Buddy Up! Connect to a Child Through Exercise

Published: August 1, 2022

Even when you don’t think your kids are listening or watching you, they are. As a parent or caregiver, you play an important role in how they perceive exercise, nutrition, and body self-image.

When you have a positive perspective on healthy choices, like eating healthy foods and exercising as part of your self-care, kids are more likely to also have positive and healthy lifestyles.

One of the things we can do to improve their self-image and how they view exercise is to reinforce it as a healthy habit, good for your body and mental health — not to equate exercise with losing weight or “fitting into that dress.” We can have purposeful exercise — like the workouts I provide at Healthy Fit Kids (https://www.facebook.com/healthyfitkidsfun) or we can move our bodies by hiking in nature, playing sports, walking the dog, or having a dance party with our favorite music.

We can encourage our kids to have healthy habits by sharing these activities together. This workout is designed to be a buddy workout — so caregivers or parents can do it alongside their kids to instill positivity around exercise and create a connection through these partner exercises. Kids can also do these exercises with a sibling or friend — because it’s fun to work out with them too! The exercises selected can be done by people of all sizes and ages — and your partner doesn’t have to be your size to make the movement work. The video also demonstrates options for someone who is doing the exercise alone. The only equipment you need is a ball — any ball will work, but we used a pilates-style Bender Ball . Older children could even use a weighted medicine ball for extra challenge and a more challenging workout.

Let us know how you liked the workout — give it a thumbs up on YouTube and share it with your friends. You can subscribe to the Kella Price Fitness YouTube channel so you get notifications of all of our new videos: https://www.youtube.com/kellapricefitness.

We also have Free monthly challenges on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/healthyfitnesschallenge

and a Nutrition page: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1475500172766225