With summer winding down, there is generally a sense of relief among parents - the kids will be safely back in school and occupied with school related activities. However, with school comes the added stress of homework, extra curricular activities, early wake-up calls, carpooling, packing lunches, late dinner, etc., etc. With all these additions, it can be hard for you AND your kids to keep up with exercise and healthy eating, especially with those neon drive-thru signs on nearly every corner!!
Here are 8 ways to manage your stress and keep your (and your kiddos'!) fitness in check:
1. Manage Your Stress.
Do something on a daily basis just for the sake of ENJOYING it, Yep, that’s right, my first tip to you is to create some space for joy in your life; this is one of the BEST ways to minimize stress levels. Sit down and make a list of at least 10 activities you enjoy doing - just stream of consciousness, let it flow! Here is my list as an example:
Hiking
Reading
Meditation
Yoga
Baking
Traveling
Bubble baths
Walking the dog at sunset
Watching the sunrise with a hot cup of tea
Journaling
Do one of your favorite things DAILY for a minimum of 30 minutes; if you find yourself exclaiming “ I don’t have time for that,” please think about what that means - you don’t have 30 minutes (2%) of your day to spend on yourself?
2. Eat Food You Enjoy
Sense a theme here? Health is NOT about doing things you hate! Healthy nutrition is unsustainable if you don’t enjoy what you are eating! (Now, I am not telling you to go binge on cookies and ice cream, far from it.) This time of year in particular, it is easy to fall into poor eating habits like skipping meals or running through the drive-thru on the way home. We are soooo busy nowadays and it is easy to start justifying these supposedly more convenient choices.
In order to make sure you are getting what you need AND what you like, I highly suggest creating meal plans for your week. You can look sample ones up online or have meal plans customized just for you.
3. Prepare and Beware (the Drive-thru Monster)
To keep the drive-thru urge at bay, make sure to carry (or pack for your kids) healthy snacks like an apple with some peanut butter, a string cheese and some grapes, carrots and hummus etc. Please avoid any sort of “bars” as they are generally loaded with sugar - if you need something pre-packaged, opt for nuts.
Also, make sure that dinner is either easy or done! I am a HUGE fan of crockpot meals. Pinterest is a great source for inventive and easy options! If you don’t have a crock pot or don’t like using it, do all the prep work for your weekday meals on the weekend so the prep time any one night is 30 minutes, MAX!
4. Meal Plan
Meal planning can mean different things to different people, but doing some form of it will help you from falling off track, especially during this busy time of year. Here are some ideas:
* Plan out 6-8 weeks of meal plans (1 per week), make grocery lists, and bookmark recipes; rotate these plans throughout the school year.
* Pick one day a week (likely Saturday or Sunday) and a spend 1-2 hours prepping things like lunches, snacks, or dinners for the week; your teens can help you (hello quality time!)
* Shop online. Amazon Fresh is my BFF these days because it saves me time, money, and calories from those all too frequent check-out line impulse buys!
* Make freezer meals in advance to use on those busy nights.
* Use a meal planning service. This has become more and more popular and is great in a pinch, but after awhile, things start tasting the same. I am a fan of Local Foodz, based in San Mateo for customized meals.
5. Play With Your Kids
Of course parents WANT to play with their kids, but there is always so much to do! It can be incredibly difficult to go from task mode to play mode, but challenge yourself to do this at least once a day. Losing yourself in play can raise endorphins and ease anxiety.
Physical play presents opportunities for both you and your kids to get some much needed exercise. Talk a walk (or a run, if that’s your thing), shoot some hoops in the back yard, go to the batting cages, swim some laps, take a cycling class together, or just go to the park and hang on some monkey bars! ;)
6. Resist Each Other
That is, do some resistance training, with your spouse or your teen, or if you have to, on your own! As a personal trainer, I am floor by how many people do not engage in resistance training. Throwing weight around is good for your health (bones, joints, etc.) and helps reduce stress. This doesn’t have to be complicated, lengthy, or involve a ton of equipment; basic pull-ups, push-ups, squats, and lunges will do the trick. Just make sure you have good form!
7. Walk Daily
Sounds simple enough, right? But do you do it?? Walking helps balance the pelvis and relieve stress - bye bye back pain! It’s also something you can do anywhere, with or without your teens. Aim to walk briskly for at least thirty minutes every day; even if you have to break it up into smaller chunks!
If you are part of a competitive family, I recommend starting a steps challenge to keep everyone on track. Maybe loser makes dinner one night the next week??
8. Get More Sleep
Sleep deprivation is rampant in our competitive society, I am totally guilty! The saddest part is that we BRAG about how little sleep we get; basically we are bragging about ruining our bodies and our minds.
Lead by example here - get to bed at a time that allows you to get 7-8 hours of sleep a night. Do not continually talk about how tired you are or brag about the number of hours of sleep you are running on - that perpetuates the problem. Encourage MORE sleep. Sleep = Brain Recovery = Better Performance, period.
