Ok, ok, I know everyone says that summers as a kid hold the best memories of their life, but I SERIOUSLY had the best summers that any kid could ask for! I grew up on a farm of thousands of acres beside more farms with thousands of more acres. My friends and I were free spirits with nothing to lose. Needless to say, we really did have the time of our lives! Each summer holds a special place in my heart. When I was really young I remember riding along on the tractor, moving irrigation pipe, working in the shop, waking up early and going to be late. In my later elementary school years the community pool was life! As high school came so did more responsibility and activity! I graduated to manual labor on the farm and running around with my friends!

All of my summers had 2 major things in common: activity and fun (which as an adult translates into exercise and fun)! We all know that we should exercise but we need to understand why we should exercise. There are the obvious benefits like weight loss and increase energy and stamina, but exercise is much more than the obvious. It’s not so much about the health benefits when you do exercise, but more about what happens when you don’t exercise. A lack of oxygen and movement can lead to some major disease processes like diabetes, heart disease, cancer, depression, and more.

My parents definitely led by example. I always saw them working hard and that’s absolutely paid off in my life. As a kid, exercise was just considered fun. As an adult, exercise can still be fun if we come at it from the eyes of a child. You don’t need to spend an hour on the treadmill and another hour lifting weights. It’s summer, get outside. Instill into your kids at a young age that movement is important and it comes in a lot of options; hiking, swimming, rock climbing, playing at the park, running outside, biking, walks around the neighborhood, playing sports, the list goes on. Remember, your kids are watching so lead by example!