Pandemic surge and winter months are not the right combinations for kid’s physical health. A lot of kids are attending school virtually with no recess and virtual PE classes. As the days get shorter and the weather begins to cool down the options for playing outside get fewer. A lot of families are worried about how to keep their kids fit during this challenging time. As a parent myself, I am in the same boat but let’s get it out of the way; feeling guilty is not the answer. Everyone has a full plate and is trying their best. Although our lives might be extraordinarily busy, unpredictable, and isolated, there is always an opportunity to be found in every situation. Winter holidays are just around the corner when parents and kids will be off from work and school. Winter holidays are the perfect time to engage in activities with your kids that will encourage movement.

Winter holidays are an excellent opportunity for family bonding time too. Research shows that getting children to move around improves family dynamics. Providing opportunities to stay fit doesn’t have to involve expensive exercise equipment or more screen time. Forget the latest electronic devices and try these ideas to keep your children active this holiday break.

Decorate the house Get into the holiday spirit by decorating the home. Why do all the work yourself when you have little elves to help around? Involve your elves in decorating both the inside and outside of the house. Remember to teach a good posture to your kids when lifting boxes.

Create a holiday-themed scavenger hunt Hide holiday items such as ornaments, gag gifts, and chocolates throughout the house and even outside. Play your favorite holiday playlist to get everyone in a cheery mood and get the family moving. Then, make them race to put it all back.

Create an active game Play creative workout games with your kids. Write down exercises on small pieces of paper like 10 push-ups, 20 jumping jacks, 15 squat jumps, and so on. Put them in a jar and let family members choose from the jar. Everyone (yes, including you) has to do the selected activity. Let the magic of this game make everyone’s heart racing and faces smiling.

Festive run/walk Bundle up, and go for a walk, jog or run around your neighborhood and enjoy the lights and decorations glowing. Turn the holiday run/walk into a festive interval workout. Every time you see the decorations or lights, stop and do five reps of

• High Jumps
• Jumping Jacks
• Squat Jumps
• Scissor Lunges

Also, go out for a run or walk at a local park or trail. Try fitness Apps like iRun4Life, a running App for kids, to follow a structured running program.

Embrace the cold If you live in the northern hemisphere, then it’s most likely that the weather is cold for you. Well, if you can’t beat it, then embrace it! Build a snow fort, snowman, make snow angels, or get into a snow fight. Go sledding on a hill around your neighborhood. Sledding is my kid’s favorite thing to do on snowy days.

Holiday movie workouts Who doesn’t like to watch Christmas movies with family over the holidays? We all do, right! It’s easy to turn the movie hour into workout hour. Every time a particular word comes in the movie, assign an exercise to go with it and get the whole family moving. See two movie workout ideas below.

Christmas Movie Workout

Every time you hear this word, then perform 10 repetitionss of this exercise

Christmas – Crunches

Gift – Glute bridges

Elf – Explosive push-ups

North pole – Naughty deadlifts

Sleigh – Skater lunges

Stocking – Side leg raises

Snow – Sumo squats

Santa – Split jumps

The Grinch Movie Workout

• 5 push-ups each time “The Grinch” song is played
• 5 squats each time The Grinch steals something
• 5 triceps dips each time you hear a made-up word
• 30 seconds of jumping jacks each time you hear “who”