3 Ways to Work Out with the Family This Summer

Kelly Fox, director of healthy living at the Hudson YMCA, flexes her muscles.
Busy summer schedules can make getting to the gym difficult.
Kelly Fox

“The Ymca in Hudson has over 125 land and water group fitness classes offered each week that are free with a membership,” says Kelly Fox, director of healthy living. “This includes over 30 different class formats!”

But no matter the options, busy summer schedules can make getting to the gym difficult:

  1. Turn on the video games. It may seem counterintuitive, but there are actually many video games on the market today that get kids and parents on their feet and moving. Put in a dance game or even a workout game after a long, hard day at work or school and watch the stress melt away as the whole family giggles and exercises together.
  2. Take an after-dinner walk. Anyone can squeeze a 10-minute walk into their day. Keep the kids interested by adding fun challenges every few minutes: race them to the next tree or hop to the end of the block together.
  3. Head out to the backyard. Play an active game with the family dog or shoot a few hoops—whatever your family enjoys doing together. You could even let your children take turns leading your family in a PE class of their own devising. They’ll love the attention they’ll get as coach, demonstrating proper form and you just might be surprised at the intensity of the workouts they come up with.

These suggestions were originally included in a blog post by the Silicon Valley Ymca. Read the entire article at ymcasv.org/blog.

The Hudson YMCA was named Best Fitness Studio/Yoga Studio/Gym in our 2019 Best of St. Croix Valley readers' survey.