healthy living Helping Children Develop a Healthy Lifestyle Engaging in

healthy living Helping Children Develop a Healthy Lifestyle Engaging in healthy living is important for both you and your children. The benefits are endless, as it: • builds strong bones • strengthens muscles • increases flexibility • helps to maintain a healthy weight • strengthens the heart • enhances self- esteem • enhances energy • establishes identity • enhances healthy growth and development Some Winning Strategies to Help Children Develop a Healthy Lifestyle How do we get children to embrace healthy living? Here are a few suggestions: Education. Ongoing education (including repetition) on the importance of healthy living is a great start. Understanding the benefits of a healthy lifestyle at an early age can result in longterm rewards for both you and your children. Healthy living is fun. Emphasizing the fun associated with health and involving your children in planning activities helps get them excited and increases the likelihood of participation. There are a lot of neat winter activities that kids love to do like tobogganing, skating, backyard hockey, snowboarding, cross-country skiing, snow forts or building a whole snow family in the front yard. Kids can cook! Many kids love to be in the kitchen and help their parents prepare meals and snacks. Encourage them to make their own lunches and/or family snacks using healthy food choices such as yogurt, cheese, fruit and a tasty multigrain sandwich. Make open-faced sandwiches fun: make a smiley face with raisins and sprout hair or use peanut butter and a banana on a whole grain hot dog bun for banana split dogs. The broccoli, schmoccoli issue. It is well known that broccoli is packed with nutrients, but how do we get kids to eat it? Citing the health benefits of broccoli probably won’t convince kids to eat it, but including a healthy yogurt dip or dressing makes broccoli very tasty. Have your kids build carrot and celery stick log homes, complete with broccoli trees for landscaping, and dip them in the yogurt pond. Leisure Guide Activities The Winter 2008 Leisure Guide has lots of creative and fun activities for children to enjoy. Winnipeggers love to skate—it’s fun and a great exercise choice. Let the City’s trained instructors teach your kids a variety of skating skills, using specially-selected equipment, activities and games in a non-competitive environment. Our preschool, free play and children programs are designed for enjoyment. They also develop basic social, creative and recreational skills. There are lots of different programs to choose from, such as Running Amok, Munchkins in Motion, Recreational Cheerleading and Fun Boot Camp. They will be having so much fun, they won’t even know it is good for them! Lead by example! Sign up with your children and get active together. Join the Parent and Youth Badminton or Mother-Daughter Weight Training, or how about starting really early with Baby and Me Aquafitness? Families who play together stay fit together. Join our family karate, walking club or wall climbing programs. We have lots of ideas to keep your family active! Feedback - Your Healthy Living Strategies If you have a winning healthy living strategy/example that has helped your children embrace healthy living and you would like to share it in the upcoming Spring/Summer Leisure Guide, please send us a brief description (50 words or less) by email to leisureonline@winnipeg.ca or send it by mail to: City of Winnipeg Leisure Guide, 2nd Floor, 395 Main Street, Winnipeg, R3B 3N8. 9 healthy living Power Skating introductory to advanced see page 32 Growing Strong Bones... We all need strong bones for good health. Strong bones last a lifetime and help to prevent diseases such as osteoporosis later in life. Susan Wehrle, Community Nutritionist Winnipeg Regional Health Authority So how do you develop strong bones? The best time to build strong bones is during our child and teen years when our bones are growing fastest. For our children to develop strong bones, they need lots of weight-bearing activity such as walking, running, jumping and dancing. They also need calcium. It’s essential to a healthy diet and to the growth of strong bones and teeth. Eating Well with Canada’s Food Guide recommends 3 to 4 servings of milk and milk alternatives each day for adolescents between the ages of 9 and 18 years. One food guide serving is: 500 mL (1 cup) Milk 500 mL (1 cup) Fortified soy beverage 375 mL (3/4 cup) Yogurt 50 gm (1-1/2 oz) Cheese Other sources of calcium include: Calcium – Fortified Orange Juice Cooked frozen spinach Baked