Let's make fitness fun for both you and the next generation.

I had a great time in New York last week!  I was visiting my family and I enjoyed the time spent with my niece and nephew.  I fit in time for some Pilates Yoga and strength training in this workout. Big shout out to all the #fitmoms out there (like my sister Danielle) that work to balance mom hood and workouts and eating right!

I had the opportunity to film the workouts I did with my 2 year old niece Dylan.  She was all giggles and smiles.  Thankfully, she is just a ham for the camera. For the record, she is 25 pounds.  Ab exercises and inversions were big hits!

Did you know the benefits of including kids (whether they are yours or not) in your at home workouts?

• Great opportunity to bond with your kids.  Being that I live over 2500 miles away this is extremely important, and I’ll be sure to FaceTime often:)
• You’ll get the strength training benefits of working with solid weight loads- the bigger they get they harder you will work!
• They get so much:
• Increasing motor skills and development.
• Strength #gainz
• Improvements in balance
• An opportunity to coordinate movements
• Language skills and vocabulary to include body parts and movements
• Improves your mood and teaches her correlate movement and joy!  She was jumping for joy and grinning the entire time.    

Here are some tips to get you started:

• Safety first!  Toddlers have flexible muscles but neck and skull injuries should be considered.  DO NOT DROP KIDS AT ALL but especially on their heads.  You will see in the video, she flips herself onto her own head; while she is on a mat, which is on top of dirt.  That is different from me forcing her into a pose or dropping her if I did not have a good grip on her limbs.
• Be careful about child’s weight ESPECIALLY when lifting her overhead!
• Soft surfaces please, to protect their skin and bones during the workouts.  
• Using a mat keeps her from excessive dirt and less laundry for you.
• Every kid is different.  Dylan loved handstands and she enjoyed flips.  I really let her “lead” the workout to keep her engaged and happy.  
• Listen to their cues- watch her body language and facial expressions for guidance.
• Watch your form, it can really easy to tweak your back.  Remember basic weight lifting and pilates principles.  Abdominals drawn in, shoulders dropping down and knees over toes please.

I had a great time and so did Dylan creating this video:

Please feel free to share this article to any moms, dads, aunts, uncles, or cousins with kids.  Please be sure to subscribe to my YouTube channel, it really helps me out:)