Keeping Your Family Active
By Sara Butler
In the summer, getting the whole family outside and active is even easier! After being stuck in your house for most of the year, the warmer and longer days of summer are a welcome retreat -- so take full advantage of them with some great outdoor activities that your whole family can appreciate.
How Much Activity?
You should aim to get everyone out of the house and moving for at least 20 to 30 minutes per day. It’s a bit easier to get out on weekends and do something fun together. These activities serve as a way to get everyone healthy and as a way to bond together. Everyone needs some family bonding time!
Get on the Water
When it’s hot outside, water is a remedy everyone can get behind. Go to your local community pool or waterpark, do some watersports out on a lake or ocean by kayaking or canoeing. Tubing is also a fun activity for the whole family. Make a day of it and pack a picnic lunch full of healthy foods, of course!
Hiking
Most kids love bugs and nature and hiking really highlights those things! Find a trail near you and enjoy the scenery together as you have a great workout. Depending on the age and fitness level of your family, you can find a trail to fit your needs.
Give Disc Golf a Try
Disc golf is the next big thing and a lot of communities have created disc golf courses you can use for free. You don’t need much equipment to do it, either -- and all the things you need are easy to find at your local sporting goods store.
Disc golf is pretty much exactly what it sounds like, a cross between frisbee and golf that is challenging but fun. It’s something different that your whole family can try together!
Run a Race Together
A 5K is a perfect race for the whole family. In the summer, you’d be hard-pressed to find a weekend that doesn’t host some sort of race. You can walk, jog, or run the course, but working together to achieve a goal and teaching your children the value of making a goal and sticking to it is priceless.