8 Tips To Keep Your Family Fit This Winter

There’s a lot that can keep an active family down during the winter. Besides colder temperatures and depleted daylight hours, you’re battling cold and flu season, the holidays, and of course, holiday eating. It may seem like you’re doomed to leave the winter months with a few extra pounds. Don’t worry, there’s hope. With a little creativity and a mindful approach to safety, you can maintain family health and wellness. Here are a few of our favorite suggestions...
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1. Skiing, Snow Boarding, and Tubing. Bundle up and hit the slopes! Skiing burns anywhere from 400 to 1000  calories per hour depending on the intensity. Downhill skiing is a great aerobic workout for people of all ages.
2. Ice Skating. Take the family out for an active evening on the ice! Make sure you bundle up and bring a sense of humor for the falls. An hour of leisurely ice skating will burn a little more than 300 calories.
3. Indoor Gyms, Laser Tag, and Trampoline Playgrounds. Do the kids need to burn off some extra energy? An indoor gym, laser tag, or trampoline playground/zone are great options to get kids running around indoors.  Remember to wear socks when heading to indoor spaces that do not allow shoes. Prevent the spread of the flu by washing those hands before your next meal (because kids are gross).
4. Motion Sensitive Video Games. Developers have made great strides to incorporate a full body experience into gaming. Our favorite is Just Dance but there are a ton of other games that promote fitness, dance, and skills training through your home gaming console.
5. YouTube Your Fitness. Tune into your favorite fitness guru and get the whole family moving 3 times a week. On YouTube you’ll find everything from yoga to High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) workouts. Make certain you hydrate!
6. Snow Day Play. Do you live in a snowy region? Bundle up for a shoveling or snowman building session. An hour of shoveling snow burns about 400 calories. Make certain to protect your back by using proper technique.
7. Walk the Museum or the Mall. Get lost for a couple hours in your favorite museum or mall. Walking for an hour burns anywhere from 200 to 400 calories.
8. Living Room Dance Party. Sometimes just breaking out the tunes and having an old fashioned dance party is enough to work out those winter jitters. Dancing burns anywhere from 250 to 400 calories per hour.

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Colder weather and shorter daylight hours shouldn’t be a barrier for an active family, it’s an opportunity to get creative and find other fun ways to get moving. No matter what activity you choose to burn those calories, remember that moving together is much better than going at it alone. Stay warm; be safe; have fun!

Got other great ideas? Share in the comments!