How I’m Developing Healthier Eating Habits

I have shared that I loathe cooking and baking of any sort with you all before, however, I do value nutrition. I seek out blogs, conversations and articles about healthy cooking, providing healthy snacks and connecting with food. I recently listened to a sports nutritionist and she made my mind start spinning.

With the school year and fall sports season fast approaching, I want to make sure I have quick nutritious snacks and healthy meal options available for our entire family.

Where I Struggle with Making Healthy Meals

I realize my downfall in providing nutritious meals and snacks occurs in multiple different areas.

1. First is definitely the busyness of life.
2. Having picky eaters.
3. I have no patience or confidence in the kitchen.
4. I do not create a fully developed grocery list.
5. Not using the items in our pantry.

How I’m Making Changes to My Family’s Habits

With the above challenges, I am still determined to listen to the advice of the sports nutritionist and make a few changes in our habits.

1. Create a better developed grocery list. This will help eliminate spontaneous grocery shopping, eating out and also require me to meal plan.
2. Use the foods in our pantry and the refrigerator, especially the fresh foods.
3. Encourage and support my family as they continue to decrease their caffeine and sugar intake. This is really eye-opening to me as our daughter is connecting eating habits not only to athletic performance but also to academic performance.
4. The most difficult change for me will be setting aside time on Sunday to prepare lunches and suppers for the week. I am going to start small and not become overly ambitious.
5. Revamp my snack storage in my classroom to include healthier choices to fuel energy rather than processed foods.

I wish I had a magic switch. As I sit here and blog, I just want to jump to the end result. I want the healthy eating challenges to be easy. I discuss with my kids and students it is a process to become better at anything. There are many, many times I have tried to make all of the changes above and I absolutely fail. Here is to me recommitting to healthy eating goals. In all reality, this is not just about me, it is about my family and encouraging a healthy lifestyle through healthy eating habits.