Happy Spring, sweet friends!
Can you believe we are halfway through March?! Remember to keep up with your March Calendar Challenge of being ABSolutely motivated daily! Amazing client Molly Efland won our February Challenge and gained one month of free sessions by completing her February calendar! Get your family into the challenge too- even if you start today by committing to finishing March strong!
Today, we want to encourage you and help your family make better decisions to live a healthier lifestyle one day at a time! Yes, we know it is challenging to find a meal that pleases everyone and so hard to get the kids moving some days but here are
10 ways we hope to inspire you!
10 ways to get your family healthy!
1. Set an example!
Your kids and other family members are watching you — when you take time out of your day to exercise when you choose an apple over a bag of potato chips when you refill your water bottle when you choose steamed veggies over french fries. They’re watching! And though we aren’t always perfect in our choices, we can make a big impact on our family with all the small choices we make day in and day out!
2. Feed your family what you’re eating!
Instead of fixing your family a separate meal, serve them the same foods you’re eating but add in one food on their plate that they will eat and like. If you’ve baked fish with steamed veggies and rice for yourself, don’t hesitate to put the same foods on their plates. Add in some fruit on the side that they can nibble on! They might not be as excited as you are about your healthy meal, but don’t let that discourage you. And don’t give up! Even if they aren’t thrilled about this meal the first time you offer it to them, offer it to them again…and again!
3. Offer incentives.
Kids love sticker charts, $5 gift cards, and earning rewards! Use an incentive that motivates your kids. We have tried earning “stars” for every new food our kids try. Once they earn 10 stars, they get a $5 gift card to Target! It works, and they get very excited! Rewards don’t always have to come in the form of sugar!
4. Take them grocery shopping.
It may not be your idea of fun, but we encourage you to get the whole family involved in grocery shopping! Let the kids pick out the produce! Or let them try using the scales to weigh the vegetables you’re purchasing — any way to get them excited about new fruits and vegetables! Helping you at the store might be another way for them to likely try the foods they (not you!) put in the cart.
5. Let them help you in the kitchen!
If everyone has a helping hand in dinner, it might encourage them to eat what they’ve worked so hard to prepare! Even if it’s washing fruit and vegetables (or if you’re comfortable, they can chop, too), give them a specific task!
Put them in charge of re-filling snack baskets. If you have the snack-sized Ziplock bags, they can pre-portion out their snacks for school, too!
6. Use meal planning charts!
Instead of you sitting down to plan out your families’ meals alone each week, enlist your help from your family! This would be a great opportunity to talk about the fruits and vegetables that are currently in season and let them pick which ones they’d like along with the main dish. And once it’s on the chart, there’s no fuss about breakfast, lunch or dinner — it’s already been discussed and planned! Another bonus: you’re organized for the whole week! This will simplify grocery shopping as well!
7. Let your kids help prepare their own lunch boxes.
Make it fun — use shapes and a variety of colors. Cut their sandwiches, cheese, and fruit into different shapes. Mix it up with color, like green cucumbers, red strawberries, orange carrots or yellow bell peppers. And send healthy dips to go along! Try finding a yogurt-based Ranch for dipping, hummus or peanut butter. Use muffin cups to separate foods and add color. You could also roll up sliced turkey with cheese and add a toothpick!
8. Make exercising fun!
Exercise doesn’t have to be a chore. Get a stopwatch and have a relay race or see how many jumping jacks they can do in 1 minute! Get out the jump ropes and hula-hoops. Turn on some fun music and have a dance contest! If the weather is nice, ask them to join you for a jog! Sign up for family races or 5k events that have a Family Fun Run. Let them see you honoring your body through exercise! Most likely, if your kids see you on the floor doing push-ups, they’re going to want to join in! And if not, ask them — that might be all it takes is an invitation from you!
9. Have patience.
Just like in your journey to a whole body transformation, it takes time for their bodies and minds to adjust to new habits. Changes don't happen overnight. Extend extra compassion, love, and patience to them. Eventually, they will enjoy time in the kitchen, trips to the grocery store and exercising with you.
10. Praise!
We all need affirmation and encouragement in our lives. They need to hear from us, “Great job!” or “I am so proud of you!” So any chance you get, take it! Tell them, show them, affirm them every single day!
We encourage you to help motivate your family to have a healthier lifestyle! We believe in you and know you can do it!
Another place to find tips and healthy recipes are in our, Healthy Families Handbook eBook. You can purchase it HERE! This is a great resource to use when it comes to better whole-body health for your family!
If you plan a meal with your family or get in a family workout, please send us a picture! We would love to see what you and your family do! If you have any questions, please email us at transfitathens@gmail.com.
Please join us this coming Thursday night 6 PM for a fun, free, community workout event benefiting HOPE 139! Sign up on the app to reserve your spot (limited number available).
Blessings,
Team TransFit
