Best Places in Vancouver to Get Fit with Your Kids
We asked our friends at Fit 4 Two about their favourite places to get fit with your baby. Here’s what they recommended:
Kits Beach
“No matter the weather, the view is always spectacular,” says Fit 4 Two Vancouver Westside owner Dee Clarke, about jogging path that runs along the strip of Kitsilano Beach from Kits pool to the Maritime Museum along the Seawall. “Along the way there are plenty of benches for dips, abdominal exercises and step ups as well as railings to attach a resistance band.” Dee recommends adding a little fun and variety to your work-out by hopping over the logs on the beach. Right in front if the pool is the Kitsilano Showboat and four sets of stairs for cardio training. “Tag team with a friend, so baby is not left unattended at the top of the stairs.”
For after your workout, Dee loves the grassy spaces. “Perfect for lying a blanket down for baby, breaking out your yoga mat and stretching.” Weather doesn’t even have to stop you: “The covered area between the washroom and the concession provides shelter during inclement weather.”
Yaletown Sea Walk and Creekside Sea Walk
Melanie Osmack, Fit 4 Two founder, loves the Yaletown Sea Walk and the Creekside Sea Walk, the sections of the Seawall north and south of False Creek. The Yaletown Sea Walk has a wide variety of structures that are perfect for exercising. “Stairs for cardio, fences for attaching my resistance band and a covered area at Coopers Park for core and stretch on a rainy day.”
The Creekside Sea Walk features natural surrounds intermixed with unique art – part of the 2010 Olympics legacy. “There are plenty of fences for resistance band attachment and the Creekside Community Recreation Centre has public washrooms,” adds Melanie.
Queen Elizabeth Park
Centrally located near Riley Park and Hillcrest Community Centres, Vancouver’s second-largest park had natural scenery all-year round. “You can use the hill for great strength-training and cardio, and the park benches for resistance band attachment,” says Callie Camp, owner of Fit 4 Two Vancouver East. “Lush evergreens provide natural raincover on those not-so-sunny days, and there are plenty of squirrels and ducks to point out to curious babes!”
John Hendry Park
Near Commercial Drive and adjacent to the Trout Lake Ice Rink and Community Centre, a 1.2 km gravel path meanders around the perimeter of scenic Trout Lake and the surrounding greenspace. “Try some core work underneath the weeping willows, or strength-training with a resistance tube using a park bench.” recommends Callie. “There is a covered pavilion to duck under in case of rain, public washrooms, as well as off-leash areas for pet-loving parents and babes out on a power walk with their furry friends.”
Fit 4 Two provides fitness, yoga and aquafit classes for pregnant women and new moms. Each Fit 4 Two location is locally owned and operated.
* Featured image credit – Ruth Hartnup on Flickr
