![\"basketball](\"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/basketball-dunk.jpg\")
<\/a>Basketball dunks could be in the student\u2019s future if he follows the nutrition and fitness tips provided at the free Parent Connection workshop Feb. 11.\u00a0During the \u201cFitness for Families\u201d event, registered dietician Kirby Moir and certified trainer Eric Fretz of Jim White Fitness and Nutrition Studios discussed healthy eating habits and led attendees in exercises everyone can do.<\/p>\n\u201cA lot of times we\u2019re just on autopilot when we eat,\u201d Moir told participants.\u00a0\u201cWe drive down the road and eat whatever is available. It\u2019s important to have awareness of what we are eating.\u201d<\/p>\n
To help workshop attendees be mindful of what they eat and drink, Moir used the U.S. Department of Agriculture\u2019s (USDA) educational tool MyPlate to talk about the five food groups that are the building blocks for a healthy diet \u2013 fruits, grains, vegetables, protein and dairy.<\/p>\n
She also noted that starches and complex carbohydrates provide important fuel and shouldn\u2019t be avoided as some people try to do. \u201cThink of your body as a car, this is your gasoline,\u201d Moir said.<\/p>\n Drinking lots of water every day is also essential,\u00a0Moir told families, as is reading food labels to check for lower amounts of saturated fat,\u00a0sugar and sodium.<\/p>\n \u201cFruits and vegetables don\u2019t have labels,\u201d said Moir, noting that it\u2019s because they are only good for you.<\/p>\n After discussing recommended portion sizes and daily allowances of the five food groups to ensure children and adults get the nutrients they need, Fretz joined the presentation to lead families in exercise.<\/p>\n \u201cIf you\u2019re not burning it,\u201d Fretz announced, \u201cyour body will store it in all those places you don\u2019t want it to be stored.\u201d<\/p>\n The trainer shared exercises to work all \u201cthose places\u201d our bodies store extra calories, beginning with squats and lunges. Workshop participants wasted no time joining the fun.<\/p>\n He shared some fun activities to get the family moving that don\u2019t involve a visit to the gym:<\/p>\n Families can also have fun with fitness by creating a series of playing cards featuring family-friendly exercises, such as bear-crawling. Each person picks a card and performs the exercise, and it continues until all cards have been drawn and performed. Groups can also assign exercises to the four suits found in a deck of playing cards, draw cards one-by-one and exercise accordingly \u2013 10 jumping jacks, six pushups, nine squats and so on.<\/p>\n \u201cEven the Navy SEALs do these,\u201d said Fritz of scissor kicks, \u201cbut they do them for about 30 minutes straight.\u201d<\/p>\n While correcting participants\u2019 form on some exercises, Fritz added, \u201cYou want to be safe, but you don\u2019t have to do everything perfectly.\u00a0As long as you\u2019re moving, that\u2019s what\u2019s important.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cCan we take out the jump ropes?\u201d a few pleaded while adults began to pack up the gym mats.\u00a0\u201cCan we get the basketballs again?\u201d\u00a0they asked before taking a few quick running laps around the gym.<\/p>\n Two active siblings paused by a poster hanging on the gym wall that reads: I am going to be strong today. I tried it yesterday and I think I\u2019m hooked.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/a>\u201cBalance is key,\u201d stressed Moir.<\/p>\n<\/a>\u201cExercise will make you feel better because it releases serotonin and other endorphins. You get to feel better naturally while having fun,\u201d said Fretz.<\/p>\n\n
<\/a>Fretz set up a few gym mats to go through floor exercises such as planks, pushups, situps and scissor kicks.<\/p>\n<\/a>The children in particular were eager to keep moving, even after the event was ending.<\/p>\n<\/a>After the evening of family fun, there\u2019s no doubt they are hooked on fitness.<\/p>\n