Getting Kids to Walk for Disney with You

There are numerous articles on how to fit walking into your life to improve overall fitness and health, but getting your kids into it might be more challenging. We employ a number of strategies to make that time fun, and it's become precious time for me as the parent of a growing child. TV and video games are out; talking and playing games are in. Try some of these ideas and make up your own. You know your kids better than anyone so you can create the best "tricks" for them.

• Carry treats/toys on your walks. Bouncing a basketball through the neighborhood makes the time pass faster. A Skittle or M&M at the end of each street could get them to go an extra block.
• Do a destination walk like to school, the park or even lunch/ice cream. If the walk to school includes breakfast at their favorite place, even better. Here we're biking to school and stopping for donuts. The donuts got her out of bed earlier so we had time to ride.

• Walk indoors at a Mall or other large venue to eliminate weather complaints (too hot/cold). This is another opportunity to use treats. My daughter gets a quarter to use in the gum machine every lap or two depending on the size of the mall. Even the 3 & 5 year olds in our group understand they get a handful of candy at a certain point (or single small pieces) and focus on that instead of how long we're walking. We sometimes hide a coin somewhere and see if it's still there on the next lap. Any kind of game works well.
• Use outings like the zoo or museum to cover a portion or even all of your longer walks. The miles you walk at Disney are broken up with food breaks, rides, and other attractions. It's OK to do that during your prep.

So go walk and remember, this is supposed to be fun.

Walking for Disney

So you're convinced you should walk in preparation for your trip to Disney but don't know where to start?  We follow a plan, but if that's not your personality, think about doing one longer walk and one or two shorter walks each week. Simply start where you're comfortable and increase the distance of your longest walk 1/2 mile each week.  Shopping, trips to the zoo, and similar activities count.

Our trip to the Space and Rocket Center in Huntsville (above) is the perfect example. We often motivate ourselves to walk with a "Walking for Disney" mantra, but there was plenty of walking for Disney this day simply doing what we wanted to do. So here's our typical plan...

• We start with good walking shoes. I prefer two pair to allow alternating days at the parks, but my husband is happy with just one. These should be well broken in before arriving at Disney, so get them early in the process if you don't already have comfortable shoes.
• Our target is a 6 mile walk or hike two weeks before our first day at the parks. We've never actually hit that target, but we do get close. That allows us to do a short walk one week prior to our trip and arrive fresh at the parks.  
• Starting with about 2 miles works for us as we're active but don't walk or run other than our prep for Disney. One trip we started with a 2.5 mile walk and my ankle plagued me for weeks so be careful if you're starting from scratch.
• We increase our long walk by 1/2 mile each week continuing to do short walks as we can in between. This means that starting at 2 miles week 1, our long walk would be 2.5 miles week 2, 3 miles week 3, then week 4 we'd drop back to 1.5-2 miles. This allows our bodies to recover and come back stronger. So week 5 we'd pick up at 3.5 miles, 4 miles week 6, 4.5 miles week 7, then drop back again for week 8 to about 2 miles for our "long" walk. And so on...
• Obviously, it takes us awhile to work up to a 6 mile walk. This is where my geek side kicks in. I actually work backward on the calendar putting our last long walk 2 weeks before Disney, placing each distance on Saturday for convenience. If you're planning 6-12 months ahead for Disney, this is the final stage and, for us, increases the anticipation. 

Our general plan may be tweaked to fit your lifestyle and fitness. If we start walking and can't get comfortable, our feet hurt more than usual or we're just too tired, we shorten the planned walk and try again another day. Give yourself permission to listen to your body and do the same. Just be sure to try again another day.

Remember, this is supposed to be fun.

The #1 thing you can do to prepare for a Disney vacation.

About to embark on our 5th trip to Walt Disney World in less than 3 years, I have one overriding recommendation... walk... a... lot.  Unless you plan to use a scooter or wheelchair to get around (a great option for those that need it), walking "practice" will greatly improve your experience. When the kids are young, put them in the stroller you plan to use or walk slower to accommodate their legs but just do it. We've walked regularly with a child as young as 3 and found on a marathon day at Magic Kingdom she lasted until 11 pm before crashing with limited complaints and whining all day, even after missing her afternoon nap.

 

Simply walking into the park (above) requires a fair amount of footwork. We rode the Disney bus from our resort this day and you can see the entrance in the far distance (that's my husband and 8 year old daughter in the foreground). If you're driving to the parks, expect additional steps. I've seen estimates of 5-6 miles of walking per day at Magic Kingdom and as high as 9 miles a day at Epcot, and my feet have felt every one.

 

So what do you do?!?!?  "Walk" sounds pretty vague and about all I found on the subject when I was researching for our trips. In my next post, I'll provide some detail about what we have done and some suggestions on exactly how you might make it work for you.

 

Remember - This is supposed to be fun.