March 16, 2016

How hard is it to get your kids to eat a healthy breakfast? Or healthy meals at any time of the day? It\’s a job in itself and not many of us were trained as psychologists or drill sergeants, let alone chefs and food stylists. It gets even harder when we\’re on the road. You need to take the opportunity to turn those food issues upside down to your advantage during travel, when you break from your usual routine. It’s smart. It’s a trick that works. It’s easy brainy fitness, and the best place to start is from the top: the brain. You and your kids can easily balance a healthy diet and develop good brain fitness habits at the same time using strategic nutrition and my secret weapon: Getting kids to eat brain fitness worthy healthy food is all about color. I have personally tested and used these great tips and tricks. They made my life easier, made my kids happier, brought creativity into their lives, and joy into our travels, which I hope will last their whole life long. It’s a win-win situation for everyone. I want to share my secrets with you. To get started, we need to stimulate the visual brain… Yours, and theirs. Let’s start with color. Your Eyes are the Door to Your Stomach. How to Eat Healthy Food is the Question. Your Brain is the Key. First, you have to think about food in a very different way than usual. You need to bring abstract ideas into your real life. I will repeat that again. It is the foundation of so many of my creativity and brain fitness concepts: You need to bring abstract ideas into your real life. They will stimulate your brain in a very different and exciting way. What will you and the kids get out of working on brain fitness during travel and at home? Studies show there are many positive benefits besides better memory and an increase in focus and concentration. Better marks in school and more success at work make daily brain fitness habits a no-brainer. Another benefit is an improvement in reaction time, which helps them in sports and can help you drive safer. Add problem solving outside the box with a boost in creativity and suddenly, working on brain fitness seems like a really smart idea… This is how I live. At home and especially on the road. Secret #1 Food is Fun, Not Fuel! I want you to stop thinking about food, well…as food. Change the way you see, and you will change the way you think. I want you to see color where you once saw food. I want you to think about the colors you eat on the road, or buy in the supermarket, the colors you take home, clean, cut up, cook and eat. Think color when you think about healthy dinner ideas. This type of creative thinking will stimulate the brain, strengthen existing neural pathways and help build new ones. Secret #2 Want to Get Them to Eat Healthy Food? It’s All in the Details For the rest of your life (I\’m serious!), take a moment to think about this: What color did you put in your mouth this morning? Give it a sec. Having trouble? Think of it this way, for example, if you had blueberries and cream at breakfast, the answer would be blue and white. If you had strawberry yogurt and bananas, the answer would be pink, yellow and black or brown (for the seeds. Extra points for noticing the details!)… Well, you get the idea. Talk it over with your kids. Make it a game. Like counting all the red cars on the highway… Ask them what colors they put in their mouth each day for a few weeks until thinking critically and crucially about color becomes habit and automatic. Secret #3 Monthly One Color Healthy Meals Now comes the fun part – plan to eat a one-color meal each month. It’s extra fun to do on the road. It keeps all of you sharp and is pretty simple to do. Whatever color you or your kids choose, the rules are easy: choose your color, decide which meal, plan at least 2 items to eat and a drink. So let’s try a white lunch. White chicken salad on white bread, macaroni salad on the side and end with a scoop of white lemon sherbet. Easy peasy, right? If you’re on the road, a quick red lunch of hot dogs with ketchup, (ditch the buns), and a nice red apple will go well with a red fruit drink. You get the idea. This is homework for life, bubie. I have created, practiced and taught these concepts and techniques in dozens of countries to thousands of people of all ages and abilities… and it works! My two kids survived me, and all our local, world and adventure travel (for other adventures, check out Adventure Travel TMOM Fran Capo for some exciting travel ideas). Make everyday basics fun, and watch all the good that flows. When you show your children creative, fun ways to discover the world around them, you give them the keys that open up the universe and all its possibilities. I think this is one of the more valuable gifts we can give and share with our kids. Of all ages. When you start thinking about the world around you in terms of color, it gets pretty exciting. Remember…healthy food and Eat Color! Try it!… Check out Homeschool Traveling Mom Shannon Entin\’s interesting post relating children and color. Create your best day! Brainy Traveling Mom Alli Berman