out-of-the-box is a great way to get your more sedentary family members to join in.

Finally, some chores are truly workouts all on their own, and assigning these can help your family get a workout. Doing things like gardening, mowing the lawn, shoveling snow, and even vacuuming provide a great cardio workout, especially if you take the time to amp up the fun with a little motivational music.

Make chores fun, and you’ll kill two birds with one stone—you’ll have a clean house and a great-looking yard while helping your family stay healthy.

Run or Walk for Charity

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Helping others is a great motivation to put in a little work, so why not taking your family on a charity run or walk?

This is good for you in more ways than one. Giving to a good cause can help increase self-esteem, lessen the effects of depression, lower stress, and simply contribute to a greater sense of wellbeing, peace, and happiness.

For the stressed-out families out there, this is a godsend.

Finding charity walks or runs is easy—just hop on Google and search for ones happening in your area by typing “charity walks,” plus the name of your town or city. You’ll probably find many, so go ahead and pick which cause you’d like to support, whether that’s cancer or Alzheimer’s research, help for the homeless, or one of many others.

After that, it’s time to get going! Depending on the fitness level of your family, you can choose from walking or running events. Whichever you choose, be sure to explain the “why” behind this workout to your family. They’ll appreciate being able to help others, and you’ll rest easy knowing your family is going to be just a little bit healthier.

Explore Nature

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Exploration is something we all love, no matter our age, and so this is a great way to keep your family active while still having a great time.

You can start small. Maybe you have a big back yard or a patch of woods behind your home that you can all have fun poking around in. If you don’t have much greenery, then going to a nearby park might be just what you need.

If you have younger children who might enjoy it, use a little imagination to spice things up! Hunt for “treasure chests” or search for hidden cities or ancient artifacts. Make this a day of true adventure as you walk the trails, paths, and leaf-covered forest floors that make up the great outdoors.

If you’re doing this in the summertime, be sure to bring insect repellant and sunblock with you—use them liberally to keep your family safe.

There’s nothing quite as fun as a day spent exploring nature, so get your family burning calories by getting them outside.

Walk the Dog

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According to a Gallup poll, around 44 percent of Americans have at least one dog. If you’re among them, you can include your pup in your next effort to have some family fitness fun.

No matter the breed, all dogs need exercise in order to stay healthy and happy, and so taking your family pet for a walk is vital. Humans, too, need to stay active for much the same reasons, so why not make walking the dog a family affair?

Walking burns around 100 calories per mile for most people, and is a great, safe way to exercise for everyone from the smallest kid to the oldest grandpa, making it a wonderful family exercise. It may feel easy, but any amount of activity is better than simply living a sedentary lifestyle.

And if everyone is up for it—including your pup—you can even transition that walk into a run, burning even more calories in a shorter amount of time.

Making walking the dog a time for exercise and family bonding, and you’ll give the gift of health to your loved ones.

Play Some Old-School Games

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Remember all those evenings filled with games like hide-and-seek, tag, and capture the flag? By not indulging in these old-school games, the current generation of kids is missing out on some big-time fun and easy exercise.

Fortunately, you can bring them back for some serious family fun that not only engages everyone on a physical level, but brings them together, as well.

If you can’t seem to get your kids into these games as they used to be played, try some modern twists by including things like Nerf guns. Instead of having to touch someone in tag, for example, they could squeeze off a few foam dart shots.

Games that include a lot of running and chasing can burn around 160 calories per hour, making them a great way to get a cardio workout while having a great time. Reintroduce the games of your childhood—and play them, yourself—for a great, healthy time.