Fitness Games For Children

One of the problems our youth is facing today is a sharp increase in childhood obesity due to a lack of exercise. Too much TV and too many computer games have all contributed to the sharp increase.

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So what are the solutions?

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As parents, we need to assist our children in finding more active ways of having fun. The key to having a child enjoy movement is to make things a game as much as possible. Kids love games and will surprisingly work twice as hard at a game then they will for any other reason.

Here are some exercise games that you can do with your children around the house!

Game #1 Exercise CandyLand You have heard of the board game CandyLand haven't you? It is a fun board game for kids that has been around for years. It uses different colored squares and a deck of cards that have either one or two of the same colored squares on them. The object is to draw a card from the pile and move that many colored squares that are represented on the playing board. The first one to get through the maze wins. The exercise portion of the game comes from designating each colored square with an exercise. For example. If a child picks a blue card he or she will need to move to the next blue space on the board but will then have to do the designated "blue" exercise which would be 10 jumping Jacks (you chose the exercises and write them down on a piece of paper.) This is a fun way to incorporate some exercise and play a fun child's game at the same time.

Game #2 Timer Games Timer games can be a wide range of games. You just need to be creative. What you will need is to have a countdown timer and lots of energy. I prefer to use Timer Games like the old school game "Hot Potato". When the timer goes off the one holding the ball is out. In this case you can play by setting a timer and start by doing 10 jumping Jacks. Then it is the next persons turn to do the jumping jacks. You will want to go fast as you don't want to be the one exercising while the timer goes off. You could think of any type of movement and this game will work.

Game #3 Jump closest to the Line This is a simple game that will help develop some spatial awareness and force production awareness. Draw a line on the ground and step back 3 or so feet from the line. The object is to be the person to get as close to the line without actually touching it. You could also jump over the line and try to get your heels close to the line. Try doing a ½ turn over the line and be the one with your toes closest to the line.

Exercise games at home can be a lot of fun and very simple to do. Children typically need some adult guidance so have some fun yourself parents, get involved and play some exercise games with your kids!

Fitness Games For Children

Mark Bowlby is the owner of http://www.kidsfitnessmadefun.com He is a Certified Personal Trainer that specializes in youth fitness. Through the use of many fitness games Mark has been successful in getting kids to improve their fitness while enjoying the process.

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