PLAYout at the playground: pull-ups.

by

we save this 'brella for sunny days.

we save this ‘brella for sunny days.

The other morning a mom at the Tornado’s school remarked how fit I look.  

She then continued on to say: You must workout all the time.

(Aside: You’d be proud.  I spared her my whole CONSISTENCY rant *and* yammers about how LIFE IS MY SPORT.  Ive noticed people’s eyes tend to glaze over so Im reigning it in these days.  Go me!)

In the moment where I paused & considered  how to respond the Tornado answered for me:

She doesnt workout—she PLAYSout!

  • I smiled (the woman looked perplexed).
  • I paused for applause took a moment to bask in the glow of the fact she GETS exercise can be fun (the mom seized that moment tom give a small wave and beat a hasty retreat)
  • I made a mental note to ‘reward’ her with playground time afterschool (the plan had been to tackle homework *only* that night)

After school it was drizzling.

After school I snagged an umbrella, walked to pick her up and announced we were staying to play(out) *anyway.*

Happy SCHOOLS OUT! Mama.

Happy SCHOOLS OUT! Mama.

To my delight the below is what transpired.

Pulling upward.

All her idea.

A *HUGE* weak point of mine & all worked in the name of PLAY and FUN.

Some days motherhood feels easy and rocks.

I give you the short version (100% because I was too busying living not blogging to take any other photos):

She explained what we were doing.

She explained what we were doing.

 

she demo'ed I watched.

she demo’ed I watched.

 

I went. She critiqued.

I went. She critiqued.

 

I struggled. She cheered me on.

I struggled. She cheered me on.

I could proffer a grown-up post with specific “working up to your first full pull-up” tips (focus on back exercises in the gym, practice with body rows, segue to assisted pull-ups/negatives) but my point today is to encourage you to just get out there and try!

Whether you have a child or not—make time to find yourself a playground, get PLAYful and give pull-ups a shot.

What do you think?

  • Are you in to pull-upward on the next horizontal bar you encounter?
  • Do you, too, still love playing in the rain?

 

 

 

If youre longing for a more serious guide to pull-ups check out this post over on BonnieLangFitness.  Bonnie rocks.  And not *just* in the arena of pulling upward. 

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Comments

  1. As long as it’s not rainy AND too cold, I don’t mind the rain at all. In fact, I think going for a jog in the rain is so freeing! 🙂 I’m still working on my upper body strength to do real pull-ups though.

  3. adore adore adore your relationship with your daughter. I haven’t attempted a pull up in some time…need to get on that!

  4. I love how she explained your fitness routine for you! Some days I hit the treadmill when its raining, but some days I need to run outside rain or shine.

  5. I rock not the pullup or the pushup but I can fling heavy bags of mulch around with greater ease thanks to strength training.

    I like the rain…we need more!

  6. I admire you for going even though it was wet out…I think that might have made me pull the plug. Great example and lots of fun for the tornado!

  7. I love this! We were all at the park yesterday and my husband and I took turns doing pull ups for fun… L’s a bit too small, but she loved swinging on the bars and hanging on. Awesome that your daughter jumped in with, she “plays-out”- what a great kid!

    • Id love to say I have the answers—but I definitely do not 🙂

      For me it started when she was younger just PRACTICING WHAT I PREACH and not saying a word and now, as she gets older, I just join her in her play and invite her to play alongside me too.

  11. I’ve never done an unassisted pull up but it’s on my fitness bucket list!

    I love playing at the playground, now that my son is four its so much fun, I love that the weather is finally breaking so we can spend more time there!

  12. I firmly believe it is important for us mothers to step back and let our children take the lead and teach.
    Good job, MamaMiz!

  13. When i was a little younger i use to be able to do quite a lot of pull ups but as time weight on so did the weight and i can no longer do more then 2. I am on the diet road so hopefully will be back doing some shortly. They are a great way to build upper muscle and look great.

  16. yes yes yes, i love me some pull ups, anywhere! it’s all about fitting in fitness by playing. Seriously, you need best mom award! The best MIZfit MOM!

  17. LOVE THE PICS!!!!!!!!! Tornado & the umbrella & backpack, the fun pull ups she is having FUN doing, you smiling away even in the rain – love it!

    I have done these for the grandkids at the playground before! They loved it & tried too!

    Ah, I am an adult with frizzy & curly hair – I don’t like the rain.. even as a kid, I did not with my crazy hair & back then it was even more all about the straight hair! 😉

  18. ohmygosh I love this so much. I love that she gets it. I love when our kids teach us. side note – I long to be able to do an unassisted pull-up. I have feared them ever since the 5th or 6th grade when we had to do the Presidential Fitness test and I could barely hold myself up for a split second for the flexed arm hang.

  21. Love playing in the rain (as long as it’s not freezing!).
    You are such an amazing Mom and example for not just your daughter but all of us!!! (and the other moms at Tornado’s school)

  22. What kills me is that when I was a child, I did all sorts of pull-ups and “skin-the-cats” on the horizontal bar on the playground. Now? Not one pull-up. I think they must have changed the bar. 🙂

  23. I KNOW!! I always tell her “theyve turned up the gravitational pull since I was your age!”

  24. Fun fun! I love running in the rain but not a huge fan of it other times. I can do a jumping pullup (I need a little help), but not a real one. We have a pullup bar between our living room and bedroom, thanks for the reminder to use it. 🙂

  25. I love this, Carla! How fun! The pictures in the rain, the smiles, the fact that it was her idea…such a great playout and post! And thanks a ton for the shout-out! I think that’s partly why I love pull ups so much – I did so many of them (like many of the commenters above) as a kid on the playground! Natural, fun movement – especially when you’re little. Let’s keep it up (literally). 😉

  27. I love playground workouts with my kids.
    They love that they’re so much better at them than their mom is…

    (I tried to explain the physics behind changing difficulty of pullups with age, but they prefer to believe that they’re just stronger than I am; and they are!

