So today, my 7 year old daughter Stella decided, pretty much out of the blue, that she wanted to make her own exercise and diet plans. We haven't talked too much about the PCP, she and I, though she's certainly watched me exercise and cook more in the past 2 1/2 months than I have in, oh, probably her lifetime. (Though, randomly, this morning she asked me if I've ever used the stove - apparently she hasn't noticed me standing there cooking EVERY DAY.) From the backseat of the car, she piped up that she wanted to make a list of exercises she could do in the morning, afternoon, and evening, plus a list of foods that she could eat for each meal. The minute we got home, the two of us sat down and wrote all this stuff down. Her food list is short since she's a pretty picky eater. Boiled eggs made it on there twice, even though I don't think she's ever eaten one. But hey - it gave us the opportunity to talk about balanced meals and eating fruit/dairy for snacks, instead of processed foods. Plus, she ate half a sweet potato later for dinner, a new veggie for her. Score!
The exercises on her list were mainly her ideas but she also wanted me to show her some new stuff. See if you can spot which is which:
EXERCISES (Stella ONLY)
Morning:
- jumping jacks
- push ups
- crunches
- squats
- plank
- duck walk (i.e. creep - she liked the name "duck walk" better)
- stretches
- downward dog
- meditation
Just to keep that ball rolling, I invited them to do 8 Minute Abs with me after dinner. Pretty funny! Milo was tired, but Stella was totally game - she kept wanting me to check her form (that's my girl!) and stuck with it until the end. "What is he saying? What does 'firm up' mean? Why does he keep calling us 'guys'?" 8MA dude's funny sayings are even funnier when channeled through a 7 year old.
Even if all of this is just her "activity of the day", I am psyched to know that some of my new PCP-ified habits are starting to trickle down to the kids.
PS - TEAM BADASS is lookin' GOOD, yo! I'm loving all the new pics...which reminds me that I need to take some new ones tomorrow. And I can't get over the SEVENTEEN Day One'ers!!! Holy influx! Welcome to the hood, y'all.
You can read the exact same blog post from every parent PCPer around this time. It takes more than 2 months, but eventually all kids get really into it. They see it's not just some fling, the fitness and nutrition is going to be a part of the household life for a long time to come.
ReplyDeleteWhat great memories she'll have!
omg. im nearly crumbling from the cuteness. (broody much?). what a little rock star you have there.
ReplyDeleteGO MOM!
p.s im such a dork, totally forgot i could have smoothies now! tonight yum yum here i come.
Smart kid. I love a woman who can plan and execute--way to go, Stella!
ReplyDeleteYes! This is one of the best parts of the PCP, for those of us with kids. I want my daughter to have a healthier relationship with food and exercise than I did, so it's great to give a positive example early on. :)
ReplyDeleteI love, love thinking of your children doing 8-minute abs with you!
ReplyDeleteAlso, when you get a new blender, try frozen mango chunks (if you can) with the frozen bananas. I've been rocking those for the past couple weeks. YUM!
I second the frozen mango chunks. TJ's sells them. YUMMY.
ReplyDeleteRIP blender. Sooo awesome bout Stella. Get them started young. Then she won't have to undo 33 years of bad habits a couple decades down the road. :P
ReplyDeleteBlenders suck. I got an industrial made one I thought would last a lifetime and it still broke.
ReplyDeleteThat's awesome about your kids!
Oh my that is so so cute.
ReplyDeleteMy blender died a few weeks ago. It shot pieces of the rubber gasket into my smoothie and that was that. I got one of those immersion ones and I really like it.