Have you ever prepared for the worst and the worst never came? I was sure I’d have an irritated parent after distributing the “Super Snacks for Soccer Players” flyer. I was sure there would be that one parent who wanted to defend their child’s favorite flavor of Cheetos. But nope. I’ve seen a lot of water and a small mountain of oranges. Continue reading
I love to shop…but not for cars. My car of twelve years died in downtown Pittsburgh, so I had no choice but to shop for a car. After a lengthy search, I finally purchased a used car that I could afford. The process was difficult and left me asking, “Wouldn’t it be great if buying a car were easy?”
Ironically, I bought a box of Post Shredded Wheat cereal and the back side of the box asks, “Wouldn’t it be great if it were easy to understand what is in your food?” And to this I give a rounding answer of ”Yes!” Continue reading
You’ve burned a few calories on the field, let’s celebrate with 56 grams of sugar from a Gatorade.
Why not a treat as well? You looked super cute out there in your uniform. Those packaged Grandma’s cookies add another 22 grams of sugar.
Your team won? It’s obviously time for ice cream! There’s 17 more grams of sugar in that kid’s cone at Dairy Queen.
Grams didn’t mean much to me before I started reading nutrition facts. It’s hard to believe that we are so duped by food marketing to believe that little kids need junk. Especially when we are trying to get them interested in physical activity in honor of their health. Yikes.
These sports-related “foods” are just scripted for us. We make assumptions that good parents bring treats. Gatorade is in business to sell a product. They aren’t in the business of health. But their commercials make it seem like our tiny ones can’t excel without their product.
I’m coaching my boys pee wee soccer team this season. (The rec department was that desperate.) Fortunately, I’ve been reading Real Mom Nutrition and her quest to make soccer snacks less crappy. Take a peek at her slideshow here.
Here’s a PDF I just sent to the team parents:
Click to view the PDF.
All of us are capable of serving great tasting veggies. But first, we have to ditch a few outdated ideas. Continue reading
I love a good game. Who doesn’t? A taste-testing game is just the thing to help your kiddos adventurously try new fruits and veggies. The idea is simple – Gather various green-colored fruits and vegetables and have them arranged on a tray. plate, or in a muffin tin. Have them sample the greens and pick their favorites. Kids respond well to Continue reading
I was once laughed at (in a gym, of all places) when I mentioned that kids deserve to eat healthy food. My friend thought it was ridiculous and finished the conversation with, “Let kids be kids.” This was in reference to her support of the stereotypical hot pocket and hot dog diet. She then said that there’s plenty of time for vegetables when they’re older. Well, that just stinks. I pout when I see public attitudes that are as embarrassingly outdated as M.C. Hammer pants. Continue reading