My husband has doubled his pull-up record (from one to two), and my 7-year-old daughter and I can almost do one pull-up apiece. As a family we have contests to see who can hang the longest and we cheer each other on to reach new goals.
We've now taken our calorie-burning fun outside the kitchen, and you can actually torch a surprising number of calories as a whole family just by playing your favorite games.
Playing Tag
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My favorite games are ones that require zero equipment. Tag is an easy, classic game that can be played by everyone. I used to have to run intentionally slow to make it fair for the kids, but these days I can burn up to 320 calories an hour running away from them. If you struggle to keep up with the kiddos, turn regular tag into freeze tag to give yourself built-in breaks to catch your breath.
Jumping Rope
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Dust off your elementary school skills and show your kids how it's done! Jumping rope burns around 125 calories in 10 minutes, and just 10-minutes of high-intensity rope jumping is the equivalent of 30 minutes of jogging.
Playing Basketball
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Merely shooting hoops burns 300 calories per hour, and that number doubles when you up the ante and play an actual game. I love playing basketball with my kids--mostly because I'm so much taller than they are. I'll enjoy these few more years of having that height advantage over them and the exercise that goes along with it.
Noodle Fights
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Pool noodles aren't just for water fun. The kids in our neighborhood use them as swords, and we grown-ups often find ourselves defending our castles with foam noodles of our own. These epic battles leave everyone winded, and while there are no great numbers on the caloric burn of pool noodle fighting, fencing burns close to 300 calories per hour.
Obstacle Course
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Kids love climbing and swinging and jumping. They also love beating their parents at any and all games. A trip to the park can be an excellent workout--what with all the monkey bars, ladders to climb up and down and the swings to use as your own personal gym. It's easy to create your own obstacle course at the nearest playground and you can adjust the course every time with just a little creativity. Make it a fun game with the kids to see who can become the obstacle course champion, and burn a few hundred calories an hour.
Having fun as a family isn't just great for the soul, it's good for the body, too. Get outside with the kids to torch some calories and make some long-lasting memories.
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