Street Parking Kids
These SP Kids resources are for all parents, family members, caregivers and even teachers to support the youth in your life with tools to help them take control of their fitness and health. Maybe you have kids who have been joining you in the garage and you need a few more creative ideas on how to make the most of your time together. Or perhaps you have kids in your life you know would benefit from the SP program and philosophy on fitness and healthy lifestyle. No matter what, here are some tips and guidance on how the SP program can be utilized for practically any age!
Our goal is to support all of our Street Parking Kids toward a healthy lifestyle that includes different ways of incorporating movement, nutrition and even connection with self and others as daily activities. These activities hopefully will even inspire you to come up with some of your own activities and routines that promote and encourage fitness, health and wellness together.
Much thanks to contributions from SP members Kristyn Samaras and Erin Long for additional ideas to this page!
The main areas of focus are:
Fitness (MOVEMENT)
Nutrition (FUEL)
Mindset (WELLNESS)
You’ll see daily/weekly ideas and tips for each of these areas that can be adapted and adopted by anyone, but most likely best suited for kids and youth at least 5 years old and up.
Also included are 12 weeks of “SP KIDS Weekly Activities” that can be used as an activity guide anytime of year, even if they aren’t followed consecutively. You’ll see a mix of activities that encourage fitness, movement, play, nutrition, health and more. And yes, there are even activities that are creative or ‘service’ minded -- as those too can help encourage healthy habits for managing or combating stress (and therefore improving overall wellness) which is helpful at any age!
CONSISTENCY
Just like every part of the SP program, we encourage you to encourage your SP Kids with the foundation of building consistency in their habits.
Feel free to use the SP Coloring Sheet with kids to help support their consistent habits. Each block on the coloring sheet represents 15 minutes of fitness.
Tag #streetparkingkids in a social media post when you fill up your sheet for the chance to earn special giveaways and a coupon to the SP Shop! We have seen members incorporating some similar “Consistency rewards” much like Street Parking members earn their 75 workout hoodie and 365 Club shirts, so feel free to get creative with what tracking and following through with consistency represents in your household!
MAKE A PLAN, SET SOME GOALS!
We encourage you and your SP Kids to come up with a plan or goals for your weekly activities. Whether they are weekly, or more open ended with a time frame (like 4-6 weeks to accomplish your goals) -- make it work for you!
Example:
Complete ___ Street Parking workouts
Complete ___ Street Parking Maintenance sessions
Help prepare ___ meals from Members Only RECIPES
REAL TALK
We know everyone is adjusting a lot this year, so it's ok if this all sounds ideal yet maybe feels overwhelming at times. It may not be easy, but keep that #morethannothing mindset in place as best you can!
Maybe your workouts was "me time" and now it has become "us time" and you're having to adapt expectations, especially if you have also had to adjust to working from home. Or maybe your kids don't always cooperate with the plans... or each other.
Remember: you're not alone in this and the Facebook community is always there to support you and your family and keep it real together. We will keep checking in with ideas, support and tips for Street Parking members of all ages!
MOVE
Check out these Street Parking workouts/programs as great places to start for involving your kids, tweens and teens in daily fitness and movement:
Bodyweight only workouts (all ages) - tip: download the PDF from the BODYWEIGHT section and have kiddos pick 3 workouts each week that they want to get done
Daily SHIFT workouts (all ages)
Bro Sessions team workouts (great for ‘tweens & teens)
Sandbag workouts (great for ‘tweens and teens, scaled/modified appropriately)
Street Parking Maintenance sessions (all ages)
Street Parking Warm Ups
TIPS FOR ADAPTING FAMILY WORKOUT TIME:
Kids can do bodyweight version of movements
TIPS: easy subs for common movements
Instead of pull ups: sit ups
Instead of box jumps: jumping jacks, object jump overs
Instead of step ups: lunges, air squats
Instead of jump rope: hopovers (use a small toy or even draw a chalk line on the ground if needed)
Instead of push presses: push ups
Sub movements to have the kids do them for time instead of performing a certain number of repetitions.
Example -- instead of 15 air squats, do 30 seconds of air squats
Kids can shadow and switch movements when adults do during the workout.
Example -- if a workout has 30 dumbbell squats, 30 push ups, 30 box jumps: your SP Kids can do air squats until adult is done with squats, push ups (or burpees) until adult is done with push ups, and jump overs (or jumping jacks) until adult is done with box jumps.
Give kids a goal number of rounds, instead of making a workout for time.
