Don't Exercise--PLAY!

We have all heard that obesity among children has become an alarming epidemic. I had never realized just how many young children are overweight until recently. But it seems that lately everywhere I go—the grocery store, my son’s school, shopping-- I see overweight children. I am saddened when I see these children, and it reassures me that I’m doing the right thing all those times I turn off the TV or video game so that we can walk up to the playground and when I say “NO” to my kids all those times they ask for cupcakes, chips and candy.

My husband, my children and I are all healthy weights and we try hard to keep it that way. We eat healthy and we play healthy. Notice, I said PLAY—not exercise. Doesn’t PLAY sound so much more fun? I am a stay at home mom, and while I may get a workout chasing around my two year old, I don’t have a steady workout routine. My elliptical machine and my Leg Magic contraption sit in the “exercise room” collecting dust because I just don’t find the extra time for them. I may not be in the best shape of my life(I doubt I’ll ever have abs or buns of steel), but I am a healthy weight, I fit nicely into my clothes and I’m fit enough to keep up with my kids without my chest pounding and without gasping for breath.

Here are the many things we PLAY to stay healthy:

1. We WALK! We walk back and forth to my son’s school each day. We WALK the neighborhood for a breath of fresh air, nature collecting, storytelling (you have no idea how easy it is to walk a mile when you are pretending you are walking through a jungle and naming all sorts of animals with a two year old), etc. We WALK to walk!

2. We DANCE! We put on a CD and DANCE, DANCE, DANCE! We DANCE when we clean up our toys, we DANCE when we finish homework early and we DANCE to be silly.

3. We PLAY! We PLAY (inside and outside) tag, red light- green light, wrestling on the carpet, touch football, soccer, gymnastics (rolls, handstands, cartwheels and such) and much more!

4. We SWIM! We have a pool and in warm weather, we use it. Almost everyday in the summer, we SWIM, play pool games, play pool volleyball (with a big bouncy ball instead of a real volleyball so it’s easier for the kids to play too), etc.

5. We joined the YMCA! Our son plays soccer on a team at the YMCA. He has practice once a week and a game every Saturday. This is routine exercise for him. The YMCA also has a great childcare area for children. Our daughter gets to go play in there while my husband and I go play tennis for a couple of hours. It costs us some money, but we love the YMCA!

We are an active family. In addition to eating as healthy as we can, being active is what keeps us at a healthy weight, keeps us fit and keeps us close. This lifestyle of PLAY is working for us—PLAY is fun—especially for the kids. They love having Mama and Daddy running around, swimming and dancing WITH them. So join in—for your kids’ sake! Here’s to our health!

Healthy Diet for Toddlers and Young Children

One of the things moms focus on the most is what goes into our kids' bellies. From the moment my little ones were born, I worried if they were getting enough milk when they were nursing. And then when they started on solids, I was careful to make sure they had the right servings of vegetables and fruits in addition to their nursings each day. As they became toddlers, I was determined to offer only healthy snacks, well balanced meals and milk or watered down juice. It wasn't all that difficult when they were very young.
However, now that my children are five and two, I have had to really stick to my guns when it comes to what they eat. Sure it would be much easier for me to just put a microwaved corn dog and some potato chips on their plate each day, but that is a habit that could be quite harmful. I'm not saying that my kids don't get their share of corn dogs and cookies. But the point is that I try hard not to make it a habit. What I do try to make a habit is healthy eating. We do that by keeping good snacks in the pantry and by my cooking as many meals as our schedule allows. I cook meals that I know are healthier than we would get if we were eating out.
Another thing that I try to keep in mind is that children have small bellies. They aren't supposed to eat as much as adults do. When a child is hungry, he or she will eat. And if what you put in front of them to eat is healthy, they will eat it if they are hungry. You don't want to fill up those little tummies with junk if you expect them to be hungry enough to want to eat something healthy at mealtime. Small, healthy snacks are best. Our family pediatrician put it best when he offered the advice-- You decide what; the child decides when. So you decide what the child eats and he or she decides when. Don't force feed your children. Making a child who isn't hungry finish his plate can be another very harmful habit. I am guilty of this as well when I think my child should be hungry. But then I have to try to remember to let my children determine when they are hungry, and I will be ready with something good for them to eat.

To help, here is a sample daily menu for my two year old:
Breakfast- 1 sippy cup full of 2% milk or orange juice, 1 slice of toast with light margarine, 2 slices of turkey bacon
Snack- 1 sippy cup full of half water/half apple juice, 1/2 cup pears, handful of goldfish crackers
Lunch- 1 sippy cup full of 2% milk, spaghetti with lean hamburger meat sauce in toddler bowl, 2 carrot sticks, 1 small butter cookie
Snack- 1 sippy cup full of half water/half apple juice, 1/2 sliced apple
Supper- 1 sippy cup full of 2% milk, 2 chicken tenderloins (baked), 1 dinner roll, 2 tablespoons of green beans, 2 tablespoons mashed potatoes, 1 sugar free popsicle for dessert

Here is a sample daily menu for my five year old:
Breakfast- 1 small bowl of cereal with 2% milk, small child's size cup of orange juice, 1 slice of toast with light margarine
Snack- snack sized box of raisins and cup of water
Lunch- 1 low fat peanut butter and grape jelly sandwich, goldfish crackers, 4 carrot sticks, 1 apple, apple juice
Snack- Sunkist fruit snacks and water or milk
Supper- 3 or 4 chicken tenderloins (baked), 2 dinner rolls, 4 tablespoons of green beans, 4 tablespoons of mashed potatoes, cup of tea, milk or juice, 1 sugar free popsicle

These menus are just a sample of what my kids eat in a day. Believe me, there are days that consist of toaster waffles at breakfast, hotdogs for lunch, and McDonald's for supper. But those days are very rare. We really do eat well and our kids are learning some good, healthy eating habits because we are modeling those habits for them. In a society that is becoming more and more obese, we need to get back on track and help our kids make good decisions when it comes to food. Moms--we need to tap back into that focus we had on what we fed our little ones when they were babies and use that to create healthy eating habits for our toddlers and young children so that they will grow to become healthy teens and adults.
Here is a link for further information on keeping your kids healthy.
http://kidshealth.org/kid/stay_healthy/food/pyramid.html