 CCC is proud to sponsor the Cultural &Educational Cooperative with the Chester County Library System offering greatdiscounts to local attractions! ClickHere for more information | | Exercise:A Family Matter ByShane Olkus of Body ArtisansWhy don't you exercise as often as youshould?We guarantee at least 90% of you would list"not enough time" and "lack of childcare" in your top 3reasons. In our modern times, everything moves at light speed. Quiteoften, the first thing to get dropped from our hectic schedules is our workout. Ideally,we would be able to take our children to the gym with us. Alas, it is not anideal world and few of us have the luxury of childcare at our health clubs(although this is becoming a popular amenity). If you can manage to get away fora workout by yourself, exercising is a great way to spend quality "me"time. However, if you cant, we would like to offer some tips forincorporating a workout into your everyday routine without alienating the restof your family. -
Remember that 20 minutes a day is all you need to get started. A workout need not take 2-3 hours. -
Work out at home. An entire program can be done with a set of dumbbells and a jump rope. It may be easier to find 10 minutes here and 15 minutes there, which you can do between cooking dinner and bedtime, etc. as opposed to going to the gym for an hour or so. An added bonus of working out at home is that your children see you exercising and will more than likely adopt the same habits. -
The quality time you may set aside with a spouse, friend, child or parent can be spent working out together. This serves two purposes a.) exercising with a "buddy" is more fun and b.) you will motivate each other. -
Walk, run or bike to do errands instead of driving. -
Stretch often. Stretching requires no equipment and is necessary to maintain good range of motion in our joints. Children love to stretch with you because they are usually very flexible and this is one of the things that they can do better than Mommy and Daddy. Startthe Fitness Habit YoungAll parents want theirchildren to grow up eating right and exercising. Remember, our children, like itor not, pattern themselves after us. If they see us exercising regularly theywill more than likely adopt the same habits. Your children love to spendtime with you. Take full advantage of this by having your children exerciseright along side you. For example, go out for a run or walk while your childrides a bike or roller-blades with you. If your exercise programinvolves weight training, your children can work out with small hand weights (1-2lbs) just like Mom or Dad. Instead of buying your childthe latest animated movie, buy her an exercise video instead. There are numerouschildrens exercise videos out there and when shes stuck inside on a rainyday she can still get her daily exercise. Youth athletics are anexcellent way for your children to get plenty of regular exercise and they arelots of fun as well. The playground is an oldstandard tag, hopscotch, swinging and climbing are all forms of exercise thatare fun; your kids can get a great total body workout in 30 minutes at theplayground. Teach your children to have apositive attitude towards exercise. Educate your children about the benefits ofexercise and the dangers of not exercising. Allow them to make their owndecisions on the type of exercise, and give plenty of positive reinforcement toencourage them. Try to keep exercise light andfun. Avoid pressuring them to perform. Limit TV, computer and video game time this will free up time for exercise. Finally, make exercise a part of yourfamilys value system! Just as you would not leave the house in the morningwithout brushing your teeth, you should not dream of missing your exercise time. For more information or a Free Consultation Contact Body Artisans at 215.820.3258 or Email solkus@hotmail.com "Crafters of Strong Bodies & Healthy Lifestyles" |