10 Steps to a Healthier Family

Posted By Lynn Carter

Tags: 10, steps, to, a, healthier, family

Life is busy and with busier schedules comes a few compromises.  Health is one thing we can't afford to compromise.  Without our health, we have nothing! 

Here are 10 Steps to a Healthier Family that we try to practice regularly at our home.

Get moving! One of our favourite family activities is hiking.  It's a great way to exercise, talk, and enjoy nature all at the same time.  We also enjoy swimming in our backyard pool.  It's not only good exercise but an incredible way to bond with your children.  Play together!

Get rid of the processed foods! Now, I like junk food just as much as the rest of you but I don't like what it does to me.  It's hard to justify feeding my family food that has little or no nutritional value in it.  If you think of your body like a bank account, every time you eat processed foods, you are actually making a withdrawal from your "health account".  Don't waste your money on white bread, white rice or any other processed foods! 

Bring on the fruits & veggies!  Once you are rid of the processed foods and start adding more fruits and vegetables into your diet, you will actually start to crave them!  Summer is an excellent time to introduce your family to new varieties of produce.  There's nothing more appetizing than a colourful fruit or veggie tray.  Dig in guilt free and know that you are doing your body good!

Multivitamin!  Even with eating the recommended number of servings of fruits and vegetables, studies show that we still aren't getting the nutrients we need.  Include the habit of taking multivitamins daily.  Do your research on this because not all vitamins are created equally.   Some vitamins are not easily absorbed by your body leaving you literally flushing your hard earned money down the toilet.

Drink more water!  Don't leave home without it!  Invest in a great portable water bottle in stainless steel or BPA FREE plastic and always be drinking from it.  Also, a water cooler in your home will save you money because kids like to fill up their own drinks and will choose the visible water cooler over the juice container that's in the fridge.

Don't drink your calories!  So many calories are consumed by drinking sugary drinks.  Once again, most of these drinks are empty calories, offering no nutritional value at all.  If you are trying to lose weight, cutting down on sugary drinks can make a huge difference.  Even though fruit juices like apple and orange juice are good for you, it's better to eat the fruit.  The fruit comes in the proper portion size and contains fiber to fill you up.

Say "NO"!  One of my favourite quotes is this one by Robin Sharma; "Every time you say YES to something that is unimportant, you say NO to something that is important."  Know what is important to your family.  What are your values and goals?  If something doesn't line up with your family values...say NO!

Get a good night sleep!  There is nothing worse than grumpy kids...or a grumpy Mom or Dad because of lack of sleep.  It's hard to always get the recommended hours of sleep but we should try to get at least 5 out of 7 good sleeps in a week.  When you get enough sleep, you'll see the best sides of your kids and spouse, think more clearly and get a lot more accomplished in your day.  You also won't be nearly as likely to catch that nasty bug that is going around!

Create family traditions!  I think this is an easy thing to do but with our busy lives, it is also a necessary thing to do!  It doesn't have to be expensive.  It can be as simple as family meal time once a day or a movie night.  Who doesn't love a good movie? 

Every Friday night, when our kids were young,  we would all get into our PJ's and grab our favourite blankets and watch a movie on our pull out sofa.  It was inexpensive and something the kids looked forward to. 

We also go to church together every Sunday.  This ensures that our kids grow up with the same values that we grew up with and that we find important. 

Look away from your computer monitor!  (...after you are done reading the rest of this article)  I think it does us good to get away from everything electronic for short periods of time on a regular basis.  It helps us to really disconnect from the world and relax. 

On our vacation this year, it took a couple of days for myself and the kids to not miss our electronic gadgets.  This is when I realized that I'm addicted to my Ipod and my kids are on their gaming systems way more than necessary. 

When we finally did disconnect, our minds were clear to fully experience the breathtaking beauty of nature and actually live in the moment! 

 Lynn Carter

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