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Written by Dr. Jake, Ask Dr. Jake Contributor
Now that we are into our thirties and most of our friends, family and patients have children under the age of twelve, we have began to recognize that most folks don’t understand the most important principle of life besides loving the Lord, it’s your health.
Here are 3 simple steps to keep your family healthy during this season:
Vitamin D3
Turn off the TV, video games and get outside!
- The number of minutes per week that parents spend in meaningful conversation with their children: 210 (3.5 hours)
- Number of minutes per week the average child watches television: 1,680 (28 hours)
- Percentage of 4-to-6-year-olds who, when asked to choose between watching TV and spending time with their fathers, preferred television: 54 %
- 1 in 5 ads for food, 70% fast food
- 5.2 food ads presented every hour. Science Daily 2009
- 80 drug ads every hour on TV NPR 2009
- In 2009, preschoolers saw 56% more ads for Subway, 21% more ads for McDonald’s and 9% more ads for Burger King, compared with 2007.
- Children age 6 to 11 saw even more: 59% more ads for Subway, 26% more for McDonald’s and 10% more for Burger King.
Source: L.A. Times 2010
Don’t Consume Toxic Meat
It takes approximately 5 to 8 pounds of chemically sprayed grain to produce 1 pound of beef. Therefore you will ingest considerably more cancer causing chemicals from meat than from fruit and vegetables.
On average, one glass of inorganic, store-bought milk contains the residue of about a hundred different antibiotics. Once in our bodies, these antibiotics ultimately weaken our immune system.
Big Shopping Tip Alert: If you are going to buy anything organic, start with animal products, meat, butter, cheese.
Other Toxins that sneak into our lives are:
- Fluoride- Water, toothpastes, mouthwash
- Mold- HVAC, water damage
- Pesticides– Food, environment
- Drugs– Over the counter and prescriptions
- Victim mindset- brainwashing food and drug ads
How do you keep your family healthy?
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Written by Jenn @ A Simple Haven, Contributing Writer
Last fall, not taking great care of myself finally caught up with me: I was exhausted, stressed, sick more often than usual, and emotionally all over the place.
After catching what I’m pretty sure was shingles, I finally went to my doc, who asked some basic questions: Was I getting enough sleep? Exercise? Water?
Um, not so much.
Except the water. Thanks to what I lovingly refer to as “my sippy,” I excel in hydration.
She ran some blood work; turns out I was vitamin D deficient, too.
While poor self-care wasn’t the only cause of all my funky symptoms, hitting this low point helped me realize I needed to prioritize taking care of myself—specifically in sleep and exercise.
For me, the sleep issue was pretty straightforward: I just needed to go to bed earlier.
But as a stay-at-home-mom of two small children, regular exercise was going to take a little more creativity.
When my kids were younger, I’d pack them into the double jogger and we’d all enjoy some fresh air together. Now, everyone wants to walk, ride their trike, or Stop. Every. Two. Feet. To. Pick. Up. Rocks.
I won’t say I’ve arrived at any miraculous solutions to the mom-exercise question or that I’ve become awesome at consistently exercising myself.
But through trial and error and the input of friends, I’ve got a few ideas worth trying.
Mom-Friendly Exercise Ideas
Prioritize it.
As Michael Hyatt says, “figure out your why.” Decide why exercise is important to you. Write it down. Then set some S.M.A.R.T. goals related to fitness.
Find a buddy.
Share your exercise goals with your spouse or a close friend and see if they might work out with you. You could get up early to walk, run, or do a gym class with a friend.
And even if you and hubby don’t work out together, sharing your exercise goals can help you support each other in your individual workouts.
Maybe he goes to the gym on the way home from work, but is willing to take the kids when he gets home so you can go run. Or you both get up early, but he runs while you do a workout video.
I recently heard of a group of moms meeting up at a park to workout; with gates shut and an open field, the kids played while the mommies ran.
This used to work.
Get up early.
If you can get up even thirty minutes before your kids, you’ve got time to exercise. Do a workout video or go for a run/walk. Or if you’ve got a gym membership and you can get there early enough, do it.
If you’re not a “morning person,” I submit that it’s possible to become one.
On the other hand, if you’ve got little ones getting up through the night, this is probably not the season for morning workouts.
Be strategic.
Take advantage of chunks of time when someone else can watch your kids. Can Dad play with them in the backyard for 20 minutes while you do a two-mile run?
If you have family close by or a good sitter, it might be worth it to schedule regular childcare so you can get a run (or bike ride, etc.) in consistently.
Even trading childcare with a friend or neighbor once a week could guarantee you an hour of workout time.
Join a gym.
If finances allow, there are decent options, and the childcare situation works well, a gym membership might be an easy answer.
