™
Healthy Ideas for Middle and High School Students April 2012
Williamsburg Local School District
Kim Gregory, Food Service Director
FAST
meals
TAKES Smaller
Instead of three big
meals a day, encourage your child
to have five smaller meals. This plan
can keep her full and help her avoid
snacking or overeating at dinner. Suggest that she have a smaller breakfast,
lunch, and dinner and replace snacks
with “mini-meals” (sandwich, oatmeal with fruit) after school and midway between dinner and bedtime.
Activity adds up
You’ve heard of
“no pain, no gain”?
When it comes to
physical activity,
that’s not true!
Make sure your child knows that fun
stuff definitely counts toward the
hour of exercise he should get each
day. Whether he’s playing touch football with his cousins or going bowling
with friends, it all adds up.
Did You
?
Iron is an important
nutrient that helps our
bodies make red blood cells. Teen
boys need 11 mg of iron a day, while
girls need 15 mg. Encourage your
children to eat iron-rich foods like red
meat, poultry, spinach, and navy or
pinto beans. Also, have them check
the labels of their favorite cereals and
pick the one with the most iron — at
least 3 mg. Tip: Foods with vitamin C,
such as orange juice, help the body
absorb iron.
Know
Just for fun
Q: Why aren’t
grapes ever lonely?
A: Because they
come in bunches.
© 2012 Resources for Educators, a division of CCH Incorporated
Cross training
It’s great if your teen
is hooked on a certain
sport. But doing a variety of
physical activities can make
athletes more well-rounded
and keep nonathletes in
better shape. Here’s why.
Different strengths
Each sport or activity helps
develop certain skills. Have your child
talk to her coach or look online to find
the benefits of her regular sport — and
then see what activities would fill in
the gaps. For example, if she plays
basketball, her coordination is probably
improving. A yoga class or gymnastics
could increase her flexibility.
Different muscles
When your teen plays the same sport
all the time, she works the same muscles
over and over again. To reduce her chances
of injury, encourage her to try other sports
or activities that work different muscles.
For instance, if she runs track, her outer
thighs are getting a workout. She might
Nutrition quiz
take up in-line skating, which works the
inner thighs.
Different interests
Cross training may help your teen
uncover hidden talents and keep her from
getting bored. If she has always played
soccer, she might not have had a chance
to find out that she enjoys fencing or
cycling. She also might like mixing up
team sports with individual or partner
activities like indoor climbing or squash—
and find that it’s nice to be on her own
or with one friend.
Does your teen know what’s in the food he
likes to eat? Try this activity to test his food
know-how and help him get in the habit
of reading food labels:
1. Have him write down his five favorite foods
or drinks.
2. Without peeking at the nutrition information,
each of you rank them from least to most calories.
3. Then, use the same foods and rank them based on sugar, sodium, fat, protein,
fiber, or vitamins.
4. How did you each do? Checking your answers might provide some nice surprises (his favorite burrito has a healthy amount of fiber) or a wake-up call (his
everyday sports drink is high in sugar).
Idea: Try again using your five favorite foods.
This institution is an equal opportunity provider.
Teen Food & Fitness™
April 2012 • Page 2
Beware of
bullying
Go over responses. Encourage
your child to ignore mean comments about his weight (or anything else) and to walk away
from bullies. Make sure he
knows that his weight doesn’t
define him, no matter what a
bully says. Note: While he might
be reluctant to involve adults, let
him know that bullying is a serious
problem his teachers and school
staff need to know about.
Build confidence. Help boost your
teen’s self-esteem by playing up his strengths (mentioning
what a loyal friend he is), asking his advice on topics he
knows about (which computer or cell phone to buy), or seeking his opinion (how to vote in a local election). You could
also offer to enroll him in martial arts classes —karate or judo
can build his physical confidence.
Overweight teens can be targets for bullies. If your child struggles with his weight,
you can help him avoid struggling with
bullying, too. Consider these suggestions.
Watch for signs. Kids who are bullied often
want to stay home from school when they’re
not really sick or avoid activities they used to
enjoy. More obvious signs might include torn
clothing, missing possessions, or unexplained
bruises or cuts.
NT Snack
PARTE
O
bar
PARENT choices
When I volunteered at the snack bar
last month during my son Brad’s baseball game, I was shocked by how much
junk food teens were eating. So I thought
it would be a good idea to discuss the
best choices for Brad to make when he
buys snacks at sporting events.
We agreed that fresh fruit or sunflower seeds are always good options.
And if those aren’t available, we thought
popcorn or granola bars would be better
than nachos
or candy.
While I’m
sure there
will be times
when my son
gets unhealthy
snacks, I think
he is starting
to make healthier choices.
And now I’m
considering signing up for our booster
club’s snack bar committee — I’d like to
help choose more nutritious foods to
sell next year!
O U R
P U R P O S E
To provide busy parents with practical ways to promote
healthy nutrition and physical activity for their children.
Resources for Educators,
a division of CCH Incorporated
128 N. Royal Avenue • Front Royal, VA 22630
540-636-4280 • rfecustomer@wolterskluwer.com
www.rfeonline.com
Teen Food & Fitness™ is reviewed by a registered dietitian. Consult
a physician before beginning any major change in diet or exercise.
ISSN 1935-8865
© 2012 Resources for Educators, a division of CCH Incorporated
ACTIVITY
CORNER
Walk this way
Your child might think of walking as just a leisurely way to get from one place to
another. But walking can be a workout! Review these
strategies with your teen:
●●Have her find a route she likes and time how
long it takes her to walk it. Suggest that she trim a
minute off her time by walking faster. Then, she can
try to shave off another minute.
●●Encourage her to increase the distance she walks.
She can work up to another lap (or more) around the high school track or add a
block a week to a neighborhood route. Or she might go farther by walking twice a
day (after school and after dinner).
●●Besides faster or longer walks, your teen could try other ways to up the challenge.
For instance, she could choose a route with hills or carry a two-pound weight in
each hand.
In the
K tchen Food on a stick
Forget the fork — these healthy
recipes will let your kids enjoy eating
right off the stick.
Beef skewers. Soak bamboo sticks
(available in grocery stores) in water
for 30 minutes. Thinly slice flank
steak, and thread two slices onto each
skewer. Brush with low-sodium teriyaki sauce, and grill or broil 1–2 minutes per side.
Italian salad bites. Put one grape
tomato, one basil leaf, and one chunk
of mozzarella cheese on a toothpick.
Drizzle with olive oil.
Pretzel sticks. Mix whipped cream
cheese with raisins and chopped nuts.
Spread on pretzel rods.
Fruit pops. Peel a mango, and cut the
fruit into long, thick strips. Place mango
pieces on lollipop sticks, and sprinkle
with chili powder for a sweet-and-spicy
treat. Note: This works well with fresh
pineapple spears, too.