Summer can mean busy schedules filled with work, carpooling, camp, swimming lessons, and often not a lot of me time. It can be hard to convince yourself that running outside in the hot sun or being cooped up in a gym is a great way to spend the free time you do have, making it easy to drop your workout plan so that you can spend more time with your family. This doesn’t mean you have to fall out of shape. You can turn family time into some intense workouts for you that will be great fun for your kids. Just try some of these fun summer activities!
Flashlight Tag is a fun after dinner game you can play with your kids. It’s a mix of hide and seek and tag, one person is “it” and searches for the others with their flashlight as the rest of the family tries to get back to a designated base without getting caught. Playing in the dark is not only adventurous but also much cooler than running around in the hot sun. Play this exciting game with your thrill-seeking youngsters and burn 220 calories in an hour!
Swimming Who doesn’t love hitting the pool? Swimming can cool you off on a hot summer day. Try a game of Marco Polo with your kids where one person is it and tries to find the others with their eyes closed by yelling “Marco” and following the “Polo” responses. During this fun game you can burn 300 calories in just 30 minutes!
Volleyball is a fun and competitive family activity that’s great for older kids. Add this in to a relaxing day at the beach for a good workout. In just an hour you can burn up to 560 calories! Or try it at home or at a local park and burn 230 calories in an hour. You’ll burn more calories on a sand court because you expend more energy running through sand than on hard surfaces.
Rollerblading and biking are fun ways to explore your neighborhood and connect with the outdoors. Ditch the car and bike or blade to a nearby restaurant for dinner to have fun as a family while helping the environment. You can burn 500 calories per hour on your bike or blades.
Frisbee can be played right in your backyard. Invite friends and family over to build teams for an ultimate Frisbee game, where players try to score goals on either sides of a field by passing the Frisbee to their teammates and working their way down to the end zone – but whoever’s holding the Frisbee isn’t allowed to run! Or just play toss with your kids. This fun variation on catch can help you burn 200 calories per hour.
Miniature golf was and still is one of my favorite family outings; I used to get so excited about a special trip to the mini golf course when I was little. Share this fun with your kids and burn 215 calories in an hour of playing!
*Calories burned during these activities have been calculated for an adult weighing 150 lbs.