How to Keep Kids Fit and Healthy Over the Summer

How to Keep Kids Fit and Healthy Over the Summer
By Wendy Stewart, aka Coach Wendy

If your kids are like my little brother, then they are likely to have at least one gaming system to choose from and the ability to find age-appropriate games on the computer. Because of this young tech-savviness, it can be hard to get kids out and active when school is out for the summer.

Having a Nintendo Wii is a great place to start as far as gaming platforms because it is designed to keep you active. But what you don’t have a Wii? What options are available for you to keep your child both active and out of trouble during the summer months?

1. Sports Camps

Whether or not your child actually participates in a particular sport, sometimes it’s good for them to get exposure to other sports. In high school I was a 3-sport athlete and enjoyed making a fool out of myself with sports where I did not have as much skill (volleyball).

So, although your child may be a die-hard football player, help him expand his horizons by trying out other sports like soccer or baseball.

You can also get your child into camps that work on skills for the sports in which they already participate. That’s what I did for my sister last summer. One of her sports is basketball, so I signed her up for skills camp. It was 5 days, all day, and not very costly at only $100. She had a great time.

2. YMCA Camps

Your local YMCA has classes for kids going on all year long, but they have a great selection of summer camps. The camps vary by age and location, but be sure to sign up early in order to take advantage of any discounts.

You should also be able to get a discount if your family is a member of the YMCA and this will give you a place to get fit as well.

3. Visit the local park

While this sounds like a common sense thing to do, so many people do not do it. Just take a trip to your local park, which is free, and take some time to get active with your kids.

They can bring bikes, skates, and skateboards, play on the playground or just run around for fun. By the way, you can do those things as well!

Be sure to take plenty of water and food if you are going to be there for a few hours.

4. Send the kids outside

One thing that many of us do is let the kids sit in the house too long. Whether it’s because we think the neighborhood isn’t safe or because there is not a place close by for them to play, we don’t realize how important it is for kids to get moving.

Sending them outside may mean that you have to be out there with them to ensure their safety, but that is a small price to pay for the health and well being of your children.

5. Enroll in a sports team

This is the summer/fall mainstay of my brother and sister. My brother plays Pop Warner football and my sister is a Pop Warner cheerleader (yes, the same sister who plays basketball). In addition, I volunteer as a cheer coach and my mother volunteers as a Team Mom. This way, the whole family gets involved in the activities and that gives a tremendous mental boost to my brother and sister.

Pop Warner is not the only league out there, but there are many teams that begin to have sign ups around spring break so that they can hit the ground running when school is over. Some teams even begin before school is over (like my brother's little league team). Take advantage of these teams to give your kids some activity, help them make new friends, and try something new if this is a new sport for them.

Following these 5 suggestions are great ways to help you get started with keeping your kids fit and healthy over the summer. Also, remember that keeping them fit and healthy can also be good for you too, as it may spark in interest in you to try something new!

*Coach Wendy, Running and Weight Loss Coach, Youth Fitness Coach, and Host of the podcast "Running For Weight Loss."
The podcast is available whenever you want at http://runningforweightlosspodcast.com

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Can You Do the Hoedown Throwdown?

Thanks to the "Hannah Montana" movie, even I, Coach Wendy, has learned the steps to the big dance number, "Hoedown Throwdown." It's basically a country line dance and I pulled the video from You Tube to originally learn the steps along with Miley Cyrus and her choreographer.

This could be a fun thing for your kids to do as well. Of course, once you get the steps down and learn the words, then it gets easier. Then it gets more fun to see if you can do the dance full speed along with the song (still working on that).

Here's the video from You Tube and let me know if you can get the dance! Have fun!



-- Coach Wendy
Youth Fitness Coach