Crave the Challenge, Create a Change

What is your favorite meal or meals throughout the day? Here's my version of a wholesome diet, maybe you would enjoy too! Breakfast:

1 Chobani greek yogurt

1/4 cup of gluten free granola (any choice)

1/4 cup of blueberries

water

Snack:

10 almonds

1 apple

water

Lunch:

2 cups of spinach

3 oz of grilled organic chicken

TBS of fat-free ranch

1/4 cup shredded carrots

1/4 no added sugar cranberries

water 

Snack after 1 hour workout:

8 brown rice crackers

2 TBS of original hummus

water

Dinner: 

3 oz of salmon

1 cup of broccoli crowns

1 baked potato (plain)

Sweet treat (every once in a while):

1/2 cup of frozen yogurt vanilla

1/4 mixed berries (your choice)

a drizzle of honey

At our early ages of childhood, we are exposed to the beginning of life and the starting of school. During these prime years of our life, the promotion of healthy eating and physical activity are considered most effective in determining if or if not weight will be of issue. As body mass index (BMI) is overlooked when we grow older, it is important at a young age we keep on track and within a healthy range to optimize growth and development. Targeting BMI and the growth chart of young ones is beneficial to tracking down significant numbers and patterns of individual growth. So where should we project and encourage a child's health as they move forward into life? I find the best intervention starts right through a school's promotion of eating right and being active. In school most of the things we are taught at a young-age stick with us through the rest of our lives. Consciously, we can retrace back memories or certain aspects of school that make us better comprehend real-world scenarios. Have you ever had that feeling of when will I ever use this and then next thing you know, you use what you learned all the time? It happens more often then you think and I feel the encouragement of healthy practices will be valued throughout childhood and further more in adulthood.  Schools have a superior power that can help make this practice a reality. Most of our years during childhood are reflected back in a school environment. We study things of social importance, mathematics, sciences, and writing, but the lack of health influence is what needs to be strongly considered. If children were exposed to nutrition in a school setting, I feel they would be more obliged to wanting to learn more about the topic. Children at young ages are less likely to listen to their mothers or fathers because they want to be independent, but for some reason their teachers serve to hold their attention better to where they want to listen and understand the lesson wholly.  How about aiming for some of these changes:

transforming the lunch menu

have lessons on nutrition education

influence factors that effect body weight

intervene by making physical activity priority

monitor children's BMI

after school active programs

after school nutrition programs

encourage parents to step up to the change

Video games and television alone have turned to be a source of great enjoyment. Don't get me wrong, I love playing some Final Fantasy when I've finished my homework or I like to turn on my favorite anime series on Crunchyroll and sit there through the whole season (if I have the time). As enjoyable as these activities are, they steer us away from the activities our bodies crave. A needed amount of both physical activity and good nutrition are valuable to sustaining a healthy lifestyle. Sometimes we even get so caught up in our busy schedules that we forget how important it is to be move away from sedentary behaviors and motivate the mind to get out and be active. I'm not intending by any means to never catch up on your favorite television show or to put down the video game controller, I am mainly encouraging that physical activity is a must, and why not make it fun instead of a chore.  Upon researching and browsing the web for tackling the on-growing epidemic of childhood obesity, I came across an interesting study that incorporated healthy eating, physical activity, and the importance of fundamental movement skills. A huge emphasis on teaching the basis of fundamental movement skills was ignited throughout this study. Their campaign slogan, "Munch and Move" was designed to aim as a low-intensity intervention program for children of preschool age.  What captured my attention mainly was these basic focuses from the Munch and Move program:

Choose water

Eat fewer snacks and healthier alternatives

Eat more fruit and veggies

Get active for an hour or more each day

Turn off the television or computer to get active