Fun with fitness | Early Years Alliance Family Corner

Animal yoga

If your little one sometimes needs to slow down, unwind and feel calmer, why not try some ‘Animal Yoga?’

Butterfly Pose: Encourage your little one to sit with the soles of their feet together, so the legs look like butterfly wings.

Mouse Pose: Kneel with forehead on the floor.

Snail Pose: Just like mouse pose, but the arms are straight out on the floor, above the head.

Sea Lion: Lay on the tummy and use the arms to push the body up off the floor.

Barefoot fun

Here are some great ideas that will help to develop and strengthen your little one’s feet, ankles and lower legs.

First, why not try ‘Toe Tug-of-War’? All you need to do is sit on the floor, facing your little one with legs outstretched. Then, place a towel, t-shirt or piece of fabric between you both and encourage your little one to curl their toes around it. Finally, using only your toes to hold your end, pull and tug until one of you lets go.

The ‘Tootsie Challenge’ is fun too! Encourage your little one to collect some hard and soft objects, not too big or heavy as they are going to be picking them up with their toes. Then, spread them on the ground next to an empty box. Finally, the two of you and any other family members pick up and drop as many of the objects as they can into the box using only their toes.

Sock it to me!

This is a great way to keep fit at home and a great way of strengthening your little one’s core muscles! 

Encourage your little one to lie down with their legs straight out in front of them on the floor.

Place a soft toy or ball of socks between their feet.  

Then slowly, carefully keeping their legs straight, encourage your little one to raise their legs up and over passing the toy or socks to your hands.  

Can they repeat it, 5, 10, 20 times? Phew! Hard work! 

See how it’s done…

Spell your name workout

Why not try this great idea from 730SageStreet?

It’s such a fun way to get your little one moving and physically fit.

All you need to do is choose the letters from your little one’s name and go for it!

Print out the sheet

Bingo exercise

Ready to try a game of ‘Give Me 5 Bingo’?

All you need is a dice and sight of the bingo exercise chart, although no dice is no problem.

Just put 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 dots on pieces of paper, jumble them up and then lay them in a line, numbers turned over.

Encourage your little one to roll the dice or turn over one of the pieces of paper.

Then match the dots to the chart, choose an exercise to do and do it five times.

Take it in turns, and if you roll a six you get to roll again!

With thanks to the Jufsanne website for the inspiration.

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