Is "exercise more" on your New Year's Resolution List? Yeah, I read somewhere that something like 80% of people have that on their list. (Okay, I don't recall what study or where I read that, and I very well could have made that up, but it sounds about right right?)
We could all use a little more movement in our lives right? No matter what the age. The hubs and I find it important that our kids not only see that we have our daily workout routines (running, yoga, and going to the gym) but that they "workout" too. I use the term "workout" loosely because our kids are still pretty little (5 & 2) and well there is only so much they can do, especially the 2 year old. When we think through family exercise, its important to find activities that we can all do. even if its only for portions of the "workout." What our family finds the most fun is hiking.
Family Exercise - Hiking
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Our little one can only walk for portions of the hike, so we make sure to bring the hiking backpack for the other parts.
We are lucky to have some great hiking trails around where we live. If you're not sure about trails around your area, there are tons of different resources on the web and even phone apps that can help you find different trails. Here are just a few we've found:
- Trails.com
- All Trails
- TrailLink
When evaluating what difficulty level trails to hike, its important to keep every member of the family in mind. For example, if Dad's got a bum knee, you may want make sure the terrain is less climbing and more walking. Its always recommended that you start out on a fairly flat less difficult hike to make sure all members are comfortable in the terrain and what they are wearing (shoes, hats, pants, etc.). Then increase the difficulty and length of the trail each hike after that.There are so many great things I love about family hikes. It gets everyone moving of course, but you're in nature and away from gadgets and technology. It gives the family the chance to talk and catch up on the week. We also use this time to teach the kids about things in nature. We enjoy pointing out things we see on our hike like lakes and bugs and plants which then leads to discussion about our favorite bugs and whether we will see butterflies. We find it great while out is to encourage the kids to explore and climb. They are engaging their muscles and opening themselves to new adventures (which you know we LOVE.)The most important thing, for us, is that everyone is getting out there. If the babies are too little to walk, of course keep them in the backpack, but if they can walk (even a little) or run in DNH Boy's case, make sure to let them down in open areas to get those legs moving. Moving is one of the most important piece to family exercise/hiking.The other piece is having fun! So get out there and have a great family adventure.
We would love to see you and your family on your hiking adventures. Email pictures to alli at diapers-n-heels.com and we'll add them to a collection below.
