Frugal Families fitness edition

Around this time of year, as the rain begins to subside, people cautiously and slowly start to head outdoors to start exercising after a long winter’s break.  I know I never feel motivated when the raindrops are falling, and it always seems to take me a few weeks to get back into the excercise groove.  Now is the time for families to run, not walk, outside and embrace our gorgeous valley while waking up our sleepy muscles. 

Here are some hot deals for families aiming to become a little more fit this spring.

Tee Ball and Rookie Ball

Teach your kids the elements of baseball through Healdsburg Parks and Recreation’s Tee Ball program.  Boys and girls ages four through six will learn how to catch, throw, hit and run.  Rookie Ball is for ages 7-8 and builds on baseball rules and teaches new skills.  All players will be on a team and receive a T-shirt and hat.  To sign up, visit www.healdsburgparksandrec.org or call 707-431-3301.  The fee is $60.

Healdsburg Gymnastics & Russian River Circus School

If your children are very active and you’ve been threatening to send them to the circus, you both can sigh some relief and go to the Healdsburg Gymnastics & Russian River Circus School instead.  The gym is fit for any gymnast, acrobat or clown and is filled with trampolines and mats, and fun colorful padded shapes to jump off of.  Although the monthly fee per child for a 45-minute group lesson is $55, children can visit any Saturday from 11:15 to 12:45pm for only $15.  First time friends can come for free.  Visit http://www.healdsburggymnastics.com/fees.html or call 707.433.6307.

Football and Cheerleading!

The are at it again.  Ages seven to fifteen are welcome to sign up to play football or cheerlead in this local league.  Registration for returning players is this Sunday, with signups open to everyone on March 13, April 10 and June 5 at Giorgi Park.  The league fee is $225 per person but scholarships are available.  For more information visit http://www.healdsburgbulldogs.com/ or call (707) 291-4395.

Martial Arts

Professional martial arts teachers will engage your kids and teach them the fundamentals of karate through self-discipline, practice and instruction.  CKS offers karate lessons for $50 a month per child and a 20 percent discount for additional children.  Scholarships are available as well.  CKS also has aerobic classes for women for the low price of $20/month.  Classes are held Mon., Wed., and Fri. from 6:30-7:30 pm and Tues. and Thurs. mornings from 9-10 am.  Anyone can come for a free class to find out more first hand at CKS.  Visit http://pfshealdsburg.com/ or call 707-486-1379 for more information.  

Teen Boot Camp

The owners of Healdsburg's  LiveFitBootCamp have just launched a special price for teenagers between the ages of 12 and 17 to join any of the scheduled boot camps.  Co-owner Jeff Sears said the camp decided to offer boot camp to teenagers after observing the decline in P.E. classes in schools. 

Several boot camp members have taken his boot camp to gain home school P.E. credit.  New classes start monthly and meet daily at a few locations (Classes are also availabe in Windsor and Santa Rosa).  Teenagers can register for only $49, and parents can join for $99 for their first month.  Visit http://livefitbootcamp.com/ or call (707) 287-5543.  (Read Jeff's Patch article on how to create a fitness plan for your family; a must-read!)

Take a ride outside!

We live in a cyclist’s paradise.  Sonoma County is home to hundreds of beautiful bike rides for all skill levels, and is a perfect place to get into cycling.  Our friends at host regular rides during the weekends as well as a ladies ride on Mondays starting this Monday at 5:15 p.m.  Stop into the shop for route advice, gear or pick up a free area map to plan your family’s next ride.  The best part of road biking, other than the sheer thrill of it, is that it’s virtually free.  Doesn’t get much better than that.