FIT Teens

What are you supposed to do if you’re stuck at home and the weather’s too bad to go outside?  It’s easy to spend most of the day sitting watching television, on the phone, or playing video games.  But you can be active!  You can work up a sweat and get your heart beating with activities in your house just like if you go outside or play basketball with friends.  Here are some good indoor activities:

• Dance!  Turn up the music (hide in your bedroom if you’d like) and dance!  You can get better exercise dancing than playing outside if you really get into the music.

• Turn on a workout DVD or video, or find the exercise channel on cable, and join in.

• Hula hoop or jump rope.  It depends on how much space you have, but you can even make friendly competitions out of them.

• Make up active games inside the house with the rest of your family.  For example, create relay races.

These are just a couple options of how to spend a day in the house that can be both active and fun!

Diana Dolinsky, MD, MPH is a pediatrician with the Healthy Lifestyles Program at Duke University. The program focuses on empowering kids and families with the skills and knowledge needed to live a life of healthy eating and active lifestyles.