In Celebration of Mothers: Heather Smith

Ditching the junk food is good for the soul AND the waistline!

Over the next couple of weeks we will focus on a new aspect of celebrating motherhood: the importance of a healthy lifestyle for moms.  Often we mothers neglect to take time to care for ourselves - spiritually, emotionally, and physically.  We must remember that in order to be the best we can be in any of our endeavors we must first strive to ensure that our own basic needs are being met.  I'm not telling you to go overboard and neglect your responsibilities in order to attend three or four fitness classes a day (that would be selfish, not to mention exhausting!).  What I am suggesting, though, is that you make time for yourself each day - whether it's ten minutes, thirty minutes, or an hour - and focus on something that helps you maintain your focus on who you are and what makes you happy.  Whether it's exercise, prayer, meditation, or just a nap, find time each day to pursue your interests and unwind so you are able to maintain the energy you need to be the very best YOU you can be.

Today my guest, Heather Smith, gives ideas and recommendations for healthy eating and why it is so important to make sure you try and eliminate junk food from your daily diet.

Making Health a Priority

In all the hustle and bustle of carting around kids, maintaining a relationship with your spouse, running errands, managing a household, and still trying to find time for yourself it’s really no surprise that eating healthy gets pushed aside in lieu of convenience foods and restaurant takeaway. However maintaining your own health and that of your family should make the top of the priority list. If you’ve been shucking the health of yourself and your family, here are five reasons why it’s time to start paying more attention to it:

   1.      Eating healthy foods helps give you more energy. It’s unlikely that anyone will deny the fact that being a mom can be exhausting. You need tons of energy to keep up with everything that goes on during a typical day, and healthy eating can help you get more energy to keep you going. Convenience foods and processed foods may give you a quick burst of energy, but they also will result in a slump quickly after. Healthy, whole foods give you energy that last throughout the day.

   2.      When you eat healthy you teach your kids to eat healthy. One of the reasons that many kids are so adverse to healthy foods is because they emulate the actions of their parents. When your kids see you eating – and enjoying – healthy fare, they’re much more likely to like it, or at least be open to trying it, as well. Exposing kids to a variety of fruits and vegetables early on in their lives helps develop a diverse palate right away.

   3.      You’ll feel better all around. You’re doing your body a favor when you feed it healthy foods, and you’ll notice that you feel better all around when you switch to healthier fare. Eating a diet rich in vitamins and nutrients helps you feel more alert, sleep more soundly, and fight off illnesses before they have a chance to start. When you’re operating at full capacity you’ll be much more equipped to tackle all of your responsibilities.

   4.      You’ll start sleeping better. Over time, fueling your body with junk food and highly processed meals will start to negatively affect your sleep patterns, leaving you feeling sluggish all day long. Fueling your body with the right types of foods, however, helps contribute to higher quality sleep, and everyone knows that busy moms need whatever sleep they can get!

   5.      It helps control your weight. Obesity is a rising epidemic, and one that is largely the result of poor diet habits. Keeping your diet rich in healthy foods will help you maintain a healthy weight for your body and will teach your kids the value of choosing healthy foods as well. It also will help foster a better body image, and having a positive body image is something that all kids need to learn.

Making the decision to eat healthily will change the way you view yourself and the way you feel. But it extends much farther than that as well; making healthy choices for you and your family teaches your kids to value their own bodies and to make healthy decisions in their own lives too. Teaching your kids this early on can help pave the way for living a much healthier, happier life.

Author Bio

Heather Smith is an ex-nanny. Passionate about thought leadership and writing, Heather regularly contributes to various career, social media, public relations, branding, and parenting blogs/websites. She also provides value to nanny service by giving advice on site design as well as the features and functionality to provide more and more value to nannies and families across the U.S. and Canada. She can be available at H.smith7295 [at] gmail.com.

What are some ways you eliminate junk food from your diet? Do you have special recipes that you use to "trick" your kids (or yourself!) into eating healthy? Let us know your secrets for healthy living!