Ready, teddy, go… summer exercise with the kids in tow!

For many of us, when our children break up for the summer holidays, any hopes of maintaining an exercise routine fall by the wayside. As we juggle work and complex childcare arrangements, fitness levels plummet and out waistlines expand. So how best to fit in some exercise and keep the kids happy? (Let’s face it, after only a matter of days the children will be bickering in the car, play fighting in the living room – and it always ends in tears – telling tales on each other and generally complaining of boredom). Here are a few tried and tested ideas:

 

I find that a concerted campaign of lengthy physical activity frequently works wonders (particularly with boys) and has the added benefit of keeping you fit too. Yes, you’ve guessed: long, countryside walks. Prepare a picnic the night before your trip, thinking carefully about strategic food-related treats that can be used to galvanise the children and keep them moving towards your goal. Be sure to plan your route in such a way that an enticing pub, café or tearoom features towards the end of the walk.

 

Try and choose walks that include things which your children will find interesting (remember that whilst you might consider a panoramic view fascinating, your offspring almost certainly will not): streams that can be splashed in, ponds, and mini islands within these will all prove popular. Ducks, sheep, cows, horses (admittedly I’m scared of the latter) and dogs are helpful. Craggy rocks to climb, hollow trees to explore, fallen tree trunks to use as tightropes, all add to the excitement. So do wooded areas to make dens in, and open, windy hills to fly kites on…

 

National trust membership is, in my opinion, an absolute godsend for parents and the advantage is that the stately homes are nearly always set in substantial parkland where you can combine walking with the inevitable picnic and trip to a tearoom. With a baby I’d very much encourage you to invest in a really excellent baby carrier. It’s worth going along to a sling library and testing out various types of carrier to find what works best for you. Remember: you need to protect your own back, and also your baby must be positioned in a manner that protects his or her hip joints and spine. Older babies are usually perfectly happy for hours in a backpack carrier, thus enabling you to do quite substantial walks – make the most of it before they want to “GET OUT!” and toddle (at snail’s pace!).

 

Once you hit the toddler phase you’re in trouble when it comes to walking any great distance. Whilst your little walker peers intently down at ants on the ground, heads off in the wrong direction, veers over towards a precipice, you’ll find yourself hanging around, coaxing and generally progressing no more than a couple of hundred yards – not great exercise really.

 

It’s at this point that cycling, bike seats, bike trailers and tag-alongs come into their own. There’s nothing quite like having a double trailer AND a baby bike seat all attached to your bike, for a really great workout. When my three boys were little that is exactly what I did and my exercise would be as simple as cycling from home to the library, from the library to the inevitable café and back home again. Ideal.     
 

 

Finally, if you still want your workout fix then how about trying online fitness? There’s loads to choose from if you have a search. I’ve got my online pregnancy and postnatal fitness which you are welcome to give a go - of course! - but there’s literally every style of fitness imaginable online. And something tells me that if you do your online workouts with the kids around, they’ll soon be “helping” you out and finding it all rather entertaining (nothing quite like doing a press up with a toddler seated on you!).  

 

So what’s your plan for summer fitness?  Have you got any cunning tricks up your sleeve?

 

I’d love to hear about them if you have!