OTHER ACTIVITIES:
“Deck of Cards” - use a deck of cards to make your own workout! You’ll need to choose 4 movements (we recommend bodyweight movements like push ups, air squats, mountain climbers, lunges, sit ups, etc.) before you begin. Every suit represents a different exercise and the card value equals the number of reps. (You can make face cards 11, 12, 13, & 14 or a set number like 15.) Shuffle the deck, draw a card and perform the designated movement with the equal number of reps! Have fun working your way through the deck!
NUTRITION & FUEL
Pick a new nutrition/fuel activity to try each week to help guide healthy habits when it comes to nutrition and fueling their growing body!
Use the SP Nutrition Food Chart to pick one new food to try from the CARB list
Use the SP Nutrition Food Chart to pick one new food to try from the VEGETABLE list
Use the SP Nutrition Food Chart to pick one new food to try from the PROTEIN list
Use the SP Nutrition Food Chart to pick one new food to try from the FAT list
Fill up a shaker bottle with water and drink at least ONE full water bottle during the day
Pick one treat that you have regularly (ex: ice cream, cookies, chips, soda, candy) and see if you can go 7 straight days/one week WITHOUT it!
Pick a recipe from the Members Only website and help plan a meal around it
Encourage your SP Kid come up with their own meal using the foods from the food chart
MINDSET
These mindset/journaling/mindfulness activities can be incorporated daily or pick one new activity to do each week. if you have a special notebook or journal, use it to write down your thoughts.
5 minutes reflecting on something you like about yourself. Try to think of at least three.
5 minutes reflecting on what you are grateful for. Try to think of at least three.
5 minutes reflecting on what makes you feel strong.
5 minutes reflecting on a time you felt brave.
5 minutes reflecting on something you are proud of.
5 minutes reflecting on someone in your life you love and at least 3 reasons why you love them.
5 minutes reflecting on what you learned from a mistake you made.
5 minutes practicing deep breathing. You can even touch your belly or chest as you breathe in and out!
5 minutes practicing mindfulness: sitting still, using all your senses to pay attention to what you feel, hear, smell and can see around you.
5 minutes reflecting on and writing down goals or dreams.
Daily “Pows and Wows” - at the end of the day, acknowledge one ‘pow’ and one ‘wow’ from that day. A pow is something that happened that was disappointing, frustrating, annoying, or hard. A wow is something that happened that was positive, exciting, made you happy, fun, or that you’re grateful for. It’s a mental exercise that helps teach our thoughts and feelings that the good things and the hard things in life can co-exist.
1. Play Hide and Seek, Do a chore the adult(s) in your home usually does for a week, Run/walk/jog a mile (record your time, so you can retest it another week)
2. Set up a scavenger hunt, Wash the car, Climb a tree
3. Set up an obstacle course for your siblings (or parents), Take a loved one (or a pet) for a walk, Try a new vegetable*.
4. Create and perform a skit for an audience (siblings, parents, friends), Do a Street Parking Maintenance session with your family or friends, Learn how to do your own laundry (or, if you already know - help wash, dry, fold and put one full load away!)
5. Build a fort (inside or outside), Do 10 Burpees everyday for three days in a row, Try a new fruit (ever eaten mango or kiwi? Papaya or dragon fruit?)
6. Try a new activity (SP Maintenance, yoga, croquet, roller skating), Offer to help with dishes after dinner every night for a week, Ask your parent/caregiver what carbohydrates are and try a new one*
7. Make a homemade slip-and-slide, Take your neighbor’s pet for a walk, Drink a glass of water with every meal for three days in a row
8. Play on a playground at a local park, Find a place to go swimming, Make your bed everyday for a week
9. Set up and play in a water sprinkler, Offer to do a chore for your neighbor (maybe water their flowers or sweep their driveway), Ask your Mom (or Dad) what fat is and try a new one
10. Have a water balloon fight (make sure you clean up afterwards), Hike at a nearby park and document your day with pictures, Ask your parent/guardian what protein is and try a new one*
11. Play tag (or Simon Says or Red Rover, have you ever played TV tag?), Now that you have learned about fat, carbohydrates, and protein, help plan and create a meal for your family that has those three macronutrients, Run a mile (retest your time from week 1, did you improve?)
12. Try a new activity (different from the first one, you could really get creative here and try something new as a family, like indoor rock climbing or paddleboarding), Make lunch for yourself and one other person using the three macronutrients Carbs/Proteins/Fats.
*Use the SP Nutrition Food Chart to choose food from each list!
REFLECT: What new practice—habit—chore could you incorporate into your daily routine?