We all jump into a new year fed up with our holiday eating routine and resolved to develop new and healthy habits in the coming year. However, 9 days into the new year, how many of you are finding yourselves slipping right back into old patterns?
I recently read a book called, The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business by Charles Duhigg. The central principal of the book is learning to understand the power of a habit and how we can change it. Our brains are programmed by long years of auto-responding to make certain choices each day. We have to retrain ourselves to make a different decision and this takes time and intentional effort.
So what are some ways to add healthy habits into our families lives? Here are a few simple ideas:
Keep a bowl of fresh fruit on the counter-top and chopped up veggies in the fridge for easy snacking.
When your child says he or she is hungry after dinner offer him or her a piece of fruit or a cup of yogurt rather than a sugary dessert or salty snack. If they don’t accept it, they probably aren’t really hungry, just in the habit of eating some type of sweet before bed. You can try this on yourself as well.
Keep bottles of water filled and ready to grab in your refrigerator.
Start dinner with a small salad for everyone at the table before you serve the main course. This helps you to get a serving of those leafy green veggies before you fill up on anything else.
Lay out your workout clothes and your kid’s play clothes every morning before you leave. Make it easy to change and get outside to workout or play.
There are many more ways that you can work to change a habit. Find out what works for your family, but remember you need to repeat this behavior consistently over a long period of time.
Check out a few of our great resources to help you along the way:
- The OrganWise Guys Monthly Healthy Behavior Tracking Calendar highlights a healthy behavior each month and gives you the opportunity to track that behavior for 30 days.
- The Fruit and Vegetable Tracking Poster is a fun and colorful way to let your kids track the amount of fruit and vegetables they eat each day for 10 weeks.
- The OrganWise Guys In the House! teaches children about a healthy habit each week and gives them an opportunity to implement that habit. At the end of 7 days, they receive a reward!
