Exercise Ideas For Parents Of Toddlers

luvmyleo

I got a nice jog stroller and it has been worth its weight in exercise gold! $200 investment has lasted me 2 years and many a mile. Its big enough that my 6 yr old still fits in it.

Its called Joovy zoom.

secretlobster

Wait, parents of toddlers need MORE exercise on top of having toddlers??

littlered301

Oh my god, I couldn't even watch the video of the women doing baby yoga. So disturbing.

bpotts44

Running stroller. They love to ride in them and it exposes them to exercise. Hiking. Kids love to be outdoors and their weight adds some intensity to the exercise.

billsica

I use my jogging stroller. My loop ends up at the park, so when I'm done with my run, I get to chase him around and push him on swings.

Other than that, really anything outside, and they will help you do the workout!

mom2boys3

I used to have a mom and tots video, but I got rid of it when my VCR died. It had exercise for both mom and toddlers, plus strength training for moms using the kids as resistance. My kids are now 9, 7, and 3. I am not motivated enough to get up before them, so I have to work out with them around. I used to do it while the little one was napping, but he doesn't anymore. I use the walk away the pounds videos, and I give my little one a snack and a couple books to try to keep him out of trouble. The older ones attempt to do it with me, and are quite impressed that I can do it and they can't. My oldest commented one day about how heavy I am, now he says he can't believe how strong I am.

autumnk921

Bumping for reference later....I am a single SAHM of a 3yr old boy and really in need of some ideas like these...Thanks all for sharing!!!

iieee

We walk lots (let's feed the ducks! My 3yo has no concept that the river is 2 miles away! lol) and every so often I go 'race you to that postbox' or whatever and we both run as fast as we can. I'm trying to get my nearly-2yo to walk more too, but unfortunately that slows us down a lot while he is inspecting drains, closing people's garden gates for them and so on.

We've got that just dance kids game, my daughter found it a bit hard but I should really get it out more so we can do it together. Good idea!

Generally though I just wait till they are asleep (7.30ish) and then go swimming x

Rubyayn

I work four days per week, so on those days I get up at 5 and hit the gym before work while she is sleeping. Since I work, I try very hard not to take any time away from her while I am off, so I do incorperate her into a lot of what I do (she is 2). I usually do Body Revolution after she goes to bed, but sometimes she is up later and she does it with me! We set up some toys all around my workout space and she pops in and does quite a bit of the workout with me. Honestly, I like the days she is up. It is a little distracting, but I think it is VERY important for her to see me being active because it sets a good example. This is just something we do, like brushing your teeth. She already gets that and I LOVE it. She says "yay, mommy is exercising!".

On my days off, we get up and after breakfast we break out the jogging stroller, jog two miles and end at the park. The park is her reward for jogging with mommy. She has no started yelling for me to "run faster, mommy!". I love it. While we are at the park we run around a lot, play tag and while she plays alone I stair step on the equipment. All of this has to be done by 9 because we live in Florida, so it gets hot fast. I have burned up to 600 calories on these mornings (use HRM)

It isnt easy, and I do try to do the bulk of it while she is sleeping. I schedule it in daily and just make it work. Fitting in Body Revolution after a long day of working and mothering is the hardest, but I keep doing it somehow, lol. I see and feel the changes in my body, so it has been rewarding enough to continue. I take rest days when I need them, even if unexpected. The older she gets, the easier it is, but I am worrired about when we add another kid to the mix, lol.

I would love more freinds that are parents, too... so feel free to FR me.

oh - and we also run around the yard and house a LOT, take walks and generally are very active. It is good for everyone. Sometimes for giggles I wear my hrm while playing outside and I am always pleasantly surprised how many calories I burn.

rprussell2004

http://youtu.be/1PJGeIFcO_U

This is the most messed up thing I have seen in a long time.

And trust me, that's SAYING something.

Wow.

tifanico

I am a single mom to a 3y/o girl. Needless to say, its hard to find time to exercise. I cannot go to a gym because that would mean to leave my daughter in daycare for a longer time.

What has worked for me, I just wake up 40min earlier than usual and do a work out DVD. I'm doing Insanity now and I love it. Once I'm done, I take a shower, get ready and then get my daughter ready so we can leave. It is not easy but its all worth it.

nannabannana

Hi, it's really difficult to find the time to exercise with a toddler but I've found if you get them to join in they love it. If you have a wii or a kinect then I highly recommend the game just dance for kids. Your toddler will love the fun songs, dance routines and colours. It's not like the normal just dance as it has actual kids dancing and not an avatar. It's a fab calorie burn for you too as there's lots of jumping and twisting. Your little one will think your a cool mum too

If you want workout just by yourself then I recommend jillian michaels 30 day shred as it's only 20 mins and very effective.

Yes 'em. My 2 Grandbabies dance with me....Also I do dances all day...it makes them giggle at Nanna:)
and they do a fast paced walk around sofa with me chasing them..you gg...you gb...now that the 10 mo old baby boy is walking. I LOVE IT...Makes me feel YOUNGER!!!!

Lleldiranne

Do you have a decent stroller? Maybe investing in a good jogging stroller would be worth it. It really does increase your burn to push a child in a stroller. And you can take your LO to the park and play on the playground for a while as a bit of a rest.

I did a lot of working out before mine were up, but also a lot of letting them watch/join me (even my 9 month old will play in his saucer for the time it takes to do Ripped in 30). My older kids now like to join me sometimes, and they challenge me with pushups and stuff. It's important for kids to see, early on, that exercise and physical activity is FUN!

ashchap619

I have a 3yr old. I turn on the radio or pop in a CD and we dance! Or we go outside and I actually join him in his silly little games he makes up like Froggie or "follow me" and I do everything he does. just MOVE that's whats important.

srhershey

My daugter is 4 now, but I used to work out when she would take a nap. She also has a TON of energy, so I would put on some music and we would dance for about 30 min. Now, since she's 4, we do Just Dance on the Kinect and she loves it. She will switch sides with me because she will see I have more stars and then she gets excited because she won. When I pop in a DVD to do, I make sure it's during her "tv time" and she's content so I can get a 30 min workout in. When it's nice outside, we will go for a walk or chase each other outside playing tag.

raindance_maggie

http://youtu.be/1PJGeIFcO_U

WTF??? idiots

my anxiety is in full effect right now...thanks for nothin'

beatingobesityforlife

..

beatingobesityforlife

http://youtu.be/1PJGeIFcO_U

...ummm...no thanks

beatingobesityforlife

Hi, it's really difficult to find the time to exercise with a toddler but I've found if you get them to join in they love it. If you have a wii or a kinect then I highly recommend the game just dance for kids. Your toddler will love the fun songs, dance routines and colours. It's not like the normal just dance as it has actual kids dancing and not an avatar. It's a fab calorie burn for you too as there's lots of jumping and twisting. Your little one will think your a cool mum too

If you want workout just by yourself then I recommend jillian michaels 30 day shred as it's only 20 mins and very effective.

Thank you so much!!

beatingobesityforlife

I wish I had some ideas ... I just do it before they wake up in the morning ...

it looks like that will be my only option, to workout around 5:30am. I will definately try it lol