A to Z Family Workout

This A to Z Family Workout does not require any equipment and is perfect for the family who wants to move and play together. Thank you to Academy Sports + Outdoors for sponsoring this post! 

I am so excited to share today’s blog post with you! I actually think this is the most excited I’ve EVER been to share a workout on the blog! Grab your kiddos for this one because today I am sharing my first-ever family-friendly workout with you guys!

It’s a workout I created for our family to do together one Sunday afternoon and our whole crew loved it. Chase still asks to play the “Alphabet Exercise Game” and I’m taking that as a good sign since fitness for kids should be F-U-N! Also, note that Chase referred to this workout as a “game” which is exactly the way I think kids should feel about this activity. It’s all about moving our bodies, feeling great and having a good time together.

Since Chase is 100 percent obsessed with Letterland at school and knows his letters, I made this family workout alphabet-themed so he could be involved in selecting the exercises we all did together. I assigned one bodyweight exercise to each letter of the alphabet and it was Chase’s job to yell out a letter of the alphabet before I read off the exercise to our family and did a quick demo for the boys. Then we all did the exercise together as a family before Chase yelled out another letter and we moved onto the next new exercise.

A few important notes: This workout should be FUN and I selected exercises I already knew Chase could do that Ryder could happily imitate. No, of course Ryder was not doing a backwards crab walk yet at 20 months old but he got the biggest kick out of trying! If the exercises I noted in our family’s A to Z workout would not work well for you and your children, swap them out for exercises your kids love. Or, better yet, have them brainstorm their own movements to add to your list!

Some more ways to make this workout fun:

• Begin by spelling out your child’s name with letters
• For multiple siblings, alternate who gets to choose the next letter
• Let your child yell out the number of reps for your family to complete for each exercise
• Bring a Bluetooth speaker and play some of their favorite energetic songs during the workout
• Pause the workout for “dance breaks” after every five letters

Oh and here’s a tip that’s probably obvious to the parents out there but still worth mentioning. When I described the exercises to the boys, rather than referring to some of the exercises by their technical name like “alternating front kicks” or “crossbody punches,” I told the boys they were “ninja kicks” or “superhero punches” and let’s just say the facial expressions that ensued after Chase heard the word “ninja” or “superhero” before an exercise demo cracked us up!

He took those particular exercises very seriously.

As for outfitting our family for fitness, Academy Sports + Outdoors came through for our gang big time! Academy is new to our area but it is clearly making a splash because that store has ev-ery-thing. I was truly shocked when I went in for my first visit to Academy because it was stocked with everything from sneakers, workout apparel and fitness equipment to coolers, grills, sporting goods, backyard games and more. I only wish I would’ve discovered this place before the holidays because it’s a gem!

Here’s a roundup of the apparel, shoes and accessories I grabbed for our foursome from Academy that we wore for our family workout:

Julie: 

• Nike Varsity Fleece Sweatshirt: At $25 this is a steal and so, so comfy! Since I basically live in sweatshirts, leggings and joggers this time of year (#momlife), this cozy find has been in constant rotation since I nabbed it a couple of weeks ago. It’s available in more than 10 colors and is perfect for comfy days or for throwing on over a workout tank.
• Nike One 7/8 Training Tights: These are what I like to call “second skin” leggings. They’re flexible, breathable and comfortable with a wide waistband that keeps them in place.
• YETI 18-Ounce Water Bottle + Straw Cap: My water bottle hoarding ways continued when I found myself adding this Yeti water bottle (currently 25% off!) to my cart. I know and trust the YETI brand completely and love the way this water bottle keeps my water cold and fits into the cup holders in my car. I bought the straw converter top for with it and love it!

Ryan: 

• Nike Therma Fleece Joggers: Now that I have Ryan totally bought into the jogger trend, he’s all about it for comfortable, casual weekend wear. I knew he’d love these joggers and the thicker material makes them perfect for chilly weather this time of year. Plus, the $27.50 price point was great!
• Nike Training Top: This is a great winter-to-spring transition top with sweat-wicking material (a must for Ryan).
• Nike Run Swift Sneakers: Confession: The last running shoes Ryan bought I couldn’t help but poke a little fun at him for because the soles were so thick and just… um… Dad-like? Ha! Well, these sneakers are a much more attractive find and Ryan said they’ve been wonderful for his workouts and also running around town with our family.

Chase: 

• Nike Flex Runner Sneakers: Bless you, Academy, for carrying kid sneakers that have the ability to pull on with no need for help from Mom or Dad! Chase immediately loved the look of these shoes and I love the quality of the sneaker, breathable material (because our kids have seriously sweaty feet) and the fact that he can take them on and off with zero help. I have a pair of the same shoes in navy ordered for Ryder because we love them so much they should be arriving any day now!

Ryder: 

• YETI Jr. Water Bottle: I picked this water bottle up for Ryder to include in his Valentine’s Day gift basket because right now he’s always using Chase’s water bottles and we can all guess how that goes over when big brother sees his little brother sipping from his water bottle. Now Ryder has a stainless steel sweat-proof water bottle of his own, complete with a straw for easy sipping and a leak-resistant cap.

Thank you so much to Academy for the workout gear and for teaming up with me for this post!

Please let me know if you give this family workout a try with your kiddos and definitely let me know if you have any questions about any of the exercises I mentioned above. Also, I’d love to hear of any exercises you swapped in to customize this workout a bit to make it an even better fit for your little ones! And remember — when it comes to kids and fitness, it should be FUN so if this one clearly isn’t working for your family, running around at a playground is more than enough of a “workout” for toddlers and big kids!