Check out the latest post from my friend and coach Holly Rigsby:

Mornings can be one of the most chaotic times of a Busy Mom’s day ~ especially Back To School Mornings!

There is a way to make your mornings go smoother – for you and your family.

Routine

Yes, the power of establishing a morning routine works like magic!

Routines …..

- are comfortable and familiar
- set expectations and boundaries
- are reassuring, you know what to expect therefore you are more at ease!

Consider the opposite ~ A chaotic morning! A morning that has no predictability or flow. This type of morning only promotes feelings of stress, worry, anger, frustration and more.

Why would anyone want to start their morning off like this?

Did you know…..
The way you and your children spend the first 90 minutes of your day will determine the mood, momentum and success of the rest of the day?

Time to establish a Morning Routine!

And I am not talking about getting into some complex, overwhelming daunting task. Just a simple morning schedule that will give you and your children a positive boost and jump start for a fabulous day. You AND your children deserve this!

How to Create a Morning Routine

- Keep a Time Log
You 1st must know how much time you have and how long your morning tasks take. If you do not have this information it will be impossible to create a successful routine. Jot down all the details from the moment you wake up, your kids wake up, breakfast prep, eating, getting dressed, time wasters, etc.

- Plan Ahead
Yes the “P” word. Funny how this keeps popping up ; )
This entails getting things ready the night before, from laying out clothes, important papers, food prep and even Telling Your Children what to expect. Remind them before they go to bed and remind them right when they wake up. Over estimate tasks that are known for having hiccups this way you build in extra time.

- Be Realistic
Allow for some flexibility and What If’s
No matter how beautiful your morning routine, life happens. There will always be something – however because you and your children have started the day off right you are all more capable of handling any type of AM speed bump without a melt down.

Plus when you work some extra cushion into your morning routine, this becomes a possible incentive for your children. For example, if breakfast has been a bit too drawn out – allow for this but then offer the reward of getting to Play before leaving for school IF and Only If breakfast is finished.

Routine Planning Tip: You can make creating a routine more manageable and fun by getting your children involved. Anytime they take ownership in helping to create something, they will take it to heart when it must be implemented.

Now what do you do?

~ Share this routine with your family
~ Explain the benefits
~ Post it where everyone can see it
~ Refer to it often
~ Stick To IT! Consistency is a MUST
If you want this to work and work like magic you must follow through day in and day out.

Tyler’s Morning Routine

Here is an example of Tyler’s AM routine to give you an idea of how simple a routine can be.

Wake up: 7:40
~Morning Motivators*
Breakfast: 7:50
Get ready for school: 8:20
(brush teeth, get dressed, fix hair, shoes and backpack)
Drive to school 8:45

Simple and to the point. On Friday’s for a treat Tyler gets to watch cartoons while he eats breakfast. Just another way to encourage sticking to the routine.

*Top 5 Morning Motivators

Ensure your mornings are off to a positive start!

1. Smile
2. Move
3. Play upbeat music
4. Talk
5. Eat an energizing breakfast TOGETHER

You must admit that these sound a little too obvious – but let’s be honest – how often are you engaging in these?

The energy from a smile goes unspoken. When YOU wake up – try it…smile! When you wake your children up – try it…smile at them, get them to smile with you! Follow up with a good morning hug.

Move simply means Move – instead of just crawling out of bed, jumping in the shower and filling your body with coffee- take 5 and do some basic stretches or a 15 minute Fit Yummy Mummy workout. Even better ….get your children involved! It can be as simple as reaching for the ceiling and bending over to reach for the floor. Be sure everyone drinks a Big glass of water too! Being hydrated ensures a boost of energy!

Music has the ability to calm, soothe and entertain the soul. Play something soothing like Enya or go all out with something fun and upbeat like Dan Zanes – Tyler’s favorite!

How would you describe the conversations you have in the morning? Why not fill your child up – and yourself for that matter- with positive and encouraging words.

You all know this one – Breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Add to this important ritual by actually sitting down and eating breakfast with your children at the table. Not only do you set a powerfully positive message – this also allows for the exchange of more talk and smiles.

It’s a Fact….

90% of Americans’ household food budget is spent on processed foods, the majority of which are filled with additives and stripped of nutrients. Filling our bodies with these foods leaves us feeling drained, suffering from headaches and most of all frustrated from a lack of results.

Good news is that you are HERE and as you begin to implement the Fit Yummy Mummy strategies you are making positive changes.

But let’s be honest – doing so can sometimes be so difficult.

Why?

1. We are busy!!! it is way to easy to grab what is perceived as “convenience foods”

2. We are overwhelmed!!!

There is SO much information on what to eat — what to avoid – and many of the messages conflict…then you walk into the grocery and it is so hard to assess the choices and make a sound decision.

The food industry knows this and takes advantage of women in this position by creating a variety of “easy Foods” that go out of their way to TELL you just how Healthy they are for you. In reality — they are not. You are wasting your money, your time and your valuable energy on crap.

So, how much easier would it be to reach your fat loss goals if you knew just what to buy at the grocery store and had a kitchen stocked with just what you needed?

Alison Liddic, who was the third place winner of the Summer Transformation Challenge and is founder of the blog www.WaysToBurnFatQuickly.com, had mentioned on our coaching call together that she wished I could just go to the store with her. While I would love to make this happen, the next best thing was to ask her to video her grocery store purchases and I would do a Fit Yummy Mummy critique.

Well here is Alison’s Video and what follows is my review of her purchases.

Alison!

Great video and here are my thoughts – I basically went straight through the video.

~~~~~~~~

- Salad Greens – Picked up 3 bags so she has enough for the week! Great for salads and to add to wraps. Full of fiber and nutrients!

- String cheese is a quick and easy protein source

- Celery — great veggie to have on hand! It is Cheap and Versatile. Full of water and fiber – satisfies a crunch when you have cravings. Line it with PB, dip in Hummus or cottage cheese — makes for a simple and complete snack. Chop and add to salads, sauté with onions to give new flavors to your chicken.

- Dairy

Milk and Yogurt — also good protein sources.
Just watch the milk intake. One reason – for intolerance’s and secondly for drinking your calories. It is super easy to go over your calories for the day when they come in the form of a drink. Just watch the portion size.

- Bag of Apples — affordable way to keep fresh fruit on hand. LOVE that you made homemade applesauce — way to make the most of the produce you buy.

- Bag of Onions — great to have on hand as a flavor enhancer Combine chopped onions, tomatoes, avocado and jalapeno for an all-in-one guacamole salsa dip. To perk up plain rice, sprinkle some green onions, also known as scallions, and sesame seeds on top. Sautéed chopped onions are so versatile that they can be added to most any vegetable dish. Enjoy a classic Italian salad-sliced onions, tomatoes and mozzarella cheese drizzled with olive oil.

- Coffee…any consideration in switching to Green Tea – loaded with antioxidants!

- Horizon Yogurts — easy and healthy kids friendly snack – one of Tyler’s Favorites!

- Juicy Juice — when you say for lunch — everyday? I would limit this- even though juice has loads of vitamins, still drinking sugar — if this is the 8 ounce box she is taking in 4 teaspoons of sugar with each one she drinks.

- Oh no — so she also gets Fruit snacks in her lunch…increase the amount of sugar she is eating!

Not sure how much that brand has — BUT — name brand Brachs has 21 grams of sugar –so now she is taking in 8 teaspoons of sugar at lunch. Take a look at the ingredients list too… what is in this stuff?

- Pancakes -- yes, choosing a brand that is not full of refined carbs (acts just like sugar…not to mention if there is syrup added on top of this?) and has fiber and some proteins from quality grains. Be sure to read the ingredients.

Pancake/Waffle Toppings? What do you use? I have convinced Tyler our house does not have syrup. If he wants something, I will cook frozen berries in a sauce pan, add jelly and/or PB. Just like with Salad Dressings – we need to account for what the topping on these items adds to our nutrition plan.

- Oh yes and the Peanut Butter — make sure to choose Natural (and he should know this!) Look at the ingredients list – notice sugar and hydrogenated/partially hydrogenated oils — this is code for “Trans Fats” — which many Mom/Kid friendly name brands push. Watch out for those!

- Sugar Cones….I know I do not need to point this out…hoping these are once in a while for you guys. How often do the kids get these? Know that this significantly adds to their sugar intake during the day.

- Excellent Buy on the Almonds! Great way to stock up. Just watch portion sizes. Grab some snack baggies and pre-portion these into ¼ cup servings to prevent overeating. Also when you say every snack…how often each day are you having them? Have to be careful for while they are a great source of protein and healthy fats — these fats can very quickly add up and exceed your total daily intake of fats.

- Mighty Bites is a better version of many kid cereals. Just watch portion size on this. While 1 cup contains 110 calories, 5 g protein and 3 g of fiber — the second ingredient is still sugar — each 1 cup serving contains 23 carbs — 5 of which are sugars. So she is getting 1 teaspoon of sugar with each serving.

- Yes — any cereal that is Chocolate Filled would not be considered a supportive choice — sorry (and Special K is notorious for trying to say otherwise). Let’s see….just a ¾ cup serving has a whopping 20 grams of sugar. I would say this is a Once In Awhile Cereal treat.

- Glad the cookie mix is just for the neighbors — make and take away! Be careful with the chocolate chips though…this is where a taste here and there can really add up.

- Cheddar Bunnies — I get this for Tyler too — it is a once in a while snack — for while it is made with organic wheat flour — look at where the majority of calories and “stuff” going into the body is coming from….Fat and Salt. So this is just a replacement for a fruit or veggie. Use in moderation and it can fit into the nutrition plan for your girls.

- Brown Rice is a great, unprocessed, high fiber grain that can compliment your meals. Just watch portion sizes. ½ cup cooked is a little over 100 calories.

- Excellent protein sources — Fresh Chicken — buy in bulk and save money! Cook it all up at once or portion out, stick in ziplock, add a marinade, stick in fridge or freezer based on how quickly you will use it.

- With Ground Turkey — just be sure to choose the leanest type. Ground turkey can sometimes be made with skin and dark meat increasing the amount of fat.
Eggs

Love ALL the fresh produce you have brought home! Easy to grab, chop and toss into any meal or snack!

- Cucumbers
- Bell peppers
- Jalapeño peppers – kick up your meals and your metabolism!
- Pears
- Strawberries
- Tomatoes
- Bananas
- Grapes
- Cilantro — great to have fresh herbs available — livens up meals!

Apple Juice — what is this used for? Who drinks it? How much? How often? Have you looked at the label? How many grams of sugar.

(TIP — 4.3 grams of sugar = 1 teaspoon of sugar)

- Which then brings me to Chocolate Milk. Now Tyler DOES have this once in a while — calls it his special milk — we buy Horizon. However keep in mind that chocolate adds sugar. Take a look at that label. How often are your girls drinking this? How much per serving? What does the label say? Many commercial chocolate milks have High Fructose Corn Syrup.

Excellent Strategy — Post Shopping Routine

Taking inventory of what you just brought home and what you can begin to cook and/or prep is a HUGE time saver!

You know you have many supportive strategies in place. Loads of quality proteins and fresh produce. Sure there are some foods that have been purchased:

where you would say….”I know this is not approved….”

(hot dogs, Pringles, store brand pancakes, Fruit Snacks, cheese crackers, chocolate cereal, chocolate milk..)

All areas of improvement and I hope I gave you some things to think about.

But there is one big question that I MUST ask is….

A lot of moms say….”this is not for me – its for my kids”

WHY?

And yes, Alison and I have talked at great length about this…but I think it is important for ALL moms to be aware of this habit we seem to have acquired.

Our children are more dependent upon us than ever to set the guidelines and the boundaries for what supportive nutrition is all about. It is VERY difficult for kids to make the switch …

1. If we are not taking care of ourselves and eating supportive foods

or

2. Even if we are modeling good habits it will still be hard IF the not so good foods are still there and readily available.

Supportive Substitutes

As far as ideas for what to use in place of the usual processed foods our children eat – hope you and all the Fit Yummy Mummy’s caught the video with Tyler…
7 Healthy Snack Ideas for Kids>>> HERE

Essentially all I am doing is using the create a meal menu planner in the Fit Yummy Mummy Handbook and giving Tyler options along with the freedom to create new snack combos.

You can do the same.

If this is a new transition and your children have been used to eating a certain way, plan ahead and expect it will be rocky – please know that typically things get worse before they get better.

What will make it EASY on everyone involved – be firm and stand your ground. Be sure to turn to the forums for ideas and support as you begin to carve out a new path for you, your children and your family!

So you know…this is your task for the weekend!

1. Plan out your meals for the week.

2. Take inventory – what do you have – what do you need – what do you need to toss>

3. Make a list – and stick TO this List

4. Shop!

You can get a jump start on it now by giving your kitchen a makeover : )

What is in there that you need to toss?

Your Friend and Coach,

Holly Rigsby
Author FitYummyMummy.com

Get your copy of Fit Yummy Mummy Today!

Are you buying foods that are healthy and supportive?  Do you think you would know what is good for you, and what is not?

Well, listen to the deal I made.  During a private coaching call with Holly Rigsby, creator of Fit Yummy Mummy, I said, “Man!  I wish I could take you to the grocery store with me!”

Surprise! Holly offered to critique the foods that I bought at the grocery store for me.  So, what I did was made a video of all the foods that I got at the grocery store.  Holly is then going to take the video that I made and tell me what I need to stay away from, and then what I can get in place of the foods that I got.  I think you will see me with a new grocery list soon!

So, here it goes….

Stay tuned for Holly Rigsby’s video!

Check out Fit Yummy Mummy TODAY!!

So, what can we do about it?  I hate to tell you that this is not going to be east, at first!  Your kids will fight you with everything they have, and use every trick they can think of to make you break!

Do NOT make them something else just so they will eat something!  Not only is this sabotaging everything that you are trying to do for your kids nutrition, but it is teaching them that whatever behavior they are displaying WORKS on you!

Making them something else to eat can not be an option!  Your children will NOT let themselves starve!  They will eventually eat what you are making!

Every dinner that I make, I am surrounded by crying kids!  Here is a video of my middle child while I am cooking, and then her during dinner.  This is a very SMALL fit compared to the normal dinner fit.

We were having Chicken A L’Orange from the Elimination Diet.  It was VERY good!!!

This can be very frustrating, and discouraging!  But, remember that the main goal here is your kids nutrition!!!  Do not lose site of that!  If you provide them with healthy foods to eat now, they are more likely to stick with that for life!  If you give them anything to eat now, just so they will eat something, guess what they will eat when they are older?  You got it, ANYTHING!!!

That is not helping you, or your kids nutrition at all!!

Be strong, stand your ground!  Remember, you are the parent!  As long as you are putting good foods in front of them for every meal, they will eventually eat something!

Please share your stories, and things that have worked with your kids nutrition.