Exploring Ways To Keep Up With Your Energetic Kids
To say that kids have energy might be the understatement of the century. Thinking in physiological terms, it's simply a matter of oxygen. Kids breathe better and they take in more oxygen, which provides them with more energy. Now that you know it's not just to spite you, the question becomes how to keep up with them. There are lots of strategies that you can use to help you in this pursuit.
- Set the Parameters
When it comes to reeling in errant energy, boundaries are your best friend. Kids need them and they look for them, even if it doesn't feel that way. When you want to achieve calm, even during kinesthetic activities, set those parameters and be prepared to stop when necessary to hold your kids to them and explain why they're important.
This process of establishing boundaries that kids must honor will teach them how to follow directions, which is a foundational skill that's extremely important for their future success. Whether they need help making the right decisions or time-outs when they don't, an important consideration is that you are in control. Keeping control insists that you are not keeping up with your kids, but rather, they are learning how to respect you and themselves.
- Engage in Breathing Exercises
As mentioned, breathing properly equals better energy. Spend some time each day practicing breathing and stretching. Engaging with your body in this way will prepare your body and mind for busy days, promoting physical and mental flexibility.
Breathing exercises promote blood flow and increase oxygenation, which leads to more energy. It also slows your heart rate and helps to control the release of stress hormones. Teaching your kids how to engage in breathing and stretching exercises is also a good way to help them understand the difference between calm bodies and brains versus busy bodies and brains.
- Pursue a Healthy Diet
Eating healthy foods and keeping hydrated will boost your energy. You might ask, what is Thrive? It is a nutritional supplement that can also increase your energy and help you to keep up with your kids. Even without supplements, snacking on things like raw fruits, vegetables and nuts between sensible meals will help you to lose weight and feel fit.
When ingested in the proper ratios and portions, the carbohydrates, proteins, vitamins and minerals in the foods that you eat provide you with the fuel that you need to exercise and keep your body energized.
- Help Them to Recognize Focus
Teaching your kids the power of focus can help to tame their wilder, out-of-control side. Learning a skill like this is achievable in sports and games. Rather than just running, kicking and screaming, preach the virtues of aiming, measuring and executing.
Learning focus techniques is another bold juxtaposition against big behavior, though it takes some effort by you. When a child looks at a giant field, it doesn't take much for them to start sprinting through it, without clear purpose or whipping a frisbee into the wind. The next time you arrive at that field, set up a target for the frisbee and create a challenge, like trying to hit that target in so many shots.
- Provide Outlets for Their Energy
Kids have a limited understanding of the world's offerings and so they rely on you to help them. Rather than telling them to go out and play until dinner, give them something to do. Switch it up between kinesthetic activities and quieter ones, like painting or drawing.
Keeping up with your kids is important to your self-esteem and to your relationships. Making alterations to your diet and applying breathing techniques are just two of the ways that you can prepare for daily life with energetic kids. The other good news is that engaging with them will do its own part to help you feel young and ful of energy.
