Here in New England, fall is a much-anticipated time of year… and of all the seasons, it’s definitely the one my family enjoys the most. With the humidity gone, there are a few crisp months that outdoor activities are a daily pleasure. After-school hours are spent in the backyard. Friday nights are spent watching our high school football team. Saturdays are spent on the soccer field. My family loves to hike and the dogs revel in the longer, cooler walks we take. We go apple picking and pumpkin picking. We just made delicious apple cinnamon waffles, YUM!
To me, nothing says fall fun (and fitness) like raking leaves… and then bounding straight into them! My favorite fall memory as a child was seeing who in my family could rake the biggest leaf pile. Or who had the softest pile to jump into, or which house on the block had the biggest pile in their yard. We loved to see if the pile would be taller than us if we combined our leaves with the neighbors. We’d see who could earn the most nickels in one-weekend raking. We’d play hide-and-go-seek… with every pile of leaves in the neighborhood as fair play! Fall leaves… such a simple phenomenon that lends to so much!
So, what’s that got to do with fitness? Well, a 150-pound person can burn 150 calories raking leaves for one hour. It’s a great core workout and can be quality time for the whole family. Growing up, my family would often spend a day raking and carving a pumpkin. We’d put the pumpkin out on the picnic table and I would run back and forth from pile to pumpkin. Can’t get more fall than that! Even a toddler loves a broom and a rake. Raking is a great way for your family to work as a family team towards a goal that everyone can participate in and benefit from! It’s also great for kids to see that work can be interchangeable with exercise and fun… and it can all happen in your own front yard!
Fall weather offers an endless activity for families. From raking to apple picking to making Halloween costumes. I recently read to my daughter Red Leaf, Yellow Leaf by Lois Ehlert. We then colored a paper bag red and yellow for our leaf treasure hunt we will go on tomorrow. We spent some quality time collecting leaves together and now we can count them, sort them, and trace them. My daughter asked me if she could hide the leaves in the house and send me on a red and yellow treasure hunt when we get home. Game on!
Enjoy and remember…. FALL + FITNESS = FAMILY FUN!
*Norah Benincasa is the owner of Pedal and Pose Fitness Studio in Concord, MA. She is a certified personal trainer, spin instructor, TRX trainer, Body Pump trainer, more...and mom of five! Norah holds a master's degree in social work and is an expert in all things family fitness!
