When I’m not running trails or crawling through mud, you can usually find me in a theme park. Yes, Daniel and I are admitted theme park addicts. We are the proud owners of more than one season pass to Southern California’s best attractions. We are proudly turning our three young ones into adrenaline junkies one day at a time just like their parents. :)
Two of our kids enjoying Space Mountain at Disneyland.
Without even thinking about it we can log six miles on the pedometer in one day at a park. This is a great way to keep the training going even in the most unusual places.
You give your core a good work out riding roller coasters.
Walking up escalators instead of just standing on them is just like a stairmaster.
I have been known to pick up one of my kids and do squats while standing in line for a ride. It may sound crazy, but it works!
We are usually pushing strollers (added resistance) and skip the parking lot trams and walk to the park entrance (more distance). At the Disneyland Resort, the walk from the parking structure to the park entrance is just under a mile. That’s a great way to avoid the annoying tram lines and get in a little extra exercise.
Instead of taking the elevator, we will opt for stairs or walk up escalators instead of just standing there. That’s a great workout on your legs!
We usually skip the junk food at the parks and choose healthier options when eating meals there. It’s nice that most of the theme parks are now offering healthier meal options for those that don’t want to be completely gluttonous. We are able to bring in our own snacks, so we can control the quality of food that we are eating and feeding our kids.
Now don’t get me wrong. We do splurge sometimes and get a Ghiradelli hot fudge Sundae or Mickey pretzel from time to time. But overall we use our theme park hopping as an unconventional way to keep up with our training.
As I sit here writing this blog I remembered another way we got in some good exercise while we were at Disneyland. We danced! There are several places where they have live bands playing in the evenings, and we had the whole family dancing. It was a lot of fun, and we were sweating up a storm by the time we were done.
Mad Tea Party Band at Disney’s California Adventure
If you think you don’t have time to train, or you are just too busy, think of all the unconventional ways to get in exercise that will help you at your next obstacle race!
So get out there and be active!!
Disney’s Princess Half Marathon
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