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Kids see everything their parents do, including some of their, let’s just say, “less than ideal” habits. This may be why the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry found that if one parent is obese, there’s a 50 percent chance that their child will also be obese. The odds are even greater if both parents are obese. While genes play one part, another reason is that kids follow their parent’s example — if your parents rarely exercise, odds are that you won’t either.

This week, take time to make changes to the way your family thinks about exercise by incorporating these tips for fitness into your every day lives.

1. Make time for exercise.

Incorporating exercise into your regular routine is the best way to keep your family moving. Having scheduled activities will keep you from ever being stuck inside for more than a day or two.

• Go for a bike ride every day right after school.
• Take a walk just before or after dinner every night.

2. Know how to keep things moving while inside.

Especially with hurricane season and winter just around the corner, there’s a good chance that you’ll have to stay inside with your kids for a few days at a time. While it may be tempting to throw in a DVD, being inside is no excuse to limit your physical activity. Keep kids moving by:

• Throwing a dance party.
• Playing “follow the leader.”
• Creating an obstacle course.

3. Make chores fun.

It’s no surprise that kids don’t exactly love chores. But when chores become a fun game, you can encourage kids to exercise while making chore time fun — win, win!

• Have a race to see who can clean up the most toys.
• Instead of picking up toys, make clean up a “rescue mission” where each toy needs to be saved and returned to its home (ie: the toy chest).

4. Ditch the car as often as you can.

It’s something we all do — we drive somewhere, knowing we probably could’ve walked it. The next time you’re dropping something off at your local library or just grabbing one thing from the supermarket, walk there with your kids. And just think, while you’re walking, you’ll also be helping the planet and saving money on gas!

5. Plan one big event a year.

A charity run or an obstacle course is a great way to promote exercise, even if your kids can’t participate in it yet! Just watching mom or dad participate in a run gets little kids excited about exercising. And you never know, maybe in just a few years they’ll be next to you racing as well!

Orthopaedic Specialty Group is the largest and most experienced orthopedic practice in southern Connecticut. Our expert team of doctors can fix virtually every bone and joint in your body. Schedule an appointment online, or call us at (203) 337-2600.