I hope these tips make for a smoother transition into the oh so hectic school year!!
Here are 8 ways to manage your stress and keep your (and your kiddos'!) fitness in check:
1. Manage Your Stress.
Do something on a daily basis just for the sake of ENJOYING it, Yep, that’s right, my first tip to you is to create some space for joy in your life; this is one of the BEST ways to minimize stress levels. Sit down and make a list of at least 10 activities you enjoy doing - just stream of consciousness, let it flow! Here is my list as an example:
Hiking
Reading
Meditation
Yoga
Baking
Traveling
Bubble baths
Walking the dog at sunset
Watching the sunrise with a hot cup of tea
Journaling
Do one of your favorite things DAILY for a minimum of 30 minutes; if you find yourself exclaiming “ I don’t have time for that,” please think about what that means - you don’t have 30 minutes (2%) of your day to spend on yourself?
2. Eat Food You Enjoy
Sense a theme here? Health is NOT about doing things you hate! Healthy nutrition is unsustainable if you don’t enjoy what you are eating! (Now, I am not telling you to go binge on cookies and ice cream, far from it.) This time of year in particular, it is easy to fall into poor eating habits like skipping meals or running through the drive-thru on the way home. We are soooo busy nowadays and it is easy to start justifying these supposedly more convenient choices.
In order to make sure you are getting what you need AND what you like, I highly suggest creating meal plans for your week. You can look sample ones up online or have meal plans customized just for you.
3. Prepare and Beware (the Drive-thru Monster)
To keep the drive-thru urge at bay, make sure to carry (or pack for your kids) healthy snacks like an apple with some peanut butter, a string cheese and some grapes, carrots and hummus etc. Please avoid any sort of “bars” as they are generally loaded with sugar - if you need something pre-packaged, opt for nuts.
Also, make sure that dinner is either easy or done! I am a HUGE fan of crockpot meals. Pinterest is a great source for inventive and easy options! If you don’t have a crock pot or don’t like using it, do all the prep work for your weekday meals on the weekend so the prep time any one night is 30 minutes, MAX!
4. Meal Plan
Meal planning can mean different things to different people, but doing some form of it will help you from falling off track, especially during this busy time of year. Here are some ideas:
* Plan out 6-8 weeks of meal plans (1 per week), make grocery lists, and bookmark recipes; rotate these plans throughout the school year.
* Pick one day a week (likely Saturday or Sunday) and a spend 1-2 hours prepping things like lunches, snacks, or dinners for the week; your teens can help you (hello quality time!)
* Shop online. Amazon Fresh is my BFF these days because it saves me time, money, and calories from those all too frequent check-out line impulse buys!
* Make freezer meals in advance to use on those busy nights.
* Use a meal planning service. This has become more and more popular and is great in a pinch, but after awhile, things start tasting the same. I am a fan of Local Foodz, based in San Mateo for customized meals.
5. Play With Your Kids
Of course parents WANT to play with their kids, but there is always so much to do! It can be incredibly difficult to go from task mode to play mode, but challenge yourself to do this at least once a day. Losing yourself in play can raise endorphins and ease anxiety.
Physical play presents opportunities for both you and your kids to get some much needed exercise. Talk a walk (or a run, if that’s your thing), shoot some hoops in the back yard, go to the batting cages, swim some laps, take a cycling class together, or just go to the park and hang on some monkey bars! ;)
6. Resist Each Other
That is, do some resistance training, with your spouse or your teen, or if you have to, on your own! As a personal trainer, I am floor by how many people do not engage in resistance training. Throwing weight around is good for your health (bones, joints, etc.) and helps reduce stress. This doesn’t have to be complicated, lengthy, or involve a ton of equipment; basic pull-ups, push-ups, squats, and lunges will do the trick. Just make sure you have good form!
7. Walk Daily
Sounds simple enough, right? But do you do it?? Walking helps balance the pelvis and relieve stress - bye bye back pain! It’s also something you can do anywhere, with or without your teens. Aim to walk briskly for at least thirty minutes every day; even if you have to break it up into smaller chunks!
If you are part of a competitive family, I recommend starting a steps challenge to keep everyone on track. Maybe loser makes dinner one night the next week??
8. Get More Sleep
Sleep deprivation is rampant in our competitive society, I am totally guilty! The saddest part is that we BRAG about how little sleep we get; basically we are bragging about ruining our bodies and our minds.
Lead by example here - get to bed at a time that allows you to get 7-8 hours of sleep a night. Do not continually talk about how tired you are or brag about the number of hours of sleep you are running on - that perpetuates the problem. Encourage MORE sleep. Sleep = Brain Recovery = Better Performance, period.
I hope these tips make for a smoother transition into the oh so hectic school year!!
