Tip #1

Hello out there! I was woken up this morning by my five year old who came to tell me at 6:30 that tomorrow is her first day of school and that she just can't wait. The second thing that I heard was my almost 6 month old daughter laying in her crib making fart noises and laughing at herself. I can't think of a better way to wake up in the morning. The first day of school is indeed a little bitter-sweet. I can't believe that my little kiddo is this big already! It just doesn't seem possible.

Anyways...

I was debating quite a bit about what my tip today should be. I think a good way to start my tips is to tell you how I started talking to my oldest daughter about food. Many parents don't talk to their kids about nutrition and food choices at a young age because they think that they aren't old enough to understand. Not true. We started talking about these things when kiddo was 2.

Obviously, you don't need to explain to your 2 year old the in's and outs of fiber content or the complexity of the calories per serving measurements. We explained food in a very simply classification system. There are two categories, "Always foods" and "Sometimes foods." We haven't labeled anything a "Never food" to avoid making it seem more glamorous or desirable than it needs to be. The way that you decide which category something falls into is to ask yourself one simply question "Does this make me grow?"

So, lets use some examples:

Carrots... Does it make me grow? Yes. So it falls into the "Always" category. This means it is a food that we should always take if it is served or always include in our diet when possible. That of coarse includes all vegis, lean proteins, whole grains, and fruits. Now, I know that this might ignore the complexity of eating the right portions of meat or bread, but we are also talking about kids here. Make it simple and easy. Carrots are something you should always eat if given the option. That's pretty easy.

Now, the sometimes category.

Potato chips... Does it make me grow? No. So, it falls into the "Sometimes" category. This means that it is a food that should be eaten once in a while. "Sometimes foods" usually taste very good, but do not help little bodies grow up big and strong. If it doesn't help you grow, then you should eat it occasionally, but not use it as a meal or something to fill your belly. "Sometimes foods" are just that, occasional treats rather than staples in our diet.

As children get older, you can replace the "makes me grow" with "makes me healthy," but when you have a little one, growing means health to them. Think about it. They walk around putting on our shoes and pretend to go to work or the store. They play dress up and pretend to be doctors and teachers. Little kids want to grow. They want to be big and strong like daddy and mommy. So, tell them how. Tell them that eating vegetables will make them big and strong and that potato chips won't. They will listen.

Now, the second part to this is that you, as the adult, need to set the example. You need to take an inventory of your eating habits. The same questions apply. "Will eating 10 chocolate chip cookies for dinner make me healthy?" No. "Can I have a pork chop with a side of vegis and then eat 1 or 2 cookies for dessert?" Yes.

This isn't a diet. It's simply eating consciously. It's not standing in front of the fridge, eating spoonfuls of ice cream while deciding what to make for dinner... and then wondering why your not that hungry when you sit down to eat. If you, as the adult, implement the same system of asking yourself what will make you healthy and what won't, you will set the example for your kids. Eat the healthy food more and the unhealthy food occasionally. If you eat more healthy, your kids will too. Empower your kids as well as yourself.

So, skinny kids fat world tip #1 is:

Empower yourself and your kids to choose healthy food over chips and cookies. Educate your kids (and start early) about how to make healthy decisions to help them grow big and strong. You will be surprised at how quickly they catch on.