Family Fitness
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Five Easy Changes for 2013
Snack Girl's Got the Right Idea
By: Lisa Cain, Ph.D, Snack-Girl.com
Okay, we are into the New Year, have you spread paint on your kids yet?! I was reading a bunch of healthy websites and they all had these “Five Easy” lists that I thought were hard to do. Stuff like “stop eating processed food.” How is that easy if you eat processed food?
I have read all of the New Year’s resolutions that Snack Girl readers posted last week (see: This Year, Get What You REALLY Want!) and I have been thinking about the themes that emerged.
Five EASY (I hope) Changes:
1. Buy a cool stainless steel water bottle. Many listed that they wanted to drink more water. Personally, I am always fighting dehydration especially in the winter when the air is dry. I have found that the plastic water bottles make my water taste like plastic and these stainless steel ones are tougher. I love all the colors they come in and I feel super fashionable when I am carrying one. Seriously.
2. Leave your house messy. A big theme of the resolutions was “play more”. There have been times when my children want to play and there is a big mess in the kitchen, living room, or bedroom that needs my attention. I ignore the mess and play with my kids. Why? Well, chores are never ending but my kids are here now and they are super fun. My house frequently looks like a bomb hit it and while that frustrates me, I have decided that our mess is a statement of how we spend our time (playing). There are limits of course.
3. Park far away from your destination. Everyone wants to exercise more. I hear you. One way I have incorporated more movement into a stressful day is to park at the other end of the entrance to where I am going. I save time (no looking for parking) and fossil fuel. Since it is cold, I almost run to get inside and always feel energized by my power walk.
4. Announce your grumpiness. A lot of you want to be nicer to family and friends. I find that when I am hungry, tired, cold, or all three that my behavior plummets into unacceptable. One of my tricks is to let people know that I am grumpy so that they are aware that I may not be ready for the latest annoying thing to happen. My daughter has been known to be super nice to me when she knows I am in a tough spot.
5. Share vegetable recipes. Everyone wants to eat more vegetables so I thought we would have a “recipe swap” once a month here on Snack Girl. On Thursday, January 10th, I am going to post my favorite carrot recipes. Please share yours so we can all start to get more ideas on how to prepare common, inexpensive vegetables.
*Lisa Cain, Ph.D., is an avid snacker, foodie, published author, and mother of 2. An evolutionary biologist by training, she has become obsessed with how food contributes to our overall health. Check out Lisa's site www.snack-girl.com and follow on Facebook and Twitter for more great recipes!
I have read all of the New Year’s resolutions that Snack Girl readers posted last week (see: This Year, Get What You REALLY Want!) and I have been thinking about the themes that emerged.
Five EASY (I hope) Changes:
1. Buy a cool stainless steel water bottle. Many listed that they wanted to drink more water. Personally, I am always fighting dehydration especially in the winter when the air is dry. I have found that the plastic water bottles make my water taste like plastic and these stainless steel ones are tougher. I love all the colors they come in and I feel super fashionable when I am carrying one. Seriously.
2. Leave your house messy. A big theme of the resolutions was “play more”. There have been times when my children want to play and there is a big mess in the kitchen, living room, or bedroom that needs my attention. I ignore the mess and play with my kids. Why? Well, chores are never ending but my kids are here now and they are super fun. My house frequently looks like a bomb hit it and while that frustrates me, I have decided that our mess is a statement of how we spend our time (playing). There are limits of course.
3. Park far away from your destination. Everyone wants to exercise more. I hear you. One way I have incorporated more movement into a stressful day is to park at the other end of the entrance to where I am going. I save time (no looking for parking) and fossil fuel. Since it is cold, I almost run to get inside and always feel energized by my power walk.
4. Announce your grumpiness. A lot of you want to be nicer to family and friends. I find that when I am hungry, tired, cold, or all three that my behavior plummets into unacceptable. One of my tricks is to let people know that I am grumpy so that they are aware that I may not be ready for the latest annoying thing to happen. My daughter has been known to be super nice to me when she knows I am in a tough spot.
5. Share vegetable recipes. Everyone wants to eat more vegetables so I thought we would have a “recipe swap” once a month here on Snack Girl. On Thursday, January 10th, I am going to post my favorite carrot recipes. Please share yours so we can all start to get more ideas on how to prepare common, inexpensive vegetables.
*Lisa Cain, Ph.D., is an avid snacker, foodie, published author, and mother of 2. An evolutionary biologist by training, she has become obsessed with how food contributes to our overall health. Check out Lisa's site www.snack-girl.com and follow on Facebook and Twitter for more great recipes!
Comments
1) Cinda said:
I like to mix my veggies all together and steam them. The flavors are awesome! My favorite mixture is broccoli, cauliflower, and squash. After I steam them I sprinkle with a dash of salt and sometimes a little parmesan cheese. They taste real good plain as well.
2) ashley said:
My son begs me to make cauliflower. I steam it. While it is steaming I melt 1/2 butter with 1/4 cup of bread crumbs. Once the cauliflower is fully steamed I mix it with the butter and bread crumbs and eat.
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