Your teen or tween may not have the perspective yet to recognize what they need to do or not to to get healthy and/or avoid falling into unhealthy habits. As a caring, involved parent, you want to provide guidance, but you don’t know what to say or how to get him or her to listen. Your child is probably listening to you less and less as he or she is turning more to the guidance of peers. Luckily, modeling has been shown to be a very powerful way of shaping your child’s behavior. They will do what you do more than they will do what you say.
Recently the question has been posed to me in various variations of ‘how do we reach the teens’? As a therapist and working closely with INShape Indiana on health promotions, I understand that you cannot work harder for someone than they work for themselves, or you cannot care about their growth more than they do. Doing so would be a fast track to burnout and poor client relationships, which helps no one. I have taken to regularly texting and chatting with a few of my teen cousins to try to make sure I understand their culture and what is motivating to them. (We didn’t have texting when I was a teen!) If we find it difficult to motivate real life change in adults who generally have a wider perspective on the real costs and benefits, how do we reach teenagers and help them develop healthy habits early?
So, you’ve got a busy life. Classes, work, errands, a few kids thrown in the mixture that have this annoying habit of wanting to eat on a regular schedule. What’s a busy mom to do? Well, wait – scratch that. A busy mom might not think twice about hitting the drive-thru a few times a week. That’s not great for your wallet, and it definitely plays havoc on your health. I’m trying to focus more on the healthy side of the balance, though, and fast-food drive-ins don’t play well. So here’s a list of items that I keep on hand all the time to make a quick, healthy meal on the fly.
1 – Canned Beans. HUGE amounts of flavor, fiber and protein, and low in both fat and calories.
2- Whole Grain Pasta. Quick cooking and high in protein, you can make virtually anything – pasta salad, serve it with sauce, mix it with beans.
3- Frozen Vegetables and Fruits. Flash frozen straight from the field, they have a surprisingly high vitamin content and you can add them to tomato sauce to help fill little tummies. Frozen fruits make excellent smoothies, perfect for a fast breakfast.
There’s a new health food company on the block. [Me] & goji may have a peculiar name, but the thought behind it is very sane (and inventive). They are a bit like Kashi, in that they take healthy, sometimes exotic ingredients, and come up with tasty cereals that are great for starting your busy day.
The difference with [me] & goji is that they offer a customizable buffet of ingredients for their customers. The company collects healthy foods from around the world, and then they leave it to you to fuse them in combinations that satisfy your tastes and nutritional needs. Then they deliver your custom concoction to your doorstep.
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