20. Kids make the best workout buddy

Now, I know I’ve used this quote before, but it’s an important one… especially if you have young kids… or anyone that looks up to you for that matter. In fact, it’s probably equally as important amongst friends - although there’s probably a degree more competition involved in peer groups. I mean, if your friends all decide to get in shape, then like it or not, after you’ve bitched, moaned and silently judged them for a while, the end result is it will probably motivate you to get a bit more in shape too, right? Ok, its less of a ‘follow their example’ and more of a ‘f**ck you… I’m not going to be the only one with a beer gut’ kind of response, but the net result is the same.

For me though, this is all about my kids… specifically how much I have enjoyed working out with them, even though they are only 3 and 5 years old. Now, ‘working out’ may sound like a bit of an overstatement, but it’s not as far off as you’d think. My 3-year-old can do ‘mountain climbers and planks’ with the best of them… and my 5 year old takes great delight is showing us her flexibility and strength at whatever we’re doing. The words - “can you do this daddy?” as she effortlessly brings her nose down to touch her knee when we’re stretching - have been uttered more times than I could possibly count… and while I’m doing pretty well on the old fitness front I have to admit the answer is usually something like “eh… not yet… but I’m working on it”.

Getting your kids involved in your daily exercise is a great idea… but one that probably wouldn’t have been realised had it not been for the global pandemic. Before everything went a bit pear-shaped, if you had an exercise routine, it was probably pretty regimented… you go to the gym 3 times a week after work… or a go for an early morning run or HIIT session Monday, Wednesday Friday? But it was probably on your own… in peace and quiet… definitely with no kids involved. Lockdown changed all that overnight. Gyms closed, childcare became a complicated juggling act, daily routines changed as working from home became a necessity and all of sudden you had to figure out how to home-school your kids?! So, now there were going to be two ‘little people’ scampering around all day… every day! Who was going to tire them out? Afterall, they are used to ‘tripping the light fantastic’ with their friends all day at school and nursery… being physically and mentally stimulated. They have boundless energy… which if not properly harnessed will lead to tantrums… and tears (not just from them) … and potentially total house devastation! Not just that, but all their classes have been cancelled too… so no more gymnastics… or tennis… or swimming… or dancing! So that was it… something had to be done. They need to exercise… to burn off some of that energy… my wife and I need to keep our fitness drive going and stay sane… so there’s one obvious solution… Family Workouts! Besides, I’ve always wanted to be a PE teacher.

This might sound like hell for some of you, but it has turned out to be one of the highlights of our day. It has replaced their sports, keeps them entertained, tires them out a bit and is actually really fun. On top of that, it feels like we're doing something productive with them besides schoolwork. It is family time and school all wrapped into one. They love learning new skills… and take great delight in showing us their ‘squats, reverse lunges, and burpees’. Push-ups have even become a bit of fun, with them occasionally climbing on my back and going for a ride… albeit, a slow, strained, shaky ride. They love showing off… flexing their muscles… and generally springing about. Not only that, it's sparked new conversations around the dinner table… with the basic lessons that ‘fish is good for your brain, and chicken is good for your muscles’ being learned… prompting them to ask more and more questions about what they were eating and what it is good for. They've started noticing the colour coded labels on food packets highlighting the fat, saturates, sugar and salt levels. This isn’t a conscious effort from my wife and I to turn them into little ‘health nuts’ at 3 and 5 years old, but rather has come as a natural progression from them doing exercise with us. They show a genuine interest in what they are eating which we are more than happy to try and satisfy. They still want and indeed get cake, biscuits, ice-cream etc as much as they ever did, they just have an added awareness about it. No guilt, no ‘this is bad’ and ‘this is good’ type stuff… just curiosity. It really feels as if we’re leading by example, building a basic understanding of the benefits of healthy habits, and the hard work that goes into staying fit and strong. More importantly though, we’re having fun as a family. Hell… with the shortage of weights available online my kids have even doubled as makeshift barbells!

There’s no doubt that being in lockdown has shown us another way to exercise… not in isolation with our headphones in, but as part of a group – whether it’s your family or on zoom for an online group training session. We’re trying new things, rather than just going through the motions of our weekly gym routine. We’re realising that we can create space for a workout when we have to, and that working out from home is much more convenient and comfortable. It’s easier to sustain motivation long enough to pull on your gym gear, get down the stairs and in front of the TV, than it is to jump in the car, travel to the gym and navigate various obstacles in the hope the machine you want is free. It’s quicker too, as you can go from making dinner to working out in 5 minutes with no travel time… no delays. It’s just ‘bang’… workout finished, straight in the shower, then back to your day.

We fell into a nice morning routine with the benefit of ‘PE with Joe’, which acted as a great introduction for my girls to this type of structured exercise. The light-hearted, almost comedic approach, with re-named moves and fancy-dress Friday made sure it remained kid friendly while giving them a great knowledge of what they were doing. Spidey lunges, pikachus, bouncing bunnies and kangaroo hops where we keep dropping our ‘joey’ have become staples in our exercise routines. We do duck walks, where I flap my arms like an idiot, and chase my girls around the room… frog jumps where we compete for the same imaginary lily-pad. With summer here, we’re getting outside and I’m taking a leaf out of their book and giving skipping and hula hooping a go… it’s all memory making, fitness and fun.

Before I get too carried away, it’s worth noting that it hasn’t all been fun and games, and we’ve had our fair share of grumpy, unmotivated moments where the kids find themselves just lolling about and distracted by pretty much anything… and at those times I have not always handled it with the fun, care free… ‘this is great’ approach I have portrayed. I am comfortable enough to admit that at times my inner drill sergeant has made an appearance as I lost sight of the fact that my kids are only 3 and 5 years old. I mean, at their ages exercise should probably be largely from just play… running about with their friends, darting around the park, or soft play.  Don't get me wrong, its not like I was barking orders at them, but sometimes I felt the need to remind them that it wasn't supposed to be too easy as their motivation sometimes waned. Still, overall, the experience has been overwhelmingly positive… and I learned a bit about myself too. Who knew I was such a ‘ball buster’… maybe a career as a personal trainer is on the cards?!

So… am I going back to the gym. Not really is my ambiguous answer. I might go back short term to get some weight training in, as I currently don’t have the equipment needed at home. But long term… definitely not. I enjoy working out with my family too much. My kids might not always choose to join in, but just giving them the option by working out in the house seems to be the right direction to go. If nothing else, they will learn a lot more just by being about… seeing my wife and I do Pilates… or HIIT, or even just stretching. They will see us looking after our bodies… see first-hand the time, sweat and effort that goes in to keeping fit. That alone is reason enough. The fact we enjoy it and have a lot of fun is just the icing on the cake. I’m going to miss our morning workouts when life returns to normal… but I suppose I can change my routine a bit to work around my kids’ busy schedule. Damn… how times have changed.