beans Are your kids getting enough calcium? winnipeginmotion.ca During their teen years, children need a minimum of 1300 mg of calcium. Unfortunately, only 19% of teen girls and 52% of teen boys get this amount of calcium in their diets. One of the reasons is that soft drinks and juices are replacing milk and milk alternates in many kids’ diets, so kids are missing out on one of the best sources of calcium. Don’t forget For good health, kids need both calcium and physical activity. Be sure that your kids get lots of both, and help them develop strong bones…for life. 10 healthy living 11 Assiniboine Park Conservatory Educational Programs Winter 2008 To register call 986-5663 or 986-4732 (Conservatory) or register online at Winnipeg.ca/leisureonline BOTANICAL SERIES Container Gardens – Our most popular program ever returns for another Houseplants 101 – Haven’t a clue what to grow indoors? Tired of replacing houseplants every few weeks? Come and join our entry level houseplant presentation. Learn what plants are best suited to Manitoba homes, tricks and tips as well as fun. Fee: $35 (includes a tropical plant to take home) 96301 Monday. February 4 7:00 – 9:00 pm season. This hands-on workshop teaches the novice to the seasoned gardener the “tricks of the trade”. Learn which plants perform the best, companions, soil and media to use as well as the cutting edge of floral fashion for 2008. There are a few take away plants as well. Fee: $35 96293 Monday April 28 7:00 – 9:00 pm Companion Planting – Who’s planted beside who in the garden makes Preserved Paradise – Design a garden dedicated to plants that will dry or a world of difference. Some plants will tolerate company, others despise it. Carrots and cukes? Potatoes and Petunias? Learn the secrets of companion gardening for containers, vegetable garden and the perennial borders. Includes seeds to take home. Fee: $20 96294 Tuesday January 22 7:00 - 9:00 pm preserve well. Perhaps you wish to collect for a Potpourri or customize a dried floral arrangement for a friend. This workshop will lead you through the steps of design to harvest and preservation of you patch of paradise. Fee: $35 96302 Tuesday February 5 7:00 – 9:00 pm Garbage Gardening – This class was a favorite of Sesame Street’s “Oscar Seeding – The art and science of producing your garden from seed. Learn what medium to use, preparation tips for sowing, germination, cultural requirements and tricks of the horticultural trade to ensure that your garden is a wonder to behold. Fee: $35 96295 Wednesday March 5 6:30 – 9:30 pm the Grouch”. Grow it rather than throw it is the theme. Learn how these houseplants and some garden plants are grown from tidbits of trash that is generally discarded. Take home a Garbage Gardening Pail with your newly discovered re-claimed plants. Fee: $35 96303 Wednesday February 6 7:00 – 9:00 pm Terrariums – Build your own miniature rainforest in a unique container. Balcony Bloomers – Highrise horticulture has specific requirements for This workshop is hands on, down and dirty. Come prepared to have a great, relaxing evening as you build a bottle garden to take home. Fee: $40 (Supplies included) 96296 Thursday January 24 7:00 – 9:00 pm success. This workshop will have easy to follow instructions, design suggestions and of course, experienced staff to assist you in developing a great garden in containers. Customize your balcony or small patio with plants with evening fragrance, bundles of blooms or trailers to tickle the neighbors below. Fee: $35 (includes cuttings to take home) 96304 Tuesday April 29 7:00 – 9:00 pm Interior Plantscaping – Not your typical “makeover” show, but you will come away with a greater understanding of how plants can enhance you home. Learn the basics of placement, plant maintenance, cleaning and companions for the living interior design. The latest and hottest plants for 2008 will be showcased as well as classic favourites. Fee: $35 (take home tropical plant included) 96297 Monday January 28 7:00 – 9:00 pm ARTS AND CRAFTS SERIES Marbling Workshop with Artist Janet Carroll - Paper marbling involves floating inks on a tray of thickened water, swirling the colours to make a pattern, then picking up the resulting image with a piece of treated paper. Learn the basics of this fascinating craft and make several unique prints by the end of the afternoon. Wear a smock or apron, as marbling can be messy! Fee: $35 96305 Saturday January 12 12:00 – 4:00 pm Landscape Design Primer – Tackling your landscape design may seem a daunting task and it can be! The Conservatory is offering this expert landscape advice