Encouraging children to go on walks - any tips?

[halster]

Have just got back from another walk with the kids - as per usual there was much moaning, wingeing, tears, cries of "my legs are tired". We did not go far at all. They are 3 and 6, I understand that the 3 year old will get tired easily, but the 6 year old? I would love to take them on lovely country walks regulary but it is so stressful!! I try to make the walks as interesting as possible. And bribing them doesn't work either.

Do your kids happily go for walks? What is your secret?
My MIL maintains that my dh walked the Pennine Way when he was 4 (carrying his clothes in a rucksack).

Agreed, "going for a walk" is unappealing as such to a kid, and still more is talking about it, moaning at their lack of enthusiasm, urging them to just go a bit further, all adding for them to the notion that it's some chore to be endured. some adults fell similarly...

What usually works for us is to talk to them about other things, joke with them (or indeed play word games etc). but mainly remember that it's quality time between you and the kids, and the walking is kind of incicental to that. So drop the focus on 'the walk', say something silly por provaocative about the child's favourite character, and get moving, yes.

But if this doesn't spark, and their mood (or yours) turns negative, it can be hard to pull it back to fun...

Second playing games. Mine like walks but have always been forced into it since they were tiny as we do walking holidays so they've never known another way really and get little or no attention if they whinge - we're probably mean and hard but in the end they do enjoy it, now dd who is 9 is a really keen walker - she climbed snowdon at 6. ds less so but can be persuaded with lots of snacks, promises of ice-cream/cafes and games. Their favourite is quartermasters stores and believe me it can last hours and hours - we climbed most of the Lake district doing that one and it never seems to cease in hilarity for them. Good luck

UCO loves to mess around outside-she does sometimes interpret 'walk' as 'run' though. From there it tends to rapidly descend to hide and seek. My husband then tends to round her up. I produce rainhats, drinks, tissues at intervals during the 'walk'...and then we go home.

IlanaK - you can also use maps.google.co.uk and use the My Maps option to mark out routes. It will be close enough to give you an idea of how far a walk is.

Example: Box Hill: Stepping Stones to National Trust Shop circular

Go out with family - my kids have cousins nearby and we all go together - MUCH less whingeing.

Thanks Nannynick, that is very useful. I will use that to check how far we are walking.

ok, this might sound odd, but it works for mine (7,4)......
I provide each with a bag for "interesting" things they find on the way.
It usually ends up filled with mud and twigs etc but it works.

oh, and take a pack of baby wipes too!!!

DD (3) has just started being able to walk decent distances, we are in countryside with lots of bridleways and footpaths but no cafes or such for bribery so we usually make 'collections' of sticks and stones, search for puddles to jump in, see who can spot animals first etc.

We do a 3 mile route with the dog a few times per week and she's gone from being carried/sling to walking it all in the last few weeks.

I do tend to take some chewy sweets along for the last leg when she starts to flag.

Well I personally think 6 miles is a long way for a small child to walk happily.

We did some walks with ds (5.2yrs) this holiday but we dind't go fast and we probably did no more than 3-4 miles in any one day. Ds complains if we say 'lets go for a walk' but if we say 'Lets go on a treasure hunt" or 'lets see if we can fuind the "wiggly path" or the "magic lake" or the "wishing well" or somwethign he might find interesting he loves it.

This holiday on one of our walks (we already knew it quite well though) we had all of the above (magic lake was just the boating lake at the end of the glen, the wishing well does exist and the wiggly path was just a steep winding bit of the path)

Ds was properly dressed and we srt of told stories about the different things we were looking for. So the magic lake became a place where the dragon in our made-up story slept.

We also sometimes let ds decide on the way we went if there was a choice which he loved and we found large stiks that became wizards staffs.

If the walks are generally fun and not too long then he tends to be happy to go next time. there is nothiogn worse than being dragged cold and tired on a miserable walk that is too long for your abilities. No better way to pput off a child IMO

It does help if there are other children but we rarely have this and ds still quite likes the country walks we do. Now if only he'd like the walk to school as much!

Haven't read whole thread but ... breaking ice on puddles gets my normally reluctant dc very motivated to go on a walk.

Another good strategy is to nominate one child as 'leader' and let them choose the route.