12 Days of Fitness 6: (Fitness) Games People Play

Day 6 ushers in PLAYTIME with guest author Jonathan Ross's article on working out with your kids. Jonathan has an interesting background. He lost his father to obesity (at over 400 pounds) and then helped his mother lose 170 pounds. Jonathan knows what he is talking about when it comes to fitness and weight loss. Look through the playtime tips below, and then grab one of your kids and go burn some calories (but don't tell them what you're doing! Just play.)

During the holidays, spend 10 minutes every day on a fun activity involving your child or children. Here are some ideas:

• Play tag in the parents’ bedroom. Since it’s a small space, there will be lots of tagging and the opportunity to dive on the bed a bit will make it irresistible for kids. (Just watch out for lamps and other items that can break or injure someone.)
• If family are visiting, go 'old school' and play Twister. The kids can play the game while the grown-ups designate an exercise for each color, like squats for red and push-ups for blue, etc. Anytime that color comes up, the adults have to do the exercise.
• One person chooses a body weight exercise (exercise #1) and performs one repetition
• The next person chooses a body weight exercise (exercise #2) and performs one repetition of exercises 1 and 2
• The next person (or the first person if only two people are playing) chooses a body weight exercise (exercise #3) and performs one repetition of exercises 1-3
• This continues until someone forgets one of the exercises in the sequence

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Jonathan Ross brings fitness to those who need it the most. He is a two-time Personal Trainer of the Year Award-Winner (ACE and IDEA), and a fitness expert for Discovery Fit & Health.

Did you miss the first 5 tips? Don't cry, just click:
Day 1 (Keep Exercise Fun), Day 2 (Making the Impossible Possible), Day 3 (Healthy Holidays), Day 4 (Quickie Time), Day 5 (Walk the Doggiesaur)