Let’s Move ~ Eat Local, Eat Fresh

June 6, 2012 | The Health Beat

Are you tired of searching through fad diets and grocery store freezers to learn how to eat healthy? It’s pretty time consuming reading food label after food label to find the pre-packaged food that best meets your goals. But, I’ve never seen a piece of fruit or a vegetable with a food label on it. Why? Because they don’t need them! The ingredients in fresh fruits and vegetables are exactly what your body has been begging you for! Plus, there’s no calorie counting! And, who says that eating fresh has to be boring? Here’s a fresh recipe that’s sure to entertain your palate!

Stuffed Chicken Breast
With only 5 ingredients, you can create a fresh meal that is so full of flavor, you’ll start thinking that you should open a restaurant so you can share it with the world!

Ingredients
1) Chicken Breast
2) Garlic
3) Heirloom Tomato
4) Mozarella Cheese
5) Herbed Goat Cheese

Instructions
Take your pressed garlic, diced tomato and crumbled cheeses and stuff them in to your chicken breast. How much is up to you! Remember to get enough for flavor, while remembering portion control! Toss the stuffed chicken on the grill and cook both sides thoroughly. (About 10 minutes on each side depending on the heat of your grill)
Not sure that 5 ingredients is enough for you? You can always add anything you want for more flavor! Basil, spinach and other types of cheeses are all great options.

We hope that you are looking forward to cooking fresh for your family! Let us know what you think of this recipe! It’s all about finding ways to live healthy and fight obesity in America, especially childhood obesity! Need some more inspiration? The experienced staff at NCES is always here to help! You can find us at www.ncescatalog.com, chat with us from our homepage, or visit us on Facebook or Twitter.

Let’s Move: Healthy Lunches for Kids!

May 17, 2012 | The Health Beat

It’s hard to believe that the middle of May has already come and gone! For parents from coast to coast, this means one thing… School’s out for summer! Or, at least it soon will be. For many parents, you’ve been packing your students lunch all year. So, continuing to provide lunch throughout the summer is no big change. However, for a large number of parents, planning ahead to provide lunches all summer is a daunting task! Instead, let’s make it fun!

For many families, the idea of packing a lunch at home isn’t really an option. Whether it is due to a lack of time, income or knowledge on balanced meals, a school lunch is the only, or at least best, option for many students. So, in order to meet the needs of all students, let’s focus on educating children to build a healthy plate! This way, no matter whether a student’s lunch is packed for them, or handed to them on a divided tray, your kids will know exactly what they should and shouldn’t be eating!

Know the Facts: It’s important to teach children how much food from each food group they should be eating each day. Depending on the age of the child, they may have a hard time grasping this concept. Especially if they are trying to keep track of their food intake for an entire day. Make it easier by only relying on them to track their lunch foods; you can help by keeping an eye on their breakfast and dinner foods with them. It’s also never a bad idea to send them to school with one of our Kids Right-Sized Portion Plates. The fun design will ensure they’re not embarrassed to use it; the perfectly portioned areas will help them get their servings right.
Know the Stats: According to the CDC, 1/3 of the U.S. child population is currently overweight or obese. And, unfortunately, this number continues to trend upwards year after year. The excess weight that these children are carrying around has so many immediate and long-term health effects including pre-diabetes, cardiovascular disease and increased risk for many types of cancers.
Know the Cure: Prevention is the number one cure! Teaching children about balanced eating, being the example they need and demonstrating a physically active lifestyle can all aid in the prevention, and reversal of childhood obesity. According to the CDC:

“The dietary and physical activity behaviors of children and adolescents are influenced by many sectors of society, including families, communities, schools, child care settings, medical care providers, faith-based institutions, government agencies, the media, and the food and beverage industries and entertainment industries.”

So, it’s very important to pay attention to every aspect of your lifestyle that will be influencing your child’s behavior; the friends your child plays with, daycare provider and the school your child attends.

So, are you ready for the challenge? This summer, instead of dreading preparing your child’s lunch every day, take time to teach them why you are packing each piece. Tell them that the protein in their lunch helps them build muscle to be strong, the fruit helps them heal from any cuts and bruises, the vegetable helps them see well and stay focused, the whole-wheat grains give them the energy they need to play with their friends all day and dairy keeps their bones strong to avoid breaks and fractures!

We hope that you have found the tips in this blog helpful! It’s all about finding ways to get active and fight obesity in America, especially childhood obesity! Need some more inspiration? The experienced staff at NCES is always here to help! You can find us at www.ncescatalog.com, chat with us from our homepage, or visit us on Facebook or Twitter.

Let’s Move: Get Active

May 9, 2012 | The Health Beat

By this point, I’m sure that anyone reading this blog is very aware of Michelle Obama’s Let’s Move initiative. The first lady developed this plan to attack the issue of childhood obesity in America. Obesity in America is an epidemic that is growing out of control. Although there are many different aspects of our culture that we could blame this problem on, the main issue is a lack of education on how to eat healthy and how to get active. Throughout the month of May, we are excited to be featuring a series of blogs on how to live out the Let’s Move initiative to its fullest; kicking off with this article on how to get active!

So, the question is, how do I become physically active? The answer to this question is dependent on your lifestyle. Do you have time to go to the gym? Are you able to squeeze in workout time during your busy day? If you have plenty of time to spare, getting in a good run each day or spending some time increasing your heart rate at the gym are both great options. However, the reality for most of us is that with our busy work and personal lives, we need creative ways to fit physical activity in to our already full schedule.Did you know that the American College of Sports Medicine recommends 30 minutes of physical activity most days of the week in order to be physically active? In contrast, many of us don’t get ANY physical activity each week. Participating in some sort of cardiovascular physical activity most days each week helps increase weight loss as well as reduces your risk for diabetes, heart disease and other related health issues.

Working out at work:

This concept has come a long way from the days of strengthening your tush by squeezing your muscles together during meetings and conference calls! Fitting in a few pushups or simple squats between meetings is a great way to burn extra calories every day. Have you already got some great exercises in mind? If not, something like FitDeck cards may provide exactly the motivation you need!

Working out at home:

The whole purpose of Let’s Move is to get America’s youngest generation up and moving! So, instead of trying to figure out what to do with your kids while working out, you may find it rewarding to figure out how to work out with your kids! Many activities around the house can easily be made in to a solid workout. Try adding in some leg sqauts while you pick up toys. Or, just by carrying the laundry up and down the stairs, you’re sure to burn extra calories.

Not to mention, Spring is in the Air! What better time is there than right now to get outside? Make family walks a tradition in your house. Not only are you setting an example for your kids, it’s a great time to catch up on the day’s events and discuss your family calendar’s upcoming events.