Have Sippy Will Travel

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Though New Year’s has come and gone, it isn’t too late to make resolutions that have to do with
the health of you and your family. In fact, the best way to include your children is to make healthy
resolutions seem fun. Here is a list of a few ways you can increase the overall health of your family this
year and have a good time doing it.

Wish list. Begin by sitting down with your family and coming up with a list of healthy, interactive
activities you can all do. Involving your kids in the process gives them some authority about the
direction these healthy resolutions are going to take, which means they are more likely to actually care
about keeping them.

Organization. It’s easy to fall back on old (and often bad) habits when you come home and find that
your pantry and/or freezer are totally disorganized, and so you whip up a frozen pizza or something
quick and easy out of a box. You’ll make healthier choices if you plan a menu in advance. This also
gives you the advantage of stocking your fridge and pantry with healthy alternatives. If your kids are
old enough, give them the opportunity to help out with dinner or allowing them to cook it themselves
(just keep an eye on the ingredients they plan to use!) Reorganizing your pantry allows you to remove
temptations like unhealthy snack foods that may be lurking on the shelves.

Sack lunch. Everyone in the house can be in on this plan, which is cost effective and healthier than
eating in the school cafeteria or from fast food restaurants. Your kids can customize their own lunch
boxes and pick out the healthy kinds of food they want to include the night before they leave: lean
meats like turkey, vegetables and fruit. Skip the potato chips and candy bars!

Setting goals. This option can manifest in any number of ways. You can choose as a family to run a
marathon, and then spend several months working up to the challenge together. Or it can be something
simpler, such as everyone losing a certain amount of weight by a pre-determined time. You can also
plan activities that require everyone to be fitter, such as an intense hike or time on the beach.

Move it! You can have family bonding time by hanging out together in way that doesn’t involve crashing
in front of the tube after dinner each night. The climate of your area of the country doesn’t matter
when it comes to exercising: if you live in a more temperate area, go out for a family walk around the
block or in a park to enjoy the fresh air. If winter storm warnings are in your forecast, invest in a Wii so
you can all enjoy fun fitness games. Make a decision as a family that you’ll park farther away from the
store or take the stairs when the opportunity presents itself. And a good old fashioned family bike ride
has yet to go out of style!

Evan Fischer is a contributing writer for 1Dental where you can compare and save on top dental plans
like the Careington Care 500 dental plan and many others.