5 Unique Healthy Habits for Families

Being a mother who also keeps healthy habits can be a challenge. Moms are busy and they are also often focused on caring for other people instead of themselves.

So, how can a mother stay healthy?

Developing healthy habits can be achieved by including your family in the process. This will also help your kids to develop healthy habits, as well.

Parents set a model for their kids. Parents are teaching their children all the time. So, promoting healthy habits in your family can help your kids currently as well as in the future.

Our society makes it difficult for kids and adults to remain healthy especially with the rise in technology use and the changes in things becoming more fast-paced and easier to access (such as fast food and processed snacks).

Here are the 5 Healthy Habits that will transform your families:

1. Move around often. Make it a habit to get up to walk around and physically move even if it is just to go to the mailbox or to do some errands around the house. Some other examples include: going for a walk, simply standing outside for some fresh air, and playing actively (such as with gross motor activities like playing outdoors or playing with a pet).
2. Don’t get hungry. Be sure to schedule regular meal and snack times for your family. This will be more helpful in managing the mood and behaviors of your family members. Getting too hungry can destabilize blood sugar and create irritability. However, the food that you eat is equally important to managing mood and behavior, as well.
3. Talk. Really talk to each other. It’s easy to get caught up in the day to day chaos of routines, chores, school, jobs, extracurricular activities, and errands. However, really communicating and just listening and talking to each other can provide great benefits for your relationships and the wellness of your family. Therefore, talking is a healthy habit that is a must for families searching to improve their lives.
4. Clean up dishes and food after meals and snacks. I’m certain this habit comes more easily to some parents than others. However, it is a good habit to think about, especially when you can get the kids involved in contributing to the process. This habit can greatly reduce the stress and mess in your home. It also teaches kids responsibility and teamwork.
5. Make more positive statements toward each other. Research has shown that relationships must include more positive interactions than negative, which, of course, makes sense. However, it is easy to get caught up in complaining or simply not truly showing gratitude toward those we care about. Although the research varies on the specific ratio, one suggestion is to be sure to make at least 4 positive comments (not just neutral comments) to every one negative comment that is stated. So, model and teach your kids to make more positive statements toward one another.

image credit: Yury Zap via Fotalia