Having your children help in the kitchen is one of the best ways for them to become adventures eaters.  The more they are surrounded by different foods and interacting with them through the cooking process the more likely they are to actually try the foods being set down in front of them at the dinner table, and this can be started at a very young age.  It is also a great way for them to work on skills that are needed in life.

Here are some ideas to help you to get your children involved in the kitchen.

Toddler- get a Learning Tower so they can join you at the counter and help pour pre-measured ingredients into mixing bowls.  Don't want to spend the money on a Learning Tower, set them at your dining room table with a bowl filled with some spices and have them mix them, it's always fun to have them smell each of them before they put them into the bowl and even allowing them to taste them if they are curious.  Let them snap the ends off of green beans and asparagus as this is always a fun thing for them at this age.  Even pulling the silk off of corn can be done at this age.  Let them also put the finishing touches on the food by sprinkling a little bit of salt and pepper on everything before it goes into the oven or onto the cook top.

Ages 4-8 - This is a great age for them to begin learning how to whisk and stir batters.  have them practice cutting up fruit and vegetables with a small pairing knife (my daughter always loved chopping the tops off of the strawberries), tearing the lettuce to go into the salad and tossing all of the ingredients together, setting the table, clearing the table, and learning how to unload the dishwasher.

Ages 9-12 - Great age for them to start becoming more involved with helping in the kitchen and starting to cook basic meals independently. There are many subscription services that send a box each month to kids that include recipes and a fun kitchen utensil, we love Kidstir for this. You can also have them find recipes in cookbooks or online they want to try. Once they pick it out have them write out the ingredients they need from the store. Once you have everything be on the sidelines ready to assist as needed.

Ages 12+ - they should be able to independently make easy meals for themselves including making a sandwich, eggs, pasta, and macaroni and cheese. Have them help make the side dishes or even give them a night to be head chef! As they get older and more comfortable then the recipes can become more complex.  

​The key is to make it fun, don't act as if it is a chore for them to do or you will automatically get push back from them.  We have found that watching cooking/baking competitions help our children to get into the kitchen more.  My children love doing competitions in the summer where they each make a dessert, we have the grandparents over for dinner, and then we all judge which one was the best.  Now that they are older we have started to place each one in charge of dinner one night a week; this is fun for them as they are in complete control with what is being served, the preparation of the meal, and then the adults do the clean up.  

Have you gotten your children in the kitchen?

Join us over in our Form Fit Mom Community on Facebook for more fun ways to help your children get involved in a healthy life.

Children have been greatly impacted by 2020 with one of the biggest problems being their sedentary lifestyle.  In a world where they already were sitting more, 2020 put almost a complete stop to movement for our children.  The Journal of Nutrition and Physical Activity mentions that only 4.8 of children (5-11) and 0.6 of youth (12-17) were meeting the daily guidelines for daily activity.

They found that the children who were able to get their daily activity in were the ones with parents encouraging them to get outside and play, were getting out and moving with them, or those that had a dog to take out for walks.

Getting out and encouraging your children to move more is one of the greatest things we can do to help raise children that will be healthy and happy.  Don't worry about them exercising, just have them get outside and play.  The more you can get your children moving it will help to improve blood flow to the organs, especially the brain.  More blood flow allows our bodies to make its own internal medicine (called Nitric Oxide) which will help to decrease inflammation.  The faster your blood flows through the vessels the more it stimulates them to produce nitric oxide which are the nutrients for the organs.

So how can we get our children to move more? 

• Allow your house to have more movement spaces for them.  Hang a pull up bar in a doorway so that everyone can practice hanging on it when they walk through the door, to help get more movement in while at home.
• Get outside yourself and your kids will usually follow suit.  Play for a bit with them and then allow them to continue to play on their own.
• If they are interested in using weights, feel free to let them use them for fun, but be cautious about having them lift heavier weights prior to Puberty as they need to have proper testosterone levels to help with proper recovery.
• Make sure they are moving through different modalities to keep from having overuse injuries occur especially for those that play sports.  It's great that they are playing sports but have them practice other sports for fun so that they are moving their bodies in different ways as well.

Ideas for movement in your home:

• Go for family walks or bike rides
• Create obstacle courses in our outside the house
• Floor is lava or dance parties
• Hide and Seek
• Water balloon tag

Other Blog posts you may enjoy:

• Fun Games for your Family
• Family Meal Time
• Family Road Trip

Drinking more water is imperative to our health.  It helps our skin look more like a plum and less like a raisin, it allows our organs to run more efficiently, it helps our fascia to glide across the muscles and not get sticky which is huge for you pregnant momma's as you are less likely to tear during delivery when you are more hydrated.  

