Father's Day: Great Reasons Not To Get A Tie This Year

Father's Day is just around the corner. Big Commerce (and small commerce) has already tempted you to buy power tools, neck ties, after shaves, and computer gadgets. Your kids' school is already helping your brood “surprise” their dad with the same paper crafts they presented last year.

Father's Day serves to celebrate fatherhood in general and to remember the impact of fathers across society. Most of all, Father's Day presents a great opportunity to make the dads in your own life feel appreciated and loved. Moms of young kids will probably assist their crew in choosing a special gift. But why do something for your own dad, your children's dad, and even a special teacher or role model too?

Nobody likes token cliché gifts and though power tools are probably a welcome gift, good ones are pretty pricey. If you're a woman, the association between power tools and men may offend your feminist side enough to stay away from drills and sanding machines too. Instead, choose a gift that shows you care about the Dad's health and life, and one that he'll continue to use for a long time.

Motivate Him To Be More Active

Are you looking for a great gift for your husband or partner, or are you looking for a way to surprise your own dad? You can't go wrong with a sports membership of some kind. The local gym is an obvious choice that will appeal to most dads, but you could also go for something a little more adventurous. A rowing club, paintball, or karate could really change that special dad's life — especially if he hasn't been as active as he could be.

Your kids' dad might find stress relief and a welcome break from a hectic life in your sporty gift. Perhaps, he really wanted to do something active but couldn't justify spending the money on himself. With your gift, he'll know that you care about his mental and physical health.

Pensioner dads of adult kids who get a sports membership for Father's Day might find a whole new passion in life, and will stay healthier for longer.

You can still do something wonderful if you have a small budget, like offering to go jogging or cycling together. Many people — dads included — are just not motivated to start exercising and then to keep on going regularly. If you sign the guy in question up for twice-weekly (free) exercise sessions, he'll have to comply. Give him a home-made voucher describing what you have in mind along with a new jogging suit. 

Are you a woman looking for a way to make your dad and partner happy at the same time? If they get on well, make them work out together!

Is your dad, partner, or father in law already a fitness junkie? Gadgets that measure his heart rate and the number of calories he burns while working out are a nice gesture that will wake up the nerd inside. Everybody needs to stay hydrated while they are working out, too. I love my Bobble water bottle that comes with a filter, and think it makes a pretty nice gift. 

More Father's Day Gifts That Will Benefit His Health

A Healthy Food Basket

Dark chocolate contains antioxidants, and studies have shown that eating chocolate with 70 percent cocoa lowers blood sugar levels and bad cholesterol. Red wine keeps the heart healthy by preventing artery damage, and nuts are full of proteins and other goodies. Walnuts, which are packed full of antioxidants and omega-3 fatty acids, help fight cancer and increase male fertility.

Why not put together a food basket with these and other really healthy but enjoyable treats for your dad (or your partner)? You could place your selected goodies in a nice, sturdy backpack the recipient can use to go camping or hiking.

Juicer: A Neat Gadget That Benefits Everyone's Health

Does the dad you're going to surprise love to tinker around in the kitchen? Is he a sporty kind of person who needs some quick energy before a workout? Or does he, perhaps, have some love handles that need fixing with the help of a subtle hint and a neat gadget?

A juicer is an easy way to inject some much-needed vitamins into the whole family's life. Fruit and vegetable juices can be a tasty and healthy treat, but they can also serve as meal replacements (for one meal of the day, usually breakfast or lunch) for people who need to shed some pounds.

Juicers never get boring — almost all fruits and vegetables taste good as juice in combination with something, and you can find many recipes on the internet. If you end up giving someone a juicer for Father's Day, you could take the time to go through some recipes, print out ones that you think might appeal to the dad, and bind them into a nice booklet.

Save His Back With A Ergonomic Desk Chair

Being stuck at a desk all day can really affect a person's body in a negative way. Back pain is a particular problem, but the shoulders and neck can really suffer too. Dads who do office work, or who spend a lot of time in front of the computer at home, can really do with an ergonomic desk chair.

One warning: excellent ergonomic desk chairs are far from cheap. They are not really necessary for people who only use the computer to check their emails, but they ensure that hardcore desk sitters maintain proper posture and protect their spine health. For folks who have no choice but to stay at their desk most of the day, they're real lifesavers that will continue to contribute to health and comfort for many years to come.  

Other Random Thoughts

If you're a teenager looking for a way to make your dad feel really appreciated, offer to cook nice meals from scratch for two weeks or a month. Your mom will be amazed too — neither will ever forget your gift. If your dad smokes, ask if he'd like to quit together with you if you're a nicotine addict too, or else find him another quitting buddy. 

Dads who have babies might like a great, manly-looking baby carrier like the Ergo Baby Carrier (the only carrier my husband would ever agree to use). Dads raising school-aged kids while also working pit of the home full-time are inevitably stressed sometimes, and perhaps quite often. Exercise is a great stress reliever, but in all seriousness you can sign him up for therapy sessions too. 

Do you have a lot of dads in your family, who all need gifts? You can treat your partner, dad, father in law, grandpa and uncle at the same time by organizing a family camping trip with lots of cool activities like rowing, fishing, and hiking. If you're a man, you are going to have to go on the trip. If you're a woman, you can send the boys off together and enjoy peace, quiet, and shopping at home.