Health & Fitness Friday: Confident, Positive, Healthy & Happy

I want my girls to be confident, positive and healthy. I want them to be happy. Happy girls really are the prettiest. I want to display the above quote in their bedroom and assure they know what true beauty is. I want them to also know that kind, compassionate, honest, faithful, smart and loving girls are also the prettiest. I don't want them to be obsessed, but I want them to be aware and conscience of the choices they make in taking care of themselves. I want them to be aware of their bodies and be appreciative of them and not feel overwhelmed by what society tries to tell them it should look like. The media distorts our perception of beauty and it has a huge impact on us. I want exercise and food choices to be something positive and fun. I want my girls to feel and know they are beautiful. I want them to know that their reflections do not reflect their worth, health or happiness. I want them to have a positive self image. They need to see a mother who loves and respects her body. I have read quite a few articles from the website Beauty Redefined and listened to hours of podcast from the Power of Moms on the topic of body image, beauty, exercise and nutrition.

http://powerofmoms.com/2012/06/solutions-to-moms-body-issues-episode-36/
http://powerofmoms.com/2012/08/beauty-redefined-episode-39/
http://powerofmoms.com/2013/08/making-time-to-exercise-episode-59/
http://powerofmoms.com/2013/09/healthy-eating-and-no-more-diets-radio-episode-24/

There is so much material and so many resources out there with ideas and tips to help us teach our children how to be confident, positive and healthy. Here are just a few ideas I have come up with in the little bit of reading and research I have done so far.

1. Deal with your own body image issues. Shut down every negative thought we have and replace it with a positive. Do not talk negative about your body or your looks. Your daughter will hear you and it will negatively affect her view of her own body. I feel like this is one that goes overlooked.

2. Do not draw attention to your child's looks and others looks. Friends and media will do that for you. Make your compliments be more about achievements and characteristics. I had heard this years ago in a child development class and I have always remembered it, but it is so easy to make comments to my girls about how beautiful they are. I do not think that the "you're so pretty", "so cute!", "beautiful!" comments need to be taken out of our dialogue, but I do see the importance in making sure it is not the focus and that we are paying more attention to the achievements and characteristics.

3. Demonstrate healthy eating habits. Focus on health and nutrition instead of weight and calories. Teach them about nutrition and always have healthy food to offer.

4. Find exercise that fits- It doesn't matter what your child or you do for that matter, for physical fitness; it just matters that they are doing something. Whether it be a group sport or individual, help them find their niche in something they like.

What ideas do you have? How do you teach your children to be confident, positive, healthy and happy?