It also has an affect on leaky gut.  The cells in your GI Tract should be plump which helps to protect it, when you are dehydrated the cells shrive up and make space for food to get through and enter the bloodstream.  

So these are a few reasons why you need to make sure you are getting enough water into your diet daily.  Here are 5 tips to help you drink more water

1. 
   
2. Make sure you go to bed with a glass of water to help ensure you drink water first thing in the morning.
3. Carry a water bottle with you everywhere
4. Exercise
5. Drink some water when you are getting that snack craving around the 4 o'clock hour
6. Add some electrolytes

If you are looking for more ways to start making healthy changes, than join our 5 day FREE challenge to help you move more in your everyday life while making small healthy changes.

Build your Immune System with these foods everyday.

Smoothies-make sure to fill them with colorful fruits, veggies, seeds, and healthy fats like nuts, or avocado.

Salads-eat one for lunch or dinner everyday.  Make sure to add some crunch for texture, and again the more colorful you can make it the more antioxidants you are getting.

Spices-play around with spices and herbs for different flavors.  I l
ove adding herbs into my salad and cinammon into my coffee.  Get creative!
​
Salmon-eat wild caught fish at least once a week for those healthy Omegas. 

Eating more foods like this every day and less processed foods will allow you to build your Immune system, decrease inflammation in your body and live healthier.  

For more ways to build your immunity, read this.

There are so many benefits to getting outside for a workout, so if you live in an area like Naples, Fl take advantage of it and get outside as often as possible.  Working out outdoors, has so many health benefits and can help you live a healthier life.

Here are a few of the health benefits:

1.  Vitamin D-the fat soluble vitamin that is essential to strong bones and healthy immune systems can safely be attained by the morning sun.


2.   Gives your eyes a rest-our eyes look at so much close up which requires the muscles in your eye to work more.  By looking at things outside and far in the distance it allows the muscles in your eyes to relax which is important for overall eye health. (Katy Bowman-Movement Matters, Alignment Matters)


3. Less anxiety and stress-green spaces have shown to decrease stress and increase mood of those who spend time outdoors and provide for mental well-being.

4. Boosts white blood cells: interacting with phytoncides (airborne chemicals emitted from plants that protect them from rotting and insects) help to boost white blood cells and reduce stress in our bodies (Katy Bowman: Movement Matters, pg 79)

Drop that indoor gym workout and join us.  If you live in our local area (Naples, Fl) than we would love for you to join us for a stroller friendly workout class outside, or join us in your own home through Zoom.  

It is almost February and I can bet most of you didn't follow through with some (if not all) of the fitness goals you made for yourself at the New Year.  Why is that?  ​If you told yourself you were going to work out at least 3x a week and somehow didn't get it in, then maybe its not the lack of motivation that is your problem but rather consistency.  

​Want to workout more? Than you need to make it a habit.  And habits are made by doing something every day; not this 2-3x a week mentality.  ​Please don't go into why you can't do something every day, or how you are so busy and you don't even know what I do in a day talk!  Guess what...

WE ARE ALL BUSY!  

​I don't mean to be rude, but rather, I'm hoping to jar you out of these thoughts that you continue to tell yourself to make excuses.  

​I can guess that you probably have sat around for 5 minutes looking at Facebook to pass the time.  So if you have 5 minutes to do something that usually is going to make you feel like crap,  than you have 5 minutes to also do something that is going to make you feel great and will provide you with enough time to create a habit of movement/exercise in your day.  Stop looking at it like you have to do a 1 hour workout to make it worth it.  

​YOU DON'T!

​Why not instead, work on working out 5 min every single day until it becomes a habit.  If you decide after those 5 minutes you might as well keep going, then go for it!  If you feel like crap or have a lot on your plate for that day, then move on to the next thing and be happy that you got 5 minutes in.

​I want to encourage you to make exercise/movement a habit.  This month concentrate on your consistency!  Get 5 minutes in, each and every day, and let me know how you did below.

​I also have a monthly calendar which provides you with daily workout videos, walks, quick movement exercises, or healthy nutrition habits to try and a group where we hold each other accountable.  Let me know if you would like to join us!

If you are looking to look and feel your best this year than take a moment and drink some water.  

​There are a couple of things you can do to help you get the recommended amount of water in, in a day.

• Drink 8oz of water before you get out of bed
• ​Drink a glass before each meal you eat
• ​Always have some sort of water container with you at all times
• ​When you feel the need to snack, start with some water (it may be your thirsty rather than hungry)
• ​Try drinking with a straw
• ​Try different flavored waters
• whatever your drink of choice (say coffee or wine); you must drink a glass of water before you can enjoy your second cup or glass.  It may keep you from consuming more calories

​​Have you increased your water intake recently?  If so, I would love to hear how it has affected you in the comments below.   ​