Your health is not optional. It really isn’t. And especially if you’re a Mom! Talk to a mom who has health challenges and you will be motivated to do everything you possibly can to keep your health at its most optimal level.

Your kids demand a lot and they need you to be functioning at your very best. That doesn’t happen by itself. Especially as you enter your thirties and beyond.

And you are the only one that can make it happen. You can make it happen in spite of the many obligations that you have every day.

I remember when I was about nine or ten. My father came to me and asked me about possible guardians for me in case anything happened to him or my mother and I needed to be under someone else’s care. I was shocked. Young children don’t really look into the future. They don’t really imagine that their parents might not be there forever.

WHAT IS YOUR KID CONNECTION IQ? TAKE MY QUIZ TO FIND OUT HERE

Your kids are depending on you to be there for them. Of course, we never know what could happen tomorrow but we do, to a certain extent, have control over our health and how we choose to treat our bodies.

Here are some ideas that have really helped me to maintain my health and stamina over the years. Anyone can institute these ideas, although some of them do require initial discipline. Once we get in the habit of doing them, they become second nature and easier because they become automatic. I am sure that you have read the research that tells us that it takes 21 days to form a habit. So we can think of these new ideas as habits that are only three weeks away!

Here are some of the ways to start making improving our health now:

1) Eat Breakfast

Everyone has their daily routine, but Moms have such busy schedules and often are feeding everyone except themselves. I was a no breakfast culprit for many years and often my head would start spinning at about 10 o’clock in the morning because I hadn’t eaten. At a certain point, I made breakfast a priority. I made sure to have a smoothie every morning and I continue that practice until today. It took some adjustment but once I started eating breakfast and a snack between breakfast and lunch, my energy soared. Smoothies can be partially prepared the night before and it takes two minutes to whip it up in the morning.                                                             

Here is my favorite smoothie machine. (It’s fast, powerful and easy to clean). Try having breakfast every day, You will feel the difference and be ready to handle the little stressors that come your way much more easily.

2) Power Pack Your Meals and Snacks

Become enlightened about your food choices. Think of food as fuel for your engine. Just as you wouldn’t use inferior fuel in your high-end vehicle, don’t put inferior fuel into the body that serves you every day. Fruits and vegetables are kings when it comes to energy and stamina. As I mentioned above, I like to start my day off with a smoothie packed with fruits and veges.

I use a green powder that is organic and really boosts my immunity especially during the winter months. Dr. Schultze’s Super Food is power packed with superfoods that boost the immune system and give the body powerful, pure nutrition.  His dedicated factory is strictly vegetarian and he uses the highest quality ingredients. Many people that use it report a tremendous boost in their daily energy and much less illness: Try it for 30 days and see how you feel. I mix the powder with a banana or some protein powder and it is a light, but filling start for my day.

 In between your meals as you get hungry, don’t just grab the first thing you see. We often eat mindlessly, grabbing something just because it’s there. Try to stock up on healthy snacks like nuts, avocados, hummus and fruit which all pack a punch and give your body powerful fuel. Train yourself to make choices that will increase your health and stamina rather than suck your energy. This is especially true in the late afternoon when your blood sugar tends to slump.

3) Decrease your white carbs

If smoothies aren’t your thing, try to increase your protein and vege intake and decrease energy-depleting simple carbs (the white breads, crackers, and sugars). Increase your salad intake. Raw vegetables are so vital to your health. One of the things that have made a difference in my health and stamina is increasing my raw vegetable intake. It does take a few extra minutes to make a salad for lunch. I make a large amount of salad for dinner and separate some undressed salad to use for lunch the next day. Raw greens such as romaine lettuce, spinach, and kale are packed with nutrients, remove toxins from your body and give a real power boost to your day. Increasing your fruit and vege intake and decreasing the carbs will have a huge impact on your health over time. It may seem difficult at first but after a while, it becomes second nature.

4) Exercise for Health

Now, this is a biggy! Chasing after our kids may seem like exercise enough and the truth is, it is great exercise. However, as our kids grow, we need additional exercise. Strength training is great to realign posture and gain strength. It’s really hard to find time with a growing family. Try to squeeze in a youtube exercise video, even if it’s only ten to fifteen minutes a day. A small trampoline is fun for the kids and can be a great exercise for you. Family activities such as sports or physical activities such as hikes, bicycling and walking on nearby trails add up to lots of exercise. With a little planning, you can find a way to sneak exercise into your day. This will also boost your energy and improve your health.

5) Aim to Get as much Restorative Sleep as Possible

This is extremely challenging for Moms of young children. Night feedings, sick children and everything in between continually disrupts our sleep. How can you get enough sleep? Well, it’s probably not going to happen but there are things to do to get more rest than you are getting now.

I’ve mentioned before that I raised my kids in a foreign country. There the kids come home from school every day in the early afternoon. That meant that I was on call for almost an entire day when the older kids got home. To maintain my sanity and to squeeze in some extra rest, I would give my kids lunch when they came home and then have what I called “quiet time.”

Everyone had to go to their beds where they could rest, read books or do any activity that was quiet and could be done in bed. It gave me some rest time (even when I sometimes had a toddler crawling on my head). It would last between 30- 40 minutes, but when it was over, we were all ready to face the rest of the afternoon with calmness and renewed energy. As my kids got older they told me that they really enjoyed having that quiet time.

If you are having a hard time falling asleep (or staying asleep) once you do get to bed, make sure that you disconnect from screens at least an hour and a half before you get into bed. If you are waking up in the middle of the night, check your sugar intake. Too much sugar will disrupt your sleep. Here is a researched based book that explains how some of our modern practices are affecting our health. Lights Out: Sleep Sugar and Survival.

6) Reduce Stress

Stress can build up quickly and much of the time, we don’t realize it. If you are noticing that you are wound up and tense at the end of the day, take some time to see what is causing your stress. If you are overworked and not managing to keep up, then getting help is a priority. Knowing that a cleaning lady is coming to help with chores and laundry can take a huge load off of your chest.

Finding a few minutes to relax before the kids get up or at the end of a long day can be extremely rejuvenating. Taking a few minutes in the morning for some meditation or prayer can help you start the day off right.

Deep breathing as you settle down for the night can reduce stress and help you to get more restful sleep. Here is one of the many quick breathing exercises that can help to relax you before you go to sleep: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nmFUDkj1Aq0

7) Practice Gratitude

Probably one of the most important aspects of good health is learning to feel gratitude for what we have. A person who is grateful can weather many of the difficult aspects of life with grace. Learning to be thankful for the things that we do have, rather than focusing on what we don’t have, is a true path to happiness. Happiness and gratitude lead to a satisfying and healthy life. If something is making you unhappy in your life, work to improve it. You have the power to change what is bothering you. Whether it is a relationship, a hardship or other difficulties, your efforts can make a difference.

Just remember that even as we work to change what is bothering us, we can still be grateful. We can be grateful for what we have even as we work to change things for the better.

By utilizing some of the ideas above, you can improve your health and have more to give to your children. There is no single influence greater than parents as your children grow and learn to become adults. You owe it to your children to care for your health so that you have the stamina to care for and raise your children. Wishing you a successful journey and here’s to your health and wellness!

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