Last Updated on August 16, 2022 by Editorial Staff
Exercise is very much helpful for us in many ways. Besides developing our body, physical exercise helps us to improve our minds. But it is often difficult to do. As a result, if you don’t love exercise, you can’t continue it longer. Only the person who loves exercise and wants to do properly will be able to do it for a long time on a regular basis. The same happens with your children too. If you can’t show them that exercise is interesting rather than being difficult, they will not show interest to do it.
According to kids’ behave, kids and exercise are really tough and incompatible combination. Because they will always be busy in trying to skip it. If you really want that your kids will do exercise regularly, you have to proceed in a tricky way by following some techniques. Here I have shown some of those techniques. Try to implement these on your children.
12 Techniques to Teach Children to Love Exercise
The 12 tips will help you to teach your children to love exercise. As a parent, you have duties to your children. Keeping them fit is one of those duties. So, you shouldn’t leave hope if your children are not attracted to it. To grow love for exercise is a slow process. Besides the following techniques, you can make your own technique to grow love in your kids for the gym.
1. Set a goal
Children are fun loving. They find it fun to fulfill a goal. This also boosts their confidence level. So, when you are doing exercise with your kids, set a goal for them to achieve. The goal shouldn’t be impossible to achieve for them.
If they find the goal as a tough one, they will lose interest. Always try to set a goal that can be achieved with medium effort. Achieving a goal will drive them to achieve another goal. In this way, you can be able to attract their concentration in exercising for a long time.
2. Do with them
Think about you. If you get a partner in your workout time, your exercise becomes more cheerful. You get fun to do it. The exact thing happens with your children too. They find it joyous if they get partners in exercise time.
The joy becomes more if the partners are their parents. So they become interested to do it. If you really want your kids to do, join with them with no hesitation. This will boost their wish to do some easy healthy physical activities.
3. Use gadgets
Kids are very much fond of gadgets. Give them gadgets and they will be attracted easily. This attraction can be used for making them to exercise. For example- give them a step counter and they will use it to count steps. Only for using the device, they will walk and run. Thus you will be able to attract them to do it.
Again, you can buy them an exercise bike. This will attract them to perform exercise regularly. Just make sure that they don’t use the gadgets excessively. Excessive use of gadget will make them addicted to gadgets.
4. Buy attractive gears
You will need some gears to perform best exercise. Gears like jumping rope, hula hoop, big balls etc will make exercise fun. Kids get attracted to these easily. Use these gears to keep the attention of kids to exercise.
For a longer attraction, buy gears that are colorful because kids love colors. They will find it more interesting to it with colorful gears. And if you can, try to change your gears on a regular basis like once in a month or two months. Thus the kids will see new gears in every month or two months. This will attract their concentration to exercise.
5. Make the place interesting
Kids are fond of places that seem interesting to them. So, try to make the place of exercise interesting in the eyes of your children. For example- if you do exercise on your lawn, make some changes to make it more attractive.
Think of adding some ropes with the trees, set up small goal posts, set a cradle etc. These will attract the kids more. Also, try to do it in parks or beaches once a week or a month. New places will make kids excited about doing it.
6. Kids love partners
In the first point, I have already said that kids love partners and I suggested to do exercise with them. Here is another trick to make them love it by giving them company. That is admitting them in a class.
Admitting kids in a class of yoga, gym, boxing or any other physical activity will increase their interest to do exercise because there they will get a number of partners. Watching kids of their ages doing exercise will drive them to do the same. So, if you haven’t thought of this option, think of it right now.
7. Video games
Exercise can be done by video games too. Don’t get angry with me. This is real. Think of the games that uses motion sensor. Those have to be played using the motion of your body. The player inside the game will act as you act with your body. These types of games can be used for exercise.
Buy your children a game that use motion sensors, they will do it not knowing they are doing exercise. Interesting, isn’t it? But don’t let them to use those for a long time. Limited use will work well.
8. Offer interesting physical activities instead of direct exercise
Sometimes kids are not likely to do any exercise, no matter what you try to make them attracted to do it. In this case, you shouldn’t give up. Some interesting physical activity work as like as exercise. Offer them those. For example- offer hiking in a forest instead of walking around the field. Running can be replaced with climbing small mountains.
Besides these, swimming, kayaking etc is interesting enough to attract kids. These will ensure the quality time of the family besides working as exercise. Cycling is another physical activity that kids find interesting. It also works as an exercise. In fact, it is a good physical activity. You can buy an exercise bike or normal cycles to your children.
9. Make it habit
Small physical activities like walking, jumping, running or playing regularly work as small exercise habits of children. So, grow a habit of those in the mindset of your children. For example- walk instead of using cars if you need to go a short distance.
Make your kids to use stairs instead of using the lift if the destination is 2nd or 3rd floor, depending on the age. Teach your kids to jump from little heights that are found on road. Making a habit of playing regularly in the afternoon will do great too. These small habits create interest about exercise in the mind of children.
10. Be an example
Kids are likely to lead by examples. They do things that they see others to do. So, if you want your kids to do exercise, you should do it before. Don’t push them forcefully to do exercise. Do it in front of their eyes.
When they will see you to do it regularly, they will start to exercise from curiosity and example following nature. After a few days, you will see that they are also regular in it like you.
11. Brief them importance
Children sometimes do things that have no reason; sometimes they want the reason of doing something. To make them interested to exercise, let them know why it is needed for them. If you can make them understand the importance of exercise, they will do it eagerly.
So, try to show them the importance, if possible show them practically. This will make them to like exercise. So, you don’t need to force them for exercise. They will do it eagerly.
12. Make an exercise friendly environment
Kids have the influence of environment on their minds. So if you want to attract your kids to do it, your home environment should be exercise friendly. Keep some gym gears and equipment in your home. Use those regularly. Show the use of those to the children.
Be fit and discuss fitness with the children. This friendly environment will push the kids to be engaged with exercise. Being pushed by the exercise-friendly environment, kids will grow a love for it in their minds.
As you are the dad or mom and you can closely observe your kids which I can’t, your own technique will be more effective. The reason is, you will create techniques targeting your children. The above tips will work as a guideline for you. So, develop some very own techniques for your kids. Always remember that fit parents can make fit kids because parents are the influencer to the kids.