How To Stay Strong Enough To Keep Playing With Your Kids
Parents and physical activity are words that you don’t often see in the same sentence. That’s because the moment you signed up for a lifetime commitment to parenthood, all your needs will now come second after your children’s.
As soon as you have a newborn baby in your hands, you eventually become dedicated to becoming the best parents you can ever be for them. You dedicate your time, energy, and anything a parent is willing to give, all for the welfare of your family.
While there’s nothing wrong with giving your all for your children, you may soon end up forgetting about yourself. You don’t get enough sleep, nutrients, or even adequate exercise to at least keep your body active. Eventually, you’d end up feeling exhausted, stressed, and burnt out. Then, your immune system weakens, and you quickly get sick with any type of illness. That’s when you’ll realize the value of taking care of yourself to be able to look out for your children too.
Parents want to be around their kids at all times. They want to see where their children go, how they play, or simply witness them grow as time goes by. While seeing them progress as kids, you also want to be there for them and even play with them because the truth is, they’ll only be young once, and very soon, you won’t be able to play with them anymore.
To play with your kids, you need to be strong enough to keep up with their energy. Thankfully, that’s not impossible, and there’s a greater chance for you to bring back the strength you once had during your younger years and use the same energy for spending time with your kids. Here are some tips to help you stay strong and play with them while they are still kids.
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Always Choose to be Proactive
To be proactive doesn’t mean you need to work out in the gym five times a week consistently. Instead, it means you’d choose to move around constantly instead of going for the easy or passive activities. For instance, if you’re looking for a parking space at a supermarket, park at the farthest spot and take those extra steps for walking exercises. If you’re to choose between stairs or the elevator, choose the stairs. If you want to talk to your neighbor, walk towards their home instead of calling them on the phone.
These may seem minor, but they can significantly influence your physical fitness. You may feel like you’re tied to your children for a while, but actually, there are many opportunities for you to be physically active if you only observe closely.
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Make Time for Exercise
Aside from being proactive, strive to set aside at least twenty to thirty minutes each day for a workout session. You may think this is almost impossible to achieve, considering that you have children around the house to take care of. But if you’re motivated enough to achieve physical fitness, you will make time. You can insert a few minutes of weight workouts in the early morning when everyone is still asleep or in the afternoon when your children are having their afternoon nap.
Small yet consistent exercises can have a significant impact on your health and your muscles. While you’re in this routine, you can also take creatine supplements to help build muscle to last and enhance your body’s durability and strength. If you’re up for it, you can also let your kids join your exercise sessions as a way of bonding with them.
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Eat Healthily
Being physically strong is not only achieved by being proactive or keeping up with your exercises. It also has to be matched with a healthy and balanced diet. Ensure you’re feeding your body with sufficient nutrients to help strengthen your immune system and boost your energy levels. As you may have known, what you eat will always be linked to your health. Make sure you’re eating enough fruits, vegetables, or fish. Don’t forget to have whole grains in your diet too. The healthier your food choices are, the lesser your risk of having severe health issues, and you’ll have more energy when playing with your kids.
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Get Enough Sleep
Aside from exercise and a healthy diet, sleep is essential for your physical strength too. It’s during your sleep that your body will have time to recharge and rejuvenate itself and be ready for the next day. If you keep on denying yourself sleep, not only will you wake up feeling tired and sleepy, you’ll also experience mood swings, stress, and daytime fatigue. Lack of sleep will also impair your immune system, making you more prone to common health problems. If you want to play with your kids and spend as much time growing with them, then get enough sleep at night and fully recharge yourself for the next days ahead.
Consistently following these tips will not only ensure you get your strength back, but this will also allow you to be capable of playing with your kids without feeling physically strained. Make your children your inspiration in striving to be physically better, and as you reap the benefits, every second spent with your children will be worth it.
Staying physically fit is important for grandparents too!
Grandparents can also impact the lives of children through their superpowers of playfulness. My upcoming book "Legacy of Laughter: A Grandparent Guide and Playbook" provides guidance for building loving relationships with purposeful, brain-based playtime and strategies to help kids cope with the challenges faced by this pandemic generation.
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Mary Kay - we would love to help promote your book when you are ready.
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