How to Encourage Your Children to Live an Active Lifestyle

Get off that goshdarn couch! Only 23.2% of American high school students get one hour or more of physical activity every day. 

Many young people don’t exercise because they think an active lifestyle requires too much work. That’s false. With your help, your children can start a healthy life with a few basic steps. 

How can you encourage your children to be active? What activities should your children perform as they get older? What else do they need to do besides exercise? 

Answer these questions and you can raise healthy and happy children in no time. Here is your quick guide. 

Give Your Kids Chances to Be Active

The more opportunities your children have to be active, the more they will be active. You should limit the screen time of your children to a few hours at the most.

But don’t be punitive. You can give your children rewards for active living like going on vacation or getting help with an assignment. You can have your kids keep track of how much exercise they do with stamps or jars filled with marbles. 

You should also give your kids supplies they can use during exercise. You can put a basketball hoop up in the backyard, or you can buy them pairs of running shoes. 

Try to find small ways for your children to stay active. Chopping ingredients for dinner helps them burn a few calories and hone their fine motor skills. You can also ask them to go upstairs to do chores or retrieve items from the attic.

You should not overexert your kids. If they exercise too much, they can tear a muscle or break a bone. They should be able to get at least eight hours of sleep every night, so avoid sending them out late at night.

Think About the Ages of Your Kids

Children in preschool and elementary school should not play aggressive sports like football and boxing. But there are ways to get them to engage in intense exercise and start healthy living. 

Preschoolers can play basic games that get them moving. Tag requires running and flexibility, building muscles in your children’s legs. If tag gets too competitive, you can have your children ride a tricycle or navigate through an obstacle course. 

Elementary schoolers can start to learn sports like baseball. You can also teach them martial arts or go on hikes with them, as long as they know not to wander off. 

Teenagers have a range of choices for a healthy life. They can participate in school sports or do after-school activities like yoga and martial arts. Let them write their own exercise plan so they can do activities while getting their other responsibilities down. 

Match Activities to Personalities

Some children are not natural athletes. They may prefer quieter and less aggressive activities like reading. 

If your child is not a natural athlete, you need to give them encouragement to stay active. You can take them to tourist attractions and vacation sites that require them to walk or bike. 

Other children like sports, but they want to play casually. You should not sign your casual athletes up for competitions and tournaments. They can participate in sports at their community center and do impromptu games with friends.

If you have a child that likes sports but struggles to make friends, you can sign them up for leagues. Organizations like Urban Rec Social Sports run sporting events in non-competitive environments. Teams go out for meals afterward and players get to know each other better.

Find Different Spaces for an Active Lifestyle

Your children can exercise inside your home, especially if you have a workout center or swimming pool. During rainy days, they can lift weights or go up and down flights of stairs. 

But going to different locations can encourage your children to try out new activities. It will also keep them from getting bored, as they can look at the natural environment as they exercise. 

You can take your kids to a park to do basic activities like walking. If they want to go hiking or mountain climbing, you can bring them to a national park. 

Feed Your Kids Well

Healthy eating gives your children the nutrients they need to exercise. Whole grains provide complex carbohydrates that give kids plenty of energy over time. Your kids can eat whole wheat pasta and bread as well as quinoa and brown rice.

Protein is important for building muscles and bones. However, your children shouldn’t eat too much protein from white and red meat. They should instead get their supply from non-animal foods like nuts and beans. 

The majority of their meals should be based around vegetables and fruits. Leafy greens contain protein and essential nutrients like vitamin K and lutein, which can develop tissues in the eyes.

Your children should drink plenty of water before, during, and after their activities. If they find water bland, they can add lemon or lime juice to it.

Support an Active Lifestyle

An active lifestyle is within your kids’ grasp. Get your children up and moving by offering rewards for intensive exercise. Encourage your preschoolers to play small games and your high schoolers to compete in sports. 

Don’t force your children to play sports if they don’t want to. Bring them to locations where they can get active on their own and explore new surroundings. Give your kids healthy meals based on non-animal foods and healthy sources of protein. 

Healthy living requires knowing a lot of facts. Read more healthy living guides by following our coverage.