Healthy Eating With Lots of Kids!
I think one of the main concerns of people with kids is how do you eat healthy in a household where the kids eat all sorts of unspeakable junk foods. The answer is simple- you cook for them, and work at it long enough and hard enough that they don’t feel a need to have a can of soda or stop by McDonalds. The key is to start young and lead by example. It’s a lot of work, but in the end the rewards of having a healthy household where the kids eat well and don’t feel like they are missing out on anything is priceless. By popular demand, here is a repost of one of our most popular blog posts on the subject: A morning in our household with the kids. Enjoy! Kevin Richardson, Founder of the Naturally Intense System of Diet & Exercise.
Making Breakfast & Getting 5 Kids to School
It’s Monday, the end of the weekend and the beginning of the mad hundred meter dash that is the work week. I wake up promptly at 6 am, amidst the snoring of a sleeping household. The kids are still asleep and my (far) better half is still in dream world as well after a long night with the newest member of the Richardson family. Lucien is 8 weeks old, so we are still in the red-eyed stage and stumbling over ourselves as his highness wakes up every two to three hours to feed, (which is not too different from how his dear old dad eats, although I prefer to do so during conventional waking hours.) Seeing as everyone is asleep, I take the time to enjoy the silence and as I begin my morning routine.
With five kids in the house these moment are few and far between so I always try to make the most of it whenever I can. I start getting breakfast ready. Many have asked me if my family eats the way that I prescribe as the founder of the Naturally Intense System of Diet & Exercise and the answer is a resounding ‘Yes!” This is indeed a Naturally Intense household and I have always ensured that the kids eat as healthy as possible. I am also blessed in that my significant other has been eating in accordance with the Naturally Intense guidelines for over 5 years before were even dating-so everyone is very much onboard! That being said, I don’t believe in prescribing to others what they should and should not eat as I think that with so many couples it ends up being a source of discord and I think it a bit disrespectful. Stephanie was originally a Naturally Intense personal training client many, many moons ago in addition to being a senior member of the martial arts school that I run, and she has always adhered to the eating principles on her own (which is how the dietary component is supposed to work in the first place). Thus it always made eating at home and eating out really easy for both of us. (Yes, we do eat out and you can check out the Healthy NYC Restaurant Guides if you don’t believe me). I call breakfast time at the Richardson residence punch in time for my first shift as a short order cook, as each of my little ones have their own particular tastes and preferences. So it isn’t uncommon that I end up cooking 4 different meals for each of them, in addition to what Steph and I will eat as well.
The Munchkins Wake Up
By 6:30 am the munchkins are waking up, bleary eyed and hungry, and I take the orders as they file into the living room to watch Nickelodeon Junior, much to the chagrin of my 14 year old who protests that he never gets to see the BBC News in the morning. I remind him that life isn’t fair and that the 4 year old, the 5 year old and the 6 year old outnumber him, and have been showing signs of feral pack activity recently so he’d better endure a few minutes of Sponge Bob if he knows what’s good for him. He has been humbled by the horde before so he sheepishly submits. So here are the orders for today, Indi, my daughter and future president of a yet undisclosed developing country wants 6 boiled eggs some oatmeal and some strawberries, and I fire up the stove to start it up. (She might be small- but she eats a big breakfast just like Daddy!) My step-son, Paolo (the intellectual) wants white rice and scrambled eggs, while Reid (the muscle of the group) wants rice as well, but with tuna fish (he isn’t too big on eggs these days) . My 14 year old wants oatmeal, with raisins an orange and some eggs. He likes his scrambled whereas boychild number 3 prefers his in omelet form. Thank goodness the youngest of the bunch is breast fed! But he’ll have his orders in soon as well. While juggling all this in the kitchen, I am also getting lunch ready for the little ones as I don’t put much faith in the school lunches and they really like it when they have a home cooked meal at school.
Making Lunch For The Kids As Well
Today is their lucky day, as I am cooking up a dish of rice, peas and beef, a universal favorite with all of the kids! I have always done my best to cook great tasting meals not just for me, (I am quite the connoisseur if I do say so myself) but for the kids. It only takes a bit of imagination and a small investment of time, but having kids that not only eat well but prefer to eat well as a rule is a priceless return on that investment. Anyway, on to breakfast, which for me is a large bowl of old-fashioned oatmeal, (Steph likes adding some raisins to hers, but I prefer mine plain or with some coconut tossed in). Since I was already cooking in the kitchen I am also having some mahi-mahi that I cooked with a teaspoon of olive oil. I always have some fruit for breakfast, (I try to eat them as they come into season as opposed to eating the same thing day in day out.) The oranges were especially good so I am having one from the bunch.
A small omelette with thyme, onions and a touch of black pepper tops off the feast. The Naturally Intense mantra has always been, ‘Breakfast like a king’ and I certainly follow my own advice! The television is turned off (with some groans, of course!) as we all sit around the table for our breakfast. It is important for us that eating be an activity in and of itself, not something we do while watching TV as the conversations and interaction are an important part of being a family. After breakfast comes the mad rush to wash dirty faces, have teeth brushed, put on clothes, pack lunches and get the kids in the car for the drop offs. The oldest goes by school bus, but it is quite a challenge getting the others all to school on time. After the customary fight over who gets to use the Spiderman toothbrush, and the mandatory wardrobe changes that the little ones go through before selecting an ensemble suitable for them to be seen in public wearing, we are off!
Continued in A Day In Our Naturally Intense Life Part 2
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Visionary NYC personal trainer, internationally renowned natural bodybuilder and fitness expert, Kevin Richardson lives in Brooklyn with his wonderful family and 2 cats! Get a copy of Kevin’s free award winning weight loss ebook here!
