If you are like most parents, you’re probably constantly wondering how your children are still going, and going, and going. Where do they get all their energy and how can we get just an ounce of it?

In a 2015 article, Statistics Canada states that regular exercise and limited sedentary time for children can improve cholesterol levels, blood pressure, body composition, bone density, cardiorespiratory and musculoskeletal fitness, academic achievement, and aspects of mental health such as self-esteem.

Keeping our kids active can be a challenge, so here are a few ideas to get the job done.

Have a Dance Party
Turn up those tunes and let your wild little dancers have a blast. Dancing is such a great form of exercise, so you can join in too! Try different renditions of this to keep everyone on their toes; freeze dance, slowing down the music and speeding it up, or look up new dance moves on YouTube and learn them altogether.

Book-Worm Charades
If your child is really into reading, then this might be a great way to get him or her to move. Pick a book and while reading, have your child act out the story. It will feel like they are playing, but really, they’re reading with the added benefit of movement!

Activity Dice
Using some paper and scotch tape, make a large cube and write a different action on each face; for example, hop like a bunny, gallop like a horse, twirl in circles, flap like a bird, waddle like a penguin, circle your arms, jump as high as you can, march like a soldier, crawl like a baby, tiptoe, or skip. Have your children take turns rolling the die to decide what movement everyone should do next.

If you want to make the game even more interesting while probably getting a few laughs, make a second die and have everyone do two actions at once. It will look and feel silly and keep everyone entertained while raising that heart rate!

Indoor Sports
If stormy skies or cold weather have you and the kids tempted to sit around and watch movies all day long, try one of the following versions of indoor sports to replace some screen time.

Volleyball; Using a piece of yarn or tape, create the top of the net between two chairs and use a balloon instead of a ball.

Hallway Soccer; Use masking or painter’s tape to mark the net on each end of a hallway and get playing with a small plastic ball. A similar set up can work for hockey. Be creative with what you use as hockey sticks and if you prefer not to scuff up your walls with a small ball, then try wrapping it in cellophane paper.

Paper Plate Skating; Pretend to skate by gliding on two paper plates. You can also use regular paper for this one.

Now that you’ve got plenty of ideas, push that coffee table out of the way and get those kids moving!