I just got back from vacation, visiting the Pacific North West, where my sister and her 25 kids live. Did I say 25? I meant 4. But is there really any difference? Not to me, and, probably not to her either. Speaking of fun times with kids, have you ever tried to take a fast walk with a two, five, and seven-year old? Turns out you can't travel at the pace you'd originally envisioned. Turns out that walking with little kids is less like walking and more like herding cats. Have you ever tried to get three or four cats to do the same thing at once? Turns out that walking with kids is more difficult than one (without kids) can imagine.
There are many reasons why walking with little ones is challenging, but the most basic is, they aren't at the same level of physical performance as you. They get tired. Then they get pokey with their little hands and feet. Then, in a team effort, they all manage to start crying at the same time. They also seem to manage to do it when you're at the farthest point from the house. It's awesome. Turns out exercise isn't always a stress-reducer. Well, maybe us exercising was relaxing for Mom, who got to stay home and take a nap.
So, where does the walking child's fatigue (I'm tiiiiired) come from? After all, we are beings that (at all ages) have always walked, for hundreds of thousands of years, multiple hours per day, with our very survival based on walking endurance. Simply explained, a child's fatigue is a result of poor training. Based on my own personal log book of thousands of miles walked, I can say that I have rarely seen a child on a walk beyond returning to the car from the restaurant. Oh, I've seen kids held and packed. I've seen them on skateboards and bikes. I also see kids WAY too old to be in strollers being pushed along while mom is watching her heart rate monitor. Law of Specificity indicates: If kids don't walk, then when they do walk, it's too hard. Seems like a pretty simple answer, but really, this is the basic principle of exercise science. Of course kids are playing on jungle gyms and participating in sports -- which is fine -- but they aren't walking. {Don't get me wrong, I see teenagers glumly walking around wishing their parents weren't so lame, but I'm really talking about kids aged two to twelve, with developing bodies.}
In the olden days (not like 200 years ago, but 20,000 years ago), walking was inherent to our biological culture. From a biomechanical perspective, it is clear we need to return to walking this kind of distance for the survival of our biology. We can start with a fraction of the distance. I can't say this enough: Doing other exercise does not replace walking, as your physiology depends on the very particular mechanical signals found in regular, well-aligned locomotion.
How do you get your kids walking?
1. Start walking yourself. (Uh-oh.)
2. Start walking with your kids. This is going to go a lot slower than your walk (trust me) but it's important to walk as a family at their pace. Discuss that you will be walking "because walking is the most important form of exercise." Let them help plan the route you take. Pick a short distance and make that a habit (i.e. let's walk to the store or to the creek), so they don't feel the walk will go on indefinitely. Kids love things that seem to go on forever without end.
3. Understand that your kids need to develop the motor programming, strength, and endurance to walk with you. Develop your walking distances accordingly, increasing them no more than 10% per week.
4. You probably need to carve more time out for health. If you only have 45-minutes allotted for walking, realize that this is inadequate time for everyone (you and your kids) to get what they need biologically. Consider replacing a planned activity with Vitamin D.W. (Daily Walk). This walk is more important than just about anything...trust me.
One more thing when it comes to kids and walking. They don't like walking because it's booriiiing. But guess what? Parents probably think it's boring too, which is why music and classes and gyms and special outfits exist. I once heard "If you're bored, you're boring." Ouch! But, it's kind of true. There's nothing boring about your body, in dynamic motion, with it's 200 bones, 230 joints, 600 muscles all alive with neurological connection to your brain with each step. Nothing boring about the planet you're walking on and the bugs, animals, and people you share it with. Develop a daily appreciation for your freedom to walk, and then pass it on.
Many people come to me as adults in despair, wishing that they had had one iota of health presented to them as children. In overzealous response, many of us are replacing our lack of natural movement with fitness, which can take care of one issue but creates others. Walking with your kids is free. No classes, special camps, or equipment required. No more excuses. Kids need more than "playing all day." They need to be able to walk quite a distance. Start your family training today. Their bones and brains will thank you!