workshop where you can learn the dos and don’ts of design. Our professional designer(s) will assist you with the finer details of your landscape as well as offer sound, practical information. Come prepared to dream. Fee: $35 96298 Tuesday January 29 7:00 – 9:00 pm Desert in a Dish – A wonderful hands on workshop that brings the exotic Captured in Time -Art with Dried Flowers – ‘Immortelles’ Extend aspects of the desert to you. Together we will design and build a living dish garden dedicated to the awesome and unusual characters of the desert. Gloves are a must! Fee: $40 (includes supplies) 96299 Wednesday January 30 7:00 -9:00 pm Manitoba Moons – Design a garden so that you can dance in it by the the beauty and longevity of your garden by creating lasting floral displays and arrangements. This class provides a hands on approach to harvesting, drying and preserving flowers, herbs and pods and will guide you through the details with expert advice on how to make your own stunning floral expressions. Fee: $40 (includes materials) 96306 Tuesday February 12 7:00 – 9:00 pm light of the silvery moon. This unique and fascinating workshop will lead you through the design process so that your lunar landscape is perfect. Moon gardens incorporate plants and combinations of plants that are evening scented or have reflective silvery foliage. Fee: $35 (includes garden seed kit) 96300 Thursday January 31 7:00 – 9:00 pm Painting in Paradise with artist Jennifer Labella - In this six week watercolour course, artist Jennifer Labella presents basic background information on working with watercolours, colour theory, composition and design. These half-day workshops are suitable for everyone from beginners to more established artists. Fee: $90 for 6 classes 96307 Thursday Jan 10 – Feb. 14 9:30 – 12:30 Members of Friends of the Conservatory receive a discount on Conservatory programs if registering in person at the Conservatory and show their membership card CULTURAL SERIES Tea Time – Discover the many rituals and cultural associations of “a cuppa”. Where is Tea grown? What is the difference between Black, Green, White, Gunpowder or Earl Grey? Tea tasting, custom blending, accoutrements for the “lovers of the leaf”. Presented by Bob Krul of Cornelia Bean Fee: $35 96280 Wednesday January 23 7:00 – 9:00 pm FOODY SERIES Conservatory Culinary Classes - The Assiniboine Park Conservatory joins forces with the MLCC at Grant Park to offer the following courses. Learn some of the basic culinary techniques; sample wines perfectly paired with recipes even the most novice cook can prepare. The Gift of the Grape - Wines of Tuscany - Frescobaldi, Antinori, Sangivovese and the rest of the neighbourhood in Toscana will be represented. Learn the subtle nuances, food pairings, and distinctive personalities of these traditional Italian wines. Samples and snacks provided. Held in MLCC Teaching Kitchen - Grant Park Mall Fee: $40 98586 Wednesday February 27 7:00 – 9:00 pm Coffee Break – Full roast, Decaf, French Blend, Latte, Americano or Es- presso. Learn the lingo of the Barista and some of the best-kept “java” secrets. Tasting, treats and pairings supplied and presented by Starbucks. Fee: $35 96281 Tuesday January 8 7:00 – 9:00 pm Spice of Life – Cumin, Cinnamon, Nutmeg and Ginger are staples in many kitchens; and where would the world be without Pepper? Where do these once exotic spices come from in the world? Learn about spice usage, history, corruption and medicinal qualities of some of the more popular spices. Fee: $35 96282 Wednesday February 27 7:00 – 9:00 pm Vegetarian Harvest – Where better to discover the culinary experiences asso- Plants for Beauty, Plants for Health – Antioxidants are often discussed in many areas of health and beauty. Some common garden and houseplants are very powerful healers if used properly. Learn to make your own skin cream, discover what plants can do for anti-aging and how to grow plants that will enhance your health and how you feel. Fee: $35 96283 Monday February 25 7:00 – 9:00 pm ciated with vegetarian cooking? The Conservatory offers cooking demonstrations using all parts of plants from flowers to roots. There is much more to vegetarian cooking than making a salad. Presented by Helena Tiginagas. Samples and recipes to take home. Held in MLCC Teaching Kitchen - Grant Park Mall Fee: $40 96287 Thurday March 6 7:00 – 9:30 pm Flavoured Oils – Learn to and actually prepare your own flavoured cooking Plants of Midwifery – Midwives of days gone by relied on an assortment oil at this practical workshop. Zesty salad dressings, sultry marinades and lightly scented