It’s winter in Chicago. It’s cold. There are snow days, winter breaks, and days when the kids will be sick. That’s a lot of time spent indoors and together with your family, even if you are the winter sports types. Why not make it a memorable and fun excuse to exercise together?

Here are a few ways you can keep moving while indoors this winter season:

• Play some video games together! But play the right ones. Playing a high-intensity game of DDR (Dance, Dance, Revolution) or some other dance game using a step pad can be a great way to get exercise if the cold weather is keeping you inside. If that isn’t your cup of tea, you can still get exercise by playing sports related motion games or an adventure game. There are a few for different consoles, and it’s a way to bond with your kids in a medium they are familiar with, while having fun and moving!

• Turn your living room into a dance party! Throw on a favorite cd, and take turns playing dj. See who can come up with the craziest moves, or the silliest. This does work with kids of any age. When I was a kid, my mother would also incorporate bubbles and props. This got my brothers and I out of any slump.

• Play some old-school games such as duck duck goose, tag, or pretend snow ball fight in the house using crumpled up pieces of paper. You can also play a game by keeping a balloon in the air, having a hula hoop contest, folding paper airplanes and flying them, ‘follow’ the leader’ with exercising and stretching, or making a flash card game with different exercises or dance moves on them. Some of this low-tech pretend play might not warrant excitement at first, but kids of any age will have fun.

• Clean! This is of course not the most popular kids’ activity, but putting some music on and cleaning the house is a good way to work up a sweat and entertain the kids for a while. It also teaches kids good life skills as well, and parents get a bonus of a clean house.

Being active no matter what the environment is, is easy and can be fun for kids of any age, just like chiropractic treatment at Seaman Chiropractic Center! A healthy kid is a happy kid, and to ensure that your children are healthy, we offer free spinal screens to children of all ages. Give our office a call today, at 773-545-2233!