Marathon Kids

Parents-
This year's Marathon Kids Mileage Logs are due to me no later than February 11, 2014. This still gives the students a month or so to finish up. If your student needs a new Mileage Log, they can come see me and I will give one to them. Please try to encourage your student as much as possible to participate in this.

Healthy Tip #6

This week try to eliminate as much fast food from your diet as possible.

Fast food has made life so easy, but what has it done to our health? 

In our society that is ever growing (waist-line) we are caught in an instant gratification society. 
- "I don’t have time to eat good."
- "I don’t have time to cook."

- "We to be here then here and we will grab something quick."

Fast food (both the restaurants you think of and the pre-packaged meals you heat and eat) started out as a novelty that you did once in a while.  Now it is almost every meal.

What is the problem with fast food?

We eat fast food because it is convenient AND it tastes good.  Today food companies use your taste bud to “hook” you on their products.  They use salt, fat/grease, mono sodium glutamate, sugar, corn syrup, condiments like mayonnaise, etc., and other artificial flavors to make their food taste good.  They also have food additives that are designed to get you addicted to their products- this ensures that not only will you keep buying their products and regularly.

References:

http://www.gethealthylexington.com/

Healthy Tip #5

The average American watches almost 5 hours of TV every day!  Challenge yourself to watch as little as possible, see if you can watch 1 hour or less per night.  Let yourself watch you favorite shows, but turn it off after that.  It is amazing how the television has an ability to suck you in.  Without realizing it you have been watching for hours.  In many cases you start with watching a show you enjoy, then it turns into what is the best thing on after that.  At the end of the night you might be able to build a robot or remodel your house (even though you don’t own any tools), you might know everything about all the celebrities (that you will never meet), or you might now know every punch line from you favorite movie (after watching it for the 100^th time.) 

Television is entertainment and it is designed to keep your attention.  Everything we do in life either builds us up or tears us down.  Positive things build us up and negative things break us down.  If you are watching a show ask yourself: is this building me up?  If not, turn it off.  Violence, drama, negativity, poor language.  What are we exposing to ourselves, our kids?  In addition to what the TV does to your mind, by sitting for that many hours per day and often eating while watching, it is no wonder as to why our society is becoming obese so rapidly.  If the average American cut that TV time in half and watched 2.5 hours and exercised the other half we would go from one of the most overweight countries to one of the fittest.

You will be amazed at how much you can accomplish by limiting TV hours.  

What can you do?

- Read a book

- Exercise

- Find a hobby

- Meditate

- Go on a family walk/ bike ride

- Play a game (not video games)

- Volunteer

- Listen to music

- Go to bed early and get the sleep that you and your family need

references-
http://www.gethealthylexington.com/

Healthy Tip #4

This week, eliminate all pop or soda 
Did you know that drinking just 2 sodas per day = over 100,000 calories per year? That’s a lot of calories for a beverage that offers no nutritional value. If you can’t go cold turkey and cut soda completely try to have just 1 or 2 sodas per week.

Here are some of the health reasons to not drink soda:

Extra pounds- Soda is a significant contributor to obesity. Drinking a single can a day of sugary drinks translates to more than a pound of weight gain every month. And diet soda is just as likely to cause weight gain as regular, or even more -- it may sound counterintuitive, but people who drink diet soft drinks actually don’t lose weight.

Liver damage- Soda damages your liver. Consumption of too many soft drinks puts you under increased risk for liver cirrhosis.
Tooth decay- Soda dissolves tooth enamel. Soft drinks are responsible for doubling or tripling the incidence of tooth decay. Soda's acidity is even worse for teeth than the solid sugar found in candy.

Kidney stones and chronic kidney disease- Colas of all kinds are well known for their high phosphoric acid content, a substance that changes the urine in a way that promotes kidney stone formation.

Diabetes- Anything that promotes weight gain increases the risk of diabetes. Drinking soda also stresses your body's ability to process sugar.

Heartburn & acid reflux- Heavy consumption of soda is a strong predictor of heartburn. Many carbonated beverages are very acidic. They also deliver a lot of air in the form of carbon dioxide, which can cause distension of your stomach. And that distension appears to be associated with more reflux.

Soft drinks = Soft Bones = Osteoporosis- Soft drinks containing phosphoric acid are definitely linked to osteoporosis (a weakening of your skeletal structure) because they lead to lower calcium levels and higher phosphate levels in your blood. When phosphate levels are high and calcium levels are low, calcium is pulled out of your bones.
Hypertension (high blood pressure)- Experts have reasons to believe that over consumption of soda leads to an increase in blood pressure. It doesn't matter if the soda is regular or diet.

Heart disease- Heavy soda drinkers are more likely to develop risk factors for heart disease.

Impaired digestion (gastrointestinal distress)- Drinking sodas, especially on an empty stomach, can upset the fragile acid-alkaline balance of your stomach and other gastric lining, creating a continuous acid environment.

I know it might be tough, but you will be much healthier by eliminating soda from your diet.



references-
http://www.gethealthylexington.com/

Healthy Tip #3

Try to eat at least 3 servings of vegetables every day. The more, different types of vegetables the better since each vegetable gives you different vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, etc.

Whenever possible buy Organic vegetables since they do not have chemicals that you are putting into your body, and they have been shown to contain more nutrients than regular vegetables. Fresh or frozen vegetables are much better for your body than vegetables from a can. If you buy fresh vegetables that are not organic make sure to use a fruit and vegetable spray soap to clean them (you can find this at a health food store.)

The best ways to prepare vegetables are raw or steamed. With boiling or other cooking with water some of the nutrients is released to the water. Try to avoid cooking in butter, oil or with other additives.

Here are some of the best vegetables for you to eat:

-Asparagus               -Chives              -Turnips
-Avocado                -Tomatoes          -Spinach
-Broccoli                 -Kale
-Brussels Sprout       -Lettuce
-Cauliflower             -Onions
-Celery                    -Parsley
-Cabbage                -Peppers: red, green, yellow, and hot









references-


http://www.gethealthylexington.com/