oils are a few of the recipes demonstrated. Held in MLCC Teaching Kitchen - Grant Park Mall Fee: $40 (Includes materials) 96288 Wednesday February 20 7:00 – 9:00 pm of plants to assist them in their craft. Today many derivatives of these plants are still used. Learn the fascinating history of this age old craft and the importance plants played in the development of modern day practices. Presented by Kathryn Funk of the Midwives Assoc. of Manitoba Fee: $25 96284 Tuesday January 15 7:00 – 9:00 pm Chocolate and Vanilla – These exotic beans have been known to humankind for eons. Learn the sordid history, swashbuckling myths and even mysticism surrounding these popular elixirs. What sex does vanilla attract? Is chocolate really an aphrodisiac? Libations, samples and information provided. Presented by Corinne Dawley. Held in MLCC Teaching Kitchen - Grant Park Mall Fee: $50 (includes samples and recipes to take home) 98587 Wednesday March 12 7:00 – 9:00 pm Spirited Trees – Trees are not only the lungs of life, they represent life. As long as humankind has walked the earth, trees have been part of all spiritualities from the cave dwellers to modern day urbanites. Learn the significance as well as the symbolisms associated with trees - Hawthorn, Willow, Oak, Maple, Conifers and many more. Fee: $35 96285 Wednesday January 16 7:00 – 9:00 pm Tappas – Noshing, nibbling and relaxing are brought to an art form in this Healing Plants – Modern medicine and pharmacology is firmly rooted in the realm of the plant world. Many believe that all diseases, illness, pestilence and plague have cures rooted in the plant world. Come and learn of some of earth’s healing plants, past and present as well as thoughts on what the future holds. Presented by David Hanson of Sage Garden Herbs. Fee: $35 96286 Tuesday February 26 7:00 –9:00 pm presentation. Learn what ingredients go into preparing some of the best finger foods around and what libations are best suited with each creation. Tasty treats to take home with recipes. Held in MLCC Teaching Kitchen - Grant Park Mall Fee: $40 96289 Wednesday March 19 7:00 – 9:00 pm Strangers in the Produce Aisle – Durian, Dragon Fruit, Garambola and Opuntia may well seem like alien life forms inhabiting your grocery store. Come and learn what these weird, wacky and wonderfully incredible edibles have to offer. Samples and a take home surprise. Held in MLCC Teaching Kitchen - Grant Park Mall Fee: $35 96290 Wednesday February 13 7:00 – 9:00 pm Sprout Salad Gardens – Learn to grow a fresh salad on your windowsill, under a light and even in a pickle jar. Fresh and available all winter long a sprout salad garden is the gift that keeps on growing. Take your Sprout Garden home with you as well as oodles of information. Held in MLCC Teaching Kitchen - Grant Park Mall Fee: $35 96291 Wednesday March 26 7:00 – 9:00 pm Don’t just weed it, eat it! – Learn some of the more unusual plants that can be used to make a salad. Munching on Marigolds, Dandelion Delights, Chickweed puree and dozens of unusual combinations made from the plants we love to hate – weeds. Enjoy fun and festivities with wine pairing for the most delicate of palettes for the inner vegetarian in all of us. Recipes and take home goodies. Held in MLCC Teaching Kitchen - Grant Park Mall Fee: $35 (Weeds supplied) 96292 Wednesday February 6 7:00 – 9:00 pm Living Aromatherapy - Awaken the senses, stimulate the brain, relax and recuperate using plants from your garden. Learn how the heady fragrances of basil, rosemary, peppermint, and many more plants can affect your mood. Discover the basicprinciples of living aromatherapy with David Hanson of Sage Garden Herbs. Pot your own herb to take home. Fee: $40 96308 Monday March 3 7:00 – 9:00 pm Creating Herbarium Specimens - Herbarium specimens are the classic root of the popular botanical print. In this workshop you will learn the tips and tricks used by skilled taxonomist, the art of collecting specimens, pressing procedures and how to make your own plant presses. Fee: $60 (Includes materials) 96310 Tuesday February 19 7:00 – 9:00 pm healthy living 1 Activity Tips Winter is a great time for active fun! Walking on a fresh blanket of snow on a crisp winter morning, seeing your breath, feeling the crunch of the snow and the crack of the ice beneath your feet. For families, there’s active fun everywhere. You can make snow angels, build a giant snowman or enjoy thrills at the local toboggan hill. Kids can show Mom and Dad their best skating moves or score a goal or two in an exciting, fast-paced game of shinny (hockey). If we take the time to look for it