Helping Kids Stay Active at Home

To protect families from the recent spike in COVID-19 cases across the country, many school districts are heading back to online learning, sports activities are being canceled, and recreation facilities are setting restrictions. While it may be the right move to keep the community-at-large safe, these restrictions limit physical activity and make children restless when cooped up indoors. But there is a simple way to mitigate this problem – exercise.

Youth sports and learning experts here at Skyhawks Sports Academy teamed up with our partner STEM Sports® to find fun ways to turn exercise into a fun activity to capture children’s interest and keep their bodies moving. One example is Playing Card Fitness, a fun activity that includes simple exercises that is enjoyable for the whole family and can be played indoors in any size room.

Skyhawks and STEM Sports® Playing Card Fitness: How to Play

Do not underestimate how fun and challenging a workout can be using a deck of cards. Playing Card Fitness is a great cardio-based, full-body routine that only requires a deck of cards and a few square feet of open space. To play, each participant picks a card, and depending on the suit and value on the card, everyone completes the exercise. Every suit represents a different exercise and the value on the card represents the rep count. Simple right? Now, let’s understand which suit means what exercise and how to assign values.

Numbers 2 - 9 = values (i.e. reps)

Face card = 11 reps

Ace = 12 reps

Hearts = pushups

Diamonds = jumping jacks

Clubs = sit-ups

Spades = squats

For example, if a participant picks a card that is 10 of hearts, all participants need to do 10 pushups. To make it a good workout session, have each participant pick one card each and complete the round, and then go for three rounds.

Bonus – Teach Children the Concepts of STEM

Along with the physical benefits of Playing Card Fitness, this activity can also be the catalyst to introduce STEM concepts to children. This activity is a perfect opportunity to introduce the concepts of heart rate, calorie burn, and calorie intake to older children. It is also a great way to keep children and families in the habit of taking time each day to keep their bodies healthy physically and mentally. And it’s fun! To learn more about the concepts of STEM-learning through sports and to register for Skyhawks Winter 2021 Programs, visit www.skyhawks.com.