09 Nov Tips to get your entire family into fitness

I’m sure there are many people out there who engage in a fit, healthy lifestyle, but have immediate family members who don’t.
I know some real good examples of that, like where a wife can run road races and the husband would rather run to the donut shop. Or, the husband looks like he could suit up for a professional sports team, while the wife looks life she may simply need a wider jumpsuit.
And sometimes there are wide discrepancies in the fitness level between parents and their kids, with family members clearly not all on the same fitness page.
We live in a society that has mass media bombarding us like never before. Some studies show that kids spend 6.5 hours a day on average in front of TVs or computer monitors, ranging from watching TV, logging onto the Internet or playing video games.
If this sounds familiar to your family, then try to change things up.
Here are 10 tips to make your crew a “Fitness Family”:
* Take active vacations that include activities like hiking, swimming and skiing;
* Play sports the entire family can do together, like baseball (softball), basketball, volleyball, tennis, frisbee, etc.;
* Go on family bike rides;
* If you have short errands or trips to make, walk instead of driving the family truckster whenever possible;
* Take the stairs instead of an elevator or escalator if possible (well escalators are fun to ride, maybe keep taking those);
* Instead of heading to the TV after dinner, go on a walk together;
* Do active chores together;
* Set up a family workout room if you have the means to do it, get a treadmill and weight machine;
* Plant and then work in a garden together;
* When you are watching TV, do pushups or sit-ups on occasion during the commercials.

At Home Fitness consultant Aaron Dorksen’s blog deals with a variety of fitness topics, ranging from workout tips, motivational ideas and feature stories on how exercise impacts people’s lives. E-mail him with comments, questions or ideas for future blogs at aaron@athomefitness.com