When geek families spend time together, there’s a guarantee that not all of the family activities will be health and movement focused.
Finding ways to help your little gamers get active (while making it fun according to their interests) can feel like a struggle. If you are a tech-lover yourself, the first step is to emulate attention to health on your own, the next step is to make it fun for them! That’s where these kid-friendly activities come in.
I currently have a preschooler so younger-elementary age children may benefit from this list most. In the future I may offer some tricks for you not-so-mini geeks, but I would rather only offer that which I can verify works well in my family, with my child.
Star Wars Yoga
My little dude loves a children’s yoga series called Cosmic Kids. The instructor Jamie is effervescent, easy-to-follow, and (best of all) tells a story while incorporating basic yoga movements. We found this channel a couple years ago when my son was just barely able to follow along. Many of the episodes’ stories are based off of hit movies, and this includes a few Star Wars yoga segments, which gets my son really excited about participating.
I will admit that for parents, the instructor’s endlessly cheery voice can be a bit off-putting if the same video is played over-and-over–not that kids enjoy doing that, right? But these videos are a perfect activity for days when you have to stay inside, but want to provide something engaging without using a lot of space or brainpower on Mom’s part. There’s even a Minecraft yoga episode that I find quite charming, and they’re always adding new story-based yoga videos.
Dust off Your Kinect
I know. I know what I’m asking, and I’m sorry. Kinects are clunky and frustrating, and probably gave you a little bit of trust issues because you believed everyone when they declared that THIS was the future of video games.
Let’s be honest though, putting your fancy PS4 vita controllers in the hands of 3-5 year olds is brave, and I’m not brave. At least, I’m not since my son tried to throw Cappy in Mario Odyssey by nearly throwing the Nintendo Switch controllers into the dead center of our flat screen TV. Bravery is for chumps.
Thankfully, small kids are not jaded due to unmet hype, and they don’t really care about glitchy issues or the uncanny valley. (Just think about the last creepy straight-to-Netflix animated show they loved.) They just want to play, and if they can jump around in the living room and make a fun raft hop over rapids, they are going to have a blast.
Bring Out A Persona
Let them pretend to be a character and move like that character would. Spiderman day at the park, climb and swing from everything you can! Sonic is the big name in our house right now, so exercising to get as fast as Sonic is a huge hit.
Hike Your Favorite Movie
Go on a hike that looks like you are traveling through Endor. Or take a walk through the shire just like a hobbit–heck bring a picnic lunch and plan on elevenses. We started offering our son the option to pick out a character button at our local comic book store whenever we finished a hike together. It’s a small expense, easy to collect, and offers a fun way to document how hard he’s worked! Plus, it’s always an exciting to have extra incentive to complete something a bit out of your comfort zone, and the trip to the comic book store is some added fun family time that doesn’t involve food or treats.
Kid-Friendly D20 Workout
You may have seen popular d20 workouts circulating the internet as of late. If not, the premise is simple, in the vein of playing your favorite tabletop game, give yourself a starting modifier and roll your 20 sided die to see how many reps of a particular workout you need to complete. The variety provides a fun challenge and keeps things from feeling repetitive.
For younger children, the d20 workout can be modified to help get your young gamers moving. A large d20 plush pillow provides added fun to roll, and the tasks can be generated in a more age-appropriate manner. For instance, instead of 20 burpees that the adult or teenage version requires, suggest jumping jacks or sonic laps around the backyard. The possibilities are only as limited as your imagination, and if you run out of ideas, your creative little ones will likely have suggestions once they get the hang of the game.
Hang Out at Comic-Con
If you wear a Fitbit or another wearable pedometer, you know that nothing skyrockets your step count like heading to Comic-Con. When you’re surrounded by lectures to hop in-and-out of, have fun trinkets to purchase, and can’t wait to get a photo with your favorite superhero, you quickly forget how much movement you’re getting while you are lost in the magic. This is equally true for kids, though it may be a good idea to bring a stroller for particularly young children.
There you have it. Have you tried any of these ideas? Let me know how it went!
I’m sure there are tons of other ideas out there that I’ve missed–share them below. Sometimes you don’t realize how clever a household hack is simply because it’s just something you do often and find it unremarkable. Maybe you have the gem of a tip another family needs!