Yesterday I mentioned how I was walking with my mom a few times a week. It has been really nice and today something even better happened. My brother Ronald went too! Actually my brother walked with my mom on our normal route and I was late meeting up with them so I only walked a mile with them and a mile on my own. But it felt really nice to have half my family out doing something active together.
My family has never had a problem being active. All of us kids (there are four of us) played sports in middle school and high school, most of us played two. Even though I was obese I played varsity tennis my freshman year and recreation softball throughout high school. My brothers all played baseball or ran track or something of the sort. We were all pretty active, but active in sports and activities that didn’t do much to bring us together.
That is a far cry from our childhood where activity and fitness was the norm for each of us AND we all did it together. I remember we played baseball and football all the time with the neighborhood kids. The four of us basically made up a team on our own and if we couldn’t play then it didn’t happen. And we rode bikes together, played outside together, went swimming together, and so on. We did a lot of active things together but as we got older that stopped as we all went our individual ways and though we were still active (or less so at times) we did things with our peers instead of each other.
I realized today that I miss being active with my brother. I miss being active with my family and I enjoy it even more now that I’m a bit older (don’t laugh at me calling 23 “older”). I appreciate the fact that today Ronald my mom and I walked together. We had time together and got a workout in! It wasn’t anything extreme but walking a few miles together today was a nice reminder of how my family used to do more active things with each other.
Fitness with your family members is something I haven’t really considered much before because I haven’t been around my family with school and moving a lot and all. But after today I realize how great it is for families to exercise and be healthy together. I know that when I have my own family that is something I want.
How about you guys? Do you exercise or do active things like take walks with your family? Or are you all getting your fitness in on your own and missing out on family fitness time?
We got a rescue dog this last spring from the humane society so I started walking him hardcore this fall when I decided to change my lifestyle. A few of the times I’ve gotten the kids and husband to join me but mostly I prefer to do it by myself for the “me” time. :) Now that the snow is everywhere we’re going to try to take the kids sledding a bit more. We’ve also hit the bowling alley too. So keeping the family active is a definite priority.
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I exercise with my family all the time. The first time I did C25K Tony (my bf) did it with me. He also exercises with me 2-3 times a week. Same with my mother, she will come and do Tae bo or something with me.
I will usually do the Tae Bo Kicks (kids Tae-bo) with my son and step-son. I love having my whole family participate in getting heatthy and exercising!
My family is very unfit. My mother has some medical problems and has a hard time walking too long, which then in turn snowballs upon itself to make her gain weight and have more trouble with the same problems she already had. She has tried going to the gym with my encouragement but ended up hurting herself. My father, sister and brother in law are just lazy and don’t want to work out at all. I live on the other side of the country from them so I can’t exercise with them, and even when I did live closer, they didn’t want to (and for a long time, before I started working out, neither did i!). I did used to play catch and badmitten once in a while when I was younger with them. My brother moved to CA (LA) the same time around as I did, and he has been much healthier with eating and exercising every once in a while. CA is a good influence that way, the cities anyway. We haven’t exercised together though either. I don’t even exercise with my friends, except for kickbox or lift classes…I’m more of a loner exerciser :) I really do wish my family would be more healthy. At least my mother cooks prettty healthy and took a nutrition class so that she and my father could be even more healthy. Yay her!
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Very nice post & so glad you have family to walk with!!! My parents are gone but as an adult, I did my own thing plus we all had such different schedules as all of is worked. BUT, we did have a lot of family get togethers & that was so nice & boy do I miss them!
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You know, for most of my “adult” life (I’m also 23, so it hasn’t been very long ;)) I haven’t really enjoyed exercising. Lately, though, my husband and I have been taking daily walks with our dogs as a way to do something together. You don’t realize how much of your time is taken away by the television and the internet until you actually get outside and do something in the world. So while I’m not very active yet, I have high hopes to be… and maybe I’ll drag my husband along with me :)
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Wow, Mary, that’s fantastic! Maybe this will carry over into eating healthy together? (Vision or hallucination, you decide. *G*)
Wasn’t it an awesome day to be outside?
Doubt it regarding healthy food. Maybe one day. We try, but it never happens.
It was a freaking gorgeous day!!
Family walks are some of our best quality time. Good excuse to catch up and get the heart rate up
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I get quite a bit of exercise beating up the guys that try to date my daughters.
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I love going out for walks with my family! We used to be big into hiking, canoeing, and cross country skiing when I was younger. We don’t do those things much these days, but it’s nice when we get together to go for a walk or to go skating on the river.
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I do with my family but was raised in a stereotypical jewish fam who valued brains over brawn.
we were pretty sedentary BUT we all played musical instruments and read a crapload :)
Im striving to create a balance of all that in my own family.
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I think balance should be the goal. No one wants to be all brains or all brawn. Well, most people don’t.
My family is pretty active. When I visit my parents in Tennessee we go for hikes and bike rides. And at home, my brother and his family and I have been doing some fun runs and boat races together. It’s nice when family outings don’t center around food!
That is so awesome getting your family involved. I am trying the same here…some works some does not…:)
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Great job reconnecting with your family over a walk!
One of my goals is to find things for us to do as a family. Once my 2 year old can walk further…I intend for us to hike and I want them to learn to ski.
Have a great day!
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We are three girls in the family and while we love gorging on sumptuous food together, we also love taking walks and jogging around the neighborhood. It’s our way of catching up with each other’s lives.
– Kaith
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I love working out with my family. We always have fun together. I wish my mom lived in the same town because she is awesome at inspiring me not to mention we laugh alot!
My family hardly does any fitness related things together. I guess my goals are different from my mother’s – her daily exercise consists of going on the elliptical for an hour.
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Awww you should go on more walks with your mom!
I know I’m a bit late to the party, but I hated doing anything exercise related with my Mum. She was always showing off as to how much she could do and how whatever i was doing was inadequate. The only exercise related activity I enjoy doing is playing squash with my Dad and brother though that rarely happens now. I’ve turned exercise into *my* time, and I don’t want my family ruining it for me.
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I spent the weekend playing the Wii Fit Plus and bowling with my sisters. We bonded over these active activities. It was nice.
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