cobbiemommy Posted March 15, 2011 Report Share Posted March 15, 2011 Ds, is supposed to be getting exercise every day especially in the form of walking. Yesterday, we made it one lap around the mall before he was really winded. Today, we walked to a small stream by our house so our Labrador could get in the water. My son is very motivated by rewards (aren't we all). Can any of you think of places to walk/exercise and what the reward or payoff might be for an 11 year old boy? He doesn't want to walk just because the doctor says he has to! I am not complaining, last year when we thought it was PANDAS, he went into full meltdown mode over going to the end of the driveway to get the paper. Just want to make it kind of fun and not such a struggle. Cobbie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laure Posted March 15, 2011 Report Share Posted March 15, 2011 We do a lot of rip sticking, so if your son likes toys like that, it is much more fun than walking. We also roller blade, which is fun, and bike. (Paved roads help with this, or side walks). Last year we biked with a kite in tow on windy days, which was pretty fun and challenging. We also walk to the ice cream store a lot. Swimming is also fun and good exercise but feels more like play. I would also try a trampoline, which is REALLY fun and surprisingly aerobic. You need to buy the nets and pads for the outside, but we have had one for 12 years, and it has been great fun the entire time, for adults too! The kids put balls on it and they pop like popcorn. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Suzan Posted March 16, 2011 Report Share Posted March 16, 2011 We have a mini trampoline which is not as fun as a trampoline but my kids love to jump on it. I was also thinking a jumprope. You could count to see how high he could go and would give him something to try to beat each time. We also have a treadmill and we taught our dog to walk on it. The kids like to get on it with the dog and walk. Without the dog, they would never step on it! Susan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pixiesmommy Posted March 16, 2011 Report Share Posted March 16, 2011 This is just something fun and silly to do on walks that I started with my 3 yr old but Pixie (10) thinks it's fun too... You can take a digital camera with you to make it more fun, but here is what we do... -Try to find shapes of all the letters of the alphabet but not actual letters on signs, etc- so a manhole would be an O, and a twisted vine might be an S, a crossed lamp post would be a T, etc. -You can do the same with numbers for a bigger challenge If you take pictures, you can then put them on the computer and play around with them to make words like "love" or "cool" whatever and then print them and make cards, etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mama2alex Posted March 16, 2011 Report Share Posted March 16, 2011 We have a big park near our house and sometimes on Saturday mornings we park on one side of it and walk through it to the Noah's Bagel's across the street on the opposite side. We meet lots of dogs on the way, so this is motivating along with the promise of a bagel half way through the walk. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lfran Posted March 16, 2011 Report Share Posted March 16, 2011 This is not walking, and may be too intense, but have you considered a sport that is not a team sport, so that whatever level he can do is okay? For instance, my two boys are in Tae Kwon Do, which they think is very cool, and in our particular program there is a lot of calisthenics and stretching as well as practicing kicks and punches. However, it is all done against the air, so no contact, and if you don't show up for a class or two, for whatever reason, you're not letting any teammates down, so it's a good sport for people who have ups and downs in their health and energy level. Ds, is supposed to be getting exercise every day especially in the form of walking. Yesterday, we made it one lap around the mall before he was really winded. Today, we walked to a small stream by our house so our Labrador could get in the water. My son is very motivated by rewards (aren't we all). Can any of you think of places to walk/exercise and what the reward or payoff might be for an 11 year old boy? He doesn't want to walk just because the doctor says he has to! I am not complaining, last year when we thought it was PANDAS, he went into full meltdown mode over going to the end of the driveway to get the paper. Just want to make it kind of fun and not such a struggle. Cobbie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tpotter Posted March 16, 2011 Report Share Posted March 16, 2011 What a great thread! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lfran Posted March 16, 2011 Report Share Posted March 16, 2011 Also wanted to add that in our program, most kids are able to advance to a new belt level every two months or so, so there is a lot of built-in motivation to keep at it -- and there are a LOT of belt levels. It's a good reward system! (Also, a lot of Tae Kwon Do studios have a good behavior program that focusses on behavior at school and home, and is part of the belt system -- it's amazing how more motivated my two became about chores, cooperation, and respect once they realized that it was part of their belt promotion program!) This is not walking, and may be too intense, but have you considered a sport that is not a team sport, so that whatever level he can do is okay? For instance, my two boys are in Tae Kwon Do, which they think is very cool, and in our particular program there is a lot of calisthenics and stretching as well as practicing kicks and punches. However, it is all done against the air, so no contact, and if you don't show up for a class or two, for whatever reason, you're not letting any teammates down, so it's a good sport for people who have ups and downs in their health and energy level. Ds, is supposed to be getting exercise every day especially in the form of walking. Yesterday, we made it one lap around the mall before he was really winded. Today, we walked to a small stream by our house so our Labrador could get in the water. My son is very motivated by rewards (aren't we all). Can any of you think of places to walk/exercise and what the reward or payoff might be for an 11 year old boy? He doesn't want to walk just because the doctor says he has to! I am not complaining, last year when we thought it was PANDAS, he went into full meltdown mode over going to the end of the driveway to get the paper. Just want to make it kind of fun and not such a struggle. Cobbie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GraceUnderPressure Posted March 17, 2011 Report Share Posted March 17, 2011 We just started TaeKwonDo this year & it has been absolutely therapeutic for our kids. It's not cheap, unfortunately, though we have been blessed to find a place that has amazing discounts for siblings. But DH said that if we end up having to choose financially, he would drop the vitamin supps before he would drop TKD at this point - it has been that good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PKM Posted March 17, 2011 Report Share Posted March 17, 2011 I don't know if you have heard about geocaching?? It is a fun thing to do while you are out walking (especially for boys). You can go find the caches in your area first, but once you have completed those, you can drive to other areas, go for walks, and find the caches in those areas. There is a lot of info about it on the internet - how to get started etc. It might be worth checking out, especially if he is supposed to be walking for exercise. PKM Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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