They make my workouts…more fun. 
Include the kids.
Not my favorite solution, but often a doable one. During the winter, I got hooked on a ballet workout video. My kids would join in as they were able and after a while, would request to “do ballet exercising.”
A friend of mine bikes with her husband; they pull their kids behind. Another friend is a committed runner and until she had her third baby, regularly jogged with her kids in the Double Bob.
Change your definition of exercise.
Unless your workout goals involve training for an event, we can probably just define exercise as intentionally moving your body to keep it strong and healthy.
And in that case, a myriad of things can count as exercise: gardening, mowing the lawn, pushing a kid in a stroller while carrying another one, following your trike rider around the neighborhood, going on a hike with your family, playing tennis on a date with your husband…the list goes on.
Hiking with him on my back = exercise
Keep it in perspective.
If I go back to the basics of my worldview (and steer clear of cultural messages that define beauty as merely physical), I’m simply exercising to take care of the body God gave me.
Not to be perfectly toned or look exactly as I did before I had kids.
And with that perspective in place, I can probably fit adequate exercise into my weekly schedule after all.
Do you fit regular exercise into your routine? How? Or, why is it a struggle?
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Written by Nell @ Whole Parenting Family, Contributing Writer
When you’ve sugared out, and your kiddos have too, it’s time to detox before New Years so you can get a smooth start on your resolutions to eat less sugar, and work out more. Wait, that’s your plan too?? Who doesn’t have that resolve (at least til February)? Maybe you can put this off til after New Years, if you’re going to be at home on vacation, eating those leftover cookies.
First and foremost, let’s address our food habits.
Are we eating as healthfully as we can financially and time-wise afford? How many vegetable servings a day? C’mon, Nell, potatoes in the form of fries count, right?? How much is fresh or frozen and how much is processed? It is amazing how a food plan can save you lots of money and turn meal planning into a once-a-week stress instead of every night scramble. Have you seen all the great healthy recipes day2day joys offers? Look HERE!
I aim for one chicken night (chicken parm over a bed of lettuce?), one beef night (tacos!), one soup night (my fav butternut squash recipe here), one pizza night (easy homemade recipe here), one veggie night (getting creative with beans & grains: faro & millet risotto with peas), breakfast for dinner!, and takeout or leftovers. I think that covers all our nights. My best friends are frozen veggies I steam & toss with butter, or roast on a sheet in the oven with olive oil. Instant kid-vitamins inhaled.
Scour the interwebs and pinterest to find meals that touch on all the food groups and are realistic for you. I’ve pinned a whole slew of “lunch & dinner” recipes, many of which I may never actually cook. Keep the ingredients real and the directions simple.
Secondly, how much we move our bodies.
We so often procrastinate working out because we need to work up to it. Working out doesn’t have to mean spandex and a gym or yoga studio pass. It can truly mean wearing the sweats you’ve slept in and going for a brisk walk. Kids in carriers & strollers & trotting alongside you, et al. Just walking a few times a week reduces heart disease in people at risk, according to a recent study out by the NHS.
If we don’t view it as all-or-nothing requiring a new workout wardrobe, trainer, and body, and instead embrace that our busy parenting lifestyles aren’t as conducive as our single hood days to being fit, we can start to actually do it. Take a hike, take a walk, do an online workout or yoga video, swing your free weights during nap-time while on a conference call, or even simply stretch. I know when I’ve stretched and how much better I feel (not to mention better posture! hello, Mrs. Humpback!), and when I haven’t.
Be where you are today and make baby steps to go toward moving more, just to move that blood around!
Thirdly, take your spiritual pulse.
How much time did you dedicate to your relationship with your screen-tool-of-choice (smart phone, computer, tablet) this past year/week/day? How much time did you dedicate to your relationship with God? I can easily confess the former has received way more time than the latter. It’s so easy to slip into the comfort of feeding our egos and brains instead of contemplating our actions, reading spiritual books and the Bible, and engaging with our Creator.
If we died tomorrow, would we be happy with how we’ve treat God? Even in the busiest of lives with no extra moments squandered, that person too can make time for God, and needs to for her spiritual health. How can we stay grounded if we don’t ground to the ultimate tether? How can we replenish our well of love if we’re not dipping into the source?
Make that new habit. Start the morning with a quick prayer. Start each meal with thanks. Read the good stuff instead of perusing the internet if we have a few moments. Go over your day in your head before you fall asleep, asking for forgiveness for your failings and offering thanks for your blessings. Teach these habits to your children and nudge your spouse in this direction.
We will all be better family members if we put time into this relationship, both with our earthly family and our heavenly one!
What do you do to recover from the Holidays?
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