Connect More, Tip 4: Move Your Body as a Family
Wow! Can you believe that January is nearly over? Did the first month of the year go by quickly or slowly for you? Did you get at least to have at least one family check in this past week? How did it go? We are finally at our last idea for things to add to your family routine to help build connection and increase bonding. This month, I shared with you a few ideas for building connections including scheduled screen free nights, scheduled family screen nights, and scheduled family check ins, and I purposefully saved this one for last.
Why? Well, at the start of a new year, there are a lot of resolutions and goals made about food, exercise and other body-based goals. I did NOT want this connection building activity to be about burning off the holiday treats, dropping weight, toning muscle, or anything ‘new year, new you’ related. Truthfully, I’d rather you never talk diet talk or about food being ‘bad’ in front of your child, but that is a post for another blog and another time.
For the final idea, I recommend scheduling a time to move your body as a family. A family that sweats together, bonds together. Too cheesy? Maybe. But, along with physical benefits, moving your body can improve your mood, regulate your sleep, reduce stress and help with memory. When you make a commitment to move your body together, you commit not only to time together as a family but to working toward improved family wellness overall.
Moving your body together as a family doesn’t mean that you all have to work out together, but it could. Choose a time of day or week to start with a family movement activity. If once a day or once a week seems like too much, try once a month to get you started.
Here are 20 ideas for things you can do together as a family that will get your body moving and also give time for connection together:
Take a walk in your neighborhood
Go on a hike at a local park
Take a bike ride
Have a plank or sit up challenge
Go ice skating
Learn to roller skate/blade or skateboard
Do yoga or partner yoga
Try the RingFit or WiiFit (Nintendo) or another movement based game like Beat Saver (PS4 VR)
Play hide and seek (indoors or outdoors)
Have a dance party at home
Clean up the neighborhood by picking up trash together
Build an obstacle course and then complete it
Go sledding or ski/snowboard if you have access to that
Play basketball or tennis at a local park
Clean the house together (dance party optional)
Have a hula hooping contest
Jump on a trampoline
Have a Nerf Gun Battle
Do yard work
Play tag (if you’re inside - make it “Slow Motion”)
Phew! Those ideas can help you build a sweat and have some laughs with family. You might find that some of the ideas work better in the spring or summer, but hopefully you have a great start to get you through the cooler months and keep you busy into next winter! Need more ideas? Ask your kids/teens! They will gladly share ideas with you, and it’s likely they will want to do it MORE if they come up with the idea.
Which idea was your favorite? Screen free night, screen night, check ins, or moving your body together? We would love to hear how these ideas have worked for you and your family. If you feel like your family is struggling to connect or you would really like to implement one or more of these ideas but don’t know where to get started, we are here to help!
Healing Hart Wellness provides wellness support to children, young adults, and their parents through individual and family therapy, parenting support, and yoga/meditation instruction. Clients who work with providers at HHW struggle to cope with anxiety and manage stress, need strategies to increase organization/focus/impulse control, or are navigating BIG life changes like divorce, moving, or graduating high school. Please feel free to reach out to us to connect by emailing Courtney Hart at courtney@healinghartwellness.com.