Kids dragging you to the pumpkin patch this year? Feel like you should be working out or exercising instead? Be aware that you can combine both having fun with the kids and exercising with a visit to your local patch to choose a pumpkin. Buying a pumpkin or two as well as working on your fitness might also be the goal. Here are three ways to do it.
1. Seek Out the Corn Maze
If your pumpkin patch has a corn maze, be sure to walk it with the kids. Rather than using it to run, spend the time enjoying it with the family. Later, you might go back and run it with an older kid or alone, being careful not to knock others down.
If there is no maze, just walk the perimeter of the patch while keeping a watchful eye on the kids.
2. Exercise With a Pumpkin
Even if there is no corn maze to walk, picking out a pumpkin can offer a workout. You have to be careful, though, as dropping it might mean buying it.
Find a heavier pumpkin, and while the kids are looking for their own ideal pumpkin to carve, lift your pumpkin above your head. Similar to a kettlebell, the pumpkin can come in a variety of weights so you can vary your workout.
3. Squats, Lunges, Twists and More
By finding a quieter area of the patch, you can continue your workout. Do repetitions, but keep them a bit concealed because your kids as well as others may think you are somewhat over the top. Seated twists will be less conspicuous, if that is a concern. Other movements from a seated position might blend in better so that you appear to be searching for the ideal pumpkin to take home.
Think of the pumpkin as a medicine ball for exercise. Once you have purchased the pumpkin, you can use it for push-ups, draping your body over it or even putting it on your back for added weight and difficulty. Don’t use an old one, however, as it may squash with weight against it. Choose one that is firm and has not sat around for a long time.
Before you lift that pumpkin pie to your mouth, exercising with a pumpkin might be a way to begin the holiday season with fun. Head to the pumpkin patch to find pumpkins of different weights. Before the holidays begin, get toned with a pumpkin workout at both the patch and at home. Then, you can eat your pumpkin pie with delight.