  28. Playing is fun. Playing in the rain was fun until i moved into this house, where rain became the enemy. Someday, maybe, it won’t be the enemy any more. Either way, i still want to play.

  29. I love this, Carla! How fun! The pictures in the rain, the smiles, the fact that it was her idea…such a great playout and post! And thanks a ton for the shout-out! I think that’s partly why I love pull ups so much I did so many of them (like many of the commenters above) as a kid on the playground! Natural, fun movement especially when you’re little. Let’s keep it up (literally).

  30. I still haven’t mastered more than one pull-up. You are a great role model! I have a feeling your daughter will become a fitness guru just like you! 🙂 And for some reason I don’t typically like running out in the rain but I love going to the gym on those rainy days! I am still able to get my workout in!

  31. I LOVE playing in the Rain! Everytime it rains, E gets excited to put his rainboots on and jump into every puddle he can find.

    It makes me so happy to watch him!

  32. I dislike the idea of a “workout” a playout sounds much more appealing. It isn’t work if you are having fun, right? Love the pull-up bars on the playground. 🙂

  33. We don’t go to the park in the rain, but we will someday when we’re not having torrential downpours. My kids love to exercise with my husband and I and when they exercise with us it really is more like a PlayOut.

  36. I love that term: playout! I’ll have to use that as my workout mentality now, it isn’t working to get a better body it is playing to be a better, happier, and healthier you. And the rain is awesome on all occasions, I seize the days when I can wear my rain boots and splash around in puddles during the day.

  37. I absolutely love her umbrella. Too adorable. I don’t know what I would do without rain. Sometimes my only motivation to run is because it is raining. (Although I’ll admit I get nervous I am going to slip and seriously injure myself) but there is something so much more playful and fun about running in the rain. It is almost like feeling like a kid again, racing your best friend just to race and not out running to be a serious runner. I consider the world my playground and it only gets more fun in the rain.

  40. Watching you do that makes me realize there was a time when stuff like that was easy peasy. What the heck happened to my arm strength? I’m totally pulling up next time I’m given the chance (even if it kills me).

  41. I love that you went ahead and went to play anyways….One of my goals is to be able to just do that more with my girls. i have plans for this summer for random trips about…I just wish I had more free time to do the thigns I want to. This has inspired me to really see what I can take out to put them back in.

  44. It’s great to make good use of your time at any moment possible. And your setting a great example for your young ones. Well done.

  46. Love it!! Sometimes I dress the girls up in their waterproof snow clothes and we go to the park and slip and slide and jump in the puddles!

  47. It is nice that your daughter is enjoying this kind of activity because it is really healthy. Later on, she will grow up fit because of you, her role model. I love your attitude and I am inspired because you found a way to make fitness really fun.

  48. I really love doing things with my nephew and niece. But after an hour running and playing with them, I end up like I was over an hour in the gym, lol.

  53. I cannot currently do a pull up. But it’s one of my goals in this current non-training cycle. (hopefully by the end of the year?)

    My favorite instructions on working up to a pull up are still Krista Scott-Davies’s Mistressing the Pull Up. http://www.stumptuous.com/mistressing-the-pullup

    OMG, I have forgotten how to embed a link! Total dementia eminently setting in!!

  56. I’m sadly very bad at doing pull-ups. Its hard to build up upper body strength! I feel like I was stronger when I was her age maybe because of gymnastics and maybe because I was carrying around about 90 lbs less on my body. Have to admit, I loved nothing more than playing in the rain when I was younger but these days, not so much, although I do enjoy a nice run in the rain every now and then.

  57. Oh how I wish I loved the rain… living in Seattle and NOT loving it is so not cool. It stays green though.
    So many of us find it tough to get in all the desired movement because of the soaking/misting weather ’round here.
    We tend to get whatever we can get going, while we stay inside. I do lots of different kinds of dance videos and belong to a dance club.
    All I know is that I still feel young and don’t like excuses for not moving so will continue to do whatever I can, wherever I can!
    Love your fun pics. with your Tornado. She is a hoot!

  58. Pull ups are hell! They always look so easy to do when you see someone else doing them. You think, “thats not so hard”
    Until you try it. I guess it is a progression and I have just not progressed to that level yet. LOL.

  59. I’ve got a 3 year old who I take to the playgrounds some weekends, any given opportunity I like to do a few pull ups just to prove I can still do them 🙂

  60. Pull ups have not been done for about 5 years in my nearest playground lol. I take my son every week so I should really start (try) doing them again. <3

  62. its so important to kids get exercise outdoors. i see most of them these days with their ipads and ps3’s…

  63. That has got to be the most challenging workout move for me.. the upper body pulling up the bar. I’ve managed to do 4-5 at the most. ..
    PS. love the pics of you and your lil’ one.

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