Kids need designated time each day to get out their wiggles and bump their heartbeats up a notch. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), exercises for kids reduces the risk of depression, improves aerobic fitness, muscular fitness and bone health, improves attention and boosts some measures of academic performance (with school physical activity programs). That’s a lot of awesome stuff!
Whether the weather is sunny, rainy or something in between, there are a zillion ways to keep kids healthy and entertained. Check out our list of exercises for kids ages 5 to 12 that work in any type of weather.
What are the official guidelines about exercise for kids?
SHAPE America, the Society of Health and Physical Educators, shares the following physical activity guidelines for 5- to 12-year-olds:
- Guideline 1: “Children should accumulate at least 60 minutes, and up to several hours, of age-appropriate physical activity on all, or most days of the week. This daily accumulation should include moderate and vigorous physical activity with the majority of the time being spent in activity that is intermittent in nature.”
- Guideline 2: “Children should participate in several bouts of physical activity lasting 15 minutes or more each day.”
- Guideline 3: “Children should participate each day in a variety of age-appropriate physical activities designed to achieve optimal health, wellness, fitness, and performance benefits.”
- Guideline 4: “Extended periods (periods of two hours or more) of inactivity are discouraged for children, especially during the daytime hours.”
What are the different types of kid exercises?
The CDC recommends that children and adolescents include three types of physical activity each week, including a mix of:
- Aerobic activities. Try jump rope, dancing, martial arts or running in place.
- Muscle-strengthening activities. Try pushups, squats, resistance exercises using body weight or resistance bands or some forms of yoga.
- Bone-strengthening activities. Try hopping, skipping or jumping games or exercises.
Try these fun exercises for kids ages 5 to 12
In addition to outdoor sports like soccer and basketball, experts recommend getting plenty of indoor exercise for kids in this age group. “They can also do basic calisthenics, such as pushups, curl-ups, running in place, mountain climbers and burpees,” says Len Saunders, best-selling author, motivational speaker and exercise physiologist. Here are a few basic exercises to consider.
1. Running (a.k.a. playing tag)
Most kids do it a zillion times a day naturally — like, say, to the car (why?) — but getting a good solid chunk of run time in each day comes with a number of physical benefits, including increasing heart, lung, bone and muscle health, as well as mental/emotional benefits, such as a reduction in stress and an increase in dopamine.
Great ways to get kids running are tag, freeze tag, red light/green light and races.
2. Windmills
The above video has a number of simple kid exercises, but the first move — the windmill — is a great way for kids to get their blood flowing, while working on their gross motor skills, as they need to bring their hand to their opposite leg in a twisted folding motion.
This exercise for kids is perfect for days you’re stuck indoors and don’t know how to help get the wiggles out.
3. Jumping Jacks
Jumping, in general, is a good way for kids to move and get their heart rate up and there are a number of different jumps they can do — jumping jacks, of course, are the most well-known, though.
To do, simply stand with legs apart and arms outstretched towards the ceiling or sky; and you bring your legs together and arms down, jump!
4. Planks
Let’s be honest, kids love to turn everything into a game, so why not challenge them to a plank contest, where you see who can stay in their plank the longest? (Winner gets bragging rights.)
To do a plank, come into a push-up position, but come down to your forearms and hold!
5. Olympic Hot Spot Challenge
Clear out some space and create “hot spot” stations with different activities for fun and variety. The idea is to get the children moving from one station to the next every 30-45 seconds. Here are some station ideas:
- Pushups (against the wall, on their knees or full pushups).
- Situps.
- Jump rope.
- Step-ups (either with a “step” or up and down the stairs).
- Circle jumps (small rings or hula hoops or tape marks).
- Jumping jacks.
- Squats.
- Balance on one leg.
- Ball toss (with a partner).
6. Advanced Olympic Hot Spot Challenge
To make the above more challenging, you can:
- Increase time at each hot spot, so 30, 45, 60 seconds.
- Increase number of times you do the complete hot spot circuit, so 2, 3, 4 or 5 times.
- Mix up the hot spots or do them in a different order.
- Create new hot spot activities of your own.
- Add new hot spot props like soup can weights.
The bottom line
There are so many benefits to establishing exercise as a regular part of kids’ daily activities, and there’s no shortage of kid exercises that can get children moving. Whether it’s simple aerobic moves or a fun and and engaging physical game, exercise is a great way to liven up any afternoon.
