8 active indoor games for kids (and adults) | Tots to Teens Nutrition

I?m sure everyone knows that physical activity goes hand in hand with nutrition for good health.?Along with teaching our kids to eat well by?feeding well and setting a good example, we also need to model physical activity. Luckily, most kids love to?be active and they are the ones who can show us how to enjoy it, and not treat it like one more chore we have to get done!

Activity doesn?t have to?be complicated, time-consuming or expensive

Preschoolers are naturally active, but not in the same way as adults. They don?t go to the gym to work out, go for a jog along the lake, or play team sports (well? some do, but it?s not the same as for older kids or adults.) And yet they manage to keep active by running around, climbing on things, and playing energetically. Grown-ups could learn something from them! Even if you don?t go to the gym or play an organized sport, you can still be physically active and healthy if you play actively with your kids, or do the same kinds of things they do. And it?s fun!

I have a list of favourite indoor active games to do with my kids for days we don?t make it out the door. I call these activities ?fun-stuff-to-do-around-the-house-on-stormy-days-so-your-kids-can-get-their-yayas-out-and-not-drive-you-crazy?. I like to make these fun for both me AND my kids. Then even if I don?t make it out for a walk/run/swim, at least I?ve had a little bit of activity.

If your kids are preschoolers or younger, these games require almost nothing but time, energy, and a little bit of space to run around in.

1. Skip to my Lou

Skip around the house, singing ?skip, skip, skip to my Lou! Skip to my Lou, my darling!? It always puts me in a good mood, makes my kids giggle and act silly, and gives us some indoor exercise that is always appreciated if we?ve been cooped up.

2. The zombie game

I pretend to be a zombie by putting my arms in front of me, staggering toward my kids, and saying ?uuuuhhhh, uuuhhhh? in a monotone. They run away screaming, and when I catch them, they turn into zombies and chase me while I run away screaming. If you don?t mind a racket, it?s a hoot!

3. Make a fort

We like to make a fort out of couch cushions, and then jump in them, throw them around, knock the fort down and build it again? it burns a lot of calories and is a barrel of laughs! Of course, you have to be OK with your couch getting beaten up. My guess is most parents of small children learn to tolerate some of their furniture getting a little roughed up ? it?s par for the course with youngsters.

4. Spin

My 2-year-old daughter likes me to hold her hands and turn in a circle so that she spins around me like a merry-go-round, with her feet flying through the air. It makes me dizzy if I do it too long, but it really makes her laugh.

5. Dance party

I turn on some upbeat music and then everyone dances ? the sillier, the better!

6. Races

We like to race around the house, from room to room. We take turns calling out where to go next and then try to get there first. Of course, I don?t really go all out since I am competing with a 4-year-old and a 2-year-old!

7. ?Football?

This game involves us throwing a soft kids football around, then running and tackling each other to the ground (My 2-year-old needs me to be quite gentle, but I can?be a little rougher with my 4-year-old.) We end up running and throwing ourselves on the floor a lot.

8. Piggyback rides

I run around with one of my kids on my back. It?s a great workout for me, and results in lots of hilarity for the youngsters! Even better is when there are enough adults around for each child, and we can chase each other.

After you all work up an appetite, you and your kids will?be ready for a healthy meal or snack!

Image: photostock / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Image: Grant Cochrane / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Source: http://www.totstoteensnutrition.com/2012/02/15/8-active-indoor-games-for-kids-and-adults/

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