JJ's New Workout Game: Three Foul Shots or RUN!

Once again my teenage son had spent a large amount of his day sitting in front of the TV playing video games.  I told him that after dinner he and I were going to workout - no complaining, no excuses, no arguments - we were heading outside and we were going to sweat!

Much to my delight - and a little to my surprise - after we finished the dinner dishes my son said to me, "I'm ready Mom.  And tonight, I've planned the workout."  WHAT?!?!

Grabbing his basketball, we headed down to the bottom of our driveway (We have a single lane driveway that goes down a hill to our garage behind the house.  Our vehicles are parked at the top of the driveway one in front of the other.) .  JJ explained to me how he had adapted a basketball drill his 7th grade coach used during practice.  Here's what we did:

We took turns standing at the Free Throw Line.  Each of us got up to three shots per turn.

If you missed the first one, we both had to run to the top of our driveway touching the street with our foot and back to the very bottom.

If you made the first one, but missed the second one, we had to run up to touch our jeep (parked in the driveway closest to the street) with our hand and back to the very bottom.

If you made the first two, but missed the third one, we had to run up to touch our van (parked in front of the jeep) with our hand and back to the very bottom.

If you made all three, it was the other person's turn.

We did three rounds of eight total turns per round with a two minute break in between each round.

It doesn't sound like much as I type it out, but we were both dripping with sweat and out of breath by the time we finished.  Several things made me fall in love with this workout - 1) The fact that my son took the initiative to think plan the workout and suggest that we do it is obviously #1!  2) The element of surprise.  You never know which shot is going to go in!  It is very difficult to make the shot when you are out of breath.  3) Sprinting up the driveway over and over was a GREAT workout!  Plus, the more people who play the more running you do.

This game can be adapted to multiple sports - shooting a hockey puck in a net, kicking a soccer ball into a goal, throwing a football through a hoop.  You can also adapt the running to whatever space you have.  In the case of JJ's basketball practice, they had to run different lengths across the gym floor.  You could even do different exercises - If you miss the first you do 25 jumping jacks, miss the second you do 15 sit-ups, miss the third you do 10 push-ups.  The key is that your child likes the sport so that they engage in the game.  

Have fun trying out JJ's new game!  I know we'll be playing it again!

The Snack Battle: 10 Smart Choices for After-School Snacks

After school snacks have long been a battle in our house.  Both of my teenagers eat lunch very early at school and I rarely have dinner ready before 6PM.  When they arrive home, they want to stuff their face to satisfy their deep hunger.  I want them to eat something small yet satisfying and healthy so that they are not full when I finally get dinner on the table.

I tried having minimal options in the house.  Then I tried leaving out one specific snack for the kids to eat after school.  This left me with two hungry and grouchy kids.  I tried talking with my kids about making smart choices and then leaving them on their own to decide what to eat with all options open (including the Doritos and ice cream that my husband loves).  While my kids took full advantage of all options, I was left grouchy at what I deemed their lack of self-control and poor choices.

When I thought about it, there are two main goals that I have for my kids when it comes to their after-school snacks:
1) That they eat something healthy.
2) That they learn to make their own smart choices when it comes to snacking.

I spent an evening researching healthy snack options.  While I read about a lot of great snacks, I had to be realistic.  My kids are not going to eat veggies dipped in hummus.  A handful of almonds is not going to satisfy their hunger.   Keeping that in mind, I came up with a new idea that gives my kids the freedom to make their own choices while making sure that the options available to them are ones that they will like and are healthy.

We've been following this plan for two weeks now and have found success!  I'm no longer greeted at the door with hungry whiners.  I'm no longer finding piles of wrappers next to the couch and empty bowls stacked on the end table.

There is a list of these ten snacks posted in our kitchen.  With seven of the items, they can pick two. If they choose one of the remaining three, they can only have one item.  I know that I will have to begin to change a few of the items week to week so that my kids don't get bored, but for now things have stayed the same.

Here is our list of 10 Smart After-School Snacks for this week!

My kids can pick two of the following:
1) YoCrunch Yogurt Cup - Chips Ahoy is their favorite flavor
2) Pretzels - pre-portioned baggies (28 sticks = 110 calories)
3) String Cheese - 1 stick
4) Microwave Popcorn - Orville Redenbacher 100 calorie bag
5) Hard-boiled egg
6) A piece of fruit - We usually have apples, bananas and oranges on hand.
7) Bowl of Cornflakes - (1 cup = 100 calories) I recently got rid of the HUGE cereal bowls we had and bought smaller bowls that perfectly hold the appropriate serving size.

Or one of these:
8) Peanut Butter & Jelly Sandwich
9) Easy Mac & Cheese
10) Mug of Hot Chocolate

Some of the snacks my kids can choose from when they get home from school.

JJ and Ellie like having the freedom to choose their snack.  I am confident that they are making wise choices because there is no other options but healthy.  Surprisingly, no one has complained that the chips and ice cream have disappeared (not even my husband!).

I think that one of the keys to the success of this snacking strategy is that they can have two things in some cases.  Pretzels with string cheese.  Yogurt and a banana.  Popcorn and pretzels.  Cereal with fruit.  One small item doesn't seem like enough.  Getting two feels like a lot more food.

My husband and I often debate about if I am babying our kids by making things so simple for them. His point is that our son is going to be heading off to college in two-and-a-half years and I am not going to be with him making him lists of healthy food choices.  My point is that our children obviously do not know how to make healthy snack choices because they are not doing it.  I view this as a method of teaching them how to make smart choices.  Eventually the lists will disappear.  Eventually they will automatically reach for the fruit or pretzels over ice cream or Doritos.  Just like they now grab water and don't even ask if they can order pop in restaurants.

The snack battle appears to have come to an end in our household.  The kids are happy with the choices that are available to them.  I'm happy that they aren't complaining and aren't full when it comes time for dinner.  We all came out of this battle victorious!