Family Fun and Fitness
Teaching Your Teens the Buddy System
If you have teenagers, you probably know how resistant they can be to spending time with the family. More often than not, they'd probably choose hanging out with their friends over exercising with you. That may seem like an obstacle to your mission, but you can make it work to your advantage.

Rather than hounding your teens to be active instead of hanging out with friends, encourage them to be active while they're hanging out with friends. If exercise becomes a social activity, it's a lot more likely that your kids will stick with it. Encourage them to find walking buddies or biking partners — other kids they can rely on for company, support, and encouragement. Not only can your kids and their fitness buddies have fun and celebrate their successes together, but they can also keep each other on track when motivation lags.

Your job is to make it easy for partnerships to get going. Stock up on exercise DVDs and have your teens invite some pals over for exercise and healthy snacks. Offer to drive them to the pool or track if necessary, or encourage them to take dance or martial arts classes together. It won't be long before you and your teens start seeing the benefits of the buddy system.

Learn more strategies for getting your teens to exercise!