A healthy lifestyle from the eyes of a child

Ethan at his Brewer Game Birthday Party on September 16th.  The Brewers won just for his birthday!

I told you yesterday what I struggle I have been having this week so yesterday I watched what I ate very carefully.  I ate lots of fruits and veggies.  I ate small portions, tracked and counted everything.  Most importantly, I didn't eat any cookies.

It's amazing how good I feel today.  I didn't get any more sleep last night than I do any other night (I'm still working on getting more sleep in my life), but I feel so much better than I did all week. When I eat a good, balanced diet my body functions better.  I have more energy. I sleep more soundly and fall asleep faster. I feel healthy. I feel thinner even though I may look the same. I actually want to take care of myself better too.  It's amazing how what we eat truly affects our lives.

I can see it in my children too.  Even though we eat pretty healthy in my house we do eat some junk food too.  I notice when my kids eat too much junk food that they are sluggish in their day. My 8-year-old, Ethan, is probably my healthiest eater.  If you offer him a cookie you do not have to be surprised if he says no.  He loves to eat fruits and vegetables.  When we go to a drive-thru and the other kids order chicken nuggets, he orders a salad.  He's incredible!  I want to be like him when I grow up.

Don't get me wrong.  He's a normal 8-year-old kid.  He cleans his room by shoving everything under the bed.  He hits his brothers and sister when he gets mad.  He argues with the best of the best.  But that said, he is a very healthy kid and will probably lead a very healthy lifestyle.

He loves to stay active too.  When he takes out the garbage, he goes the long way around the house so he can get more exercise.  That was his idea. He begs to play the Wii so he can play Wii Fit.  He loves to make goals with his Mii.  If you are not aware of Wii Fit, you can make goals for yourself (called your Mii.)  I had to tell him when we first got the game that his goals needed to be to gain weight, not to lose weight.  He set a goal to lose weight the first time he played and was frustrated when he didn't make his goal.  I also need to measure him when he plays so we can adjust his height.  If we forget to do that once in a while it tells him that he's in danger of being overweight because it doesn't know he grew 2 inches.  He is nowhere near in danger of being overweight!

He just turned 8 on Sunday and he makes me think about my own actions all of the time.  He makes me realize that it's okay to say no to sweets.  He makes me remember to stop eating when I am full.  He makes me remember that activity is a good thing and that I should strive to get as much as possible. When the choices are to play outside or to sit in the house and watch TV, he chooses outside.  I know that he's got plenty of energy because of his young age but I'm sure that much of his energy comes from his healthy lifestyle too.

When my first child was born I read lots of books about babies and children.  One thing that I remember reading in many of the books is how we are born with innate senses of being full.  The baby books will tell you not to stuff your babies.  When the baby says he or she is done, then he or she is done.  They know when they are full.  These rules are the same for children.  My children have always been pretty good eaters but I have friends who have children with a lot of food dislikes.  As parents my friends worry about their children.  Their doctors tell them not to worry about it.  As long as the child is healthy and growing, they don't have to eat a lot.  This seems to be hard for our culture to grasp.  We love our food here in America.  We use it to heal so many hurts.  We can't imagine that our kids don't need a lot of it.  I'm not saying that if your child wont eat any fruits and veggies that you should throw in the towel.  In that case, you would keep trying to offer it and probably force them to eat some.  What I am saying is that if you watch a child eat and stop when they are full or say no to more food, you will see how wonderfully we were made and how we as adults are are supposed to act too.  Watch a child today.  What healthy habits do they have that you can incorporate too?  At one time you had those healthy habits innate in you too. Just don't clean your room by shoving everything under the bed;)

Until next time,

Corinna

"The little children were being brought to him in order that he might lay his hands on them and pray.  The disciples spoke sternly to those who brought them; but Jesus said, 'Let the little children come to me, and do not stop them; for it is to such as these that the kingdom of heaven belongs.' And he laid his hands on them and wen ton his way." -Matthew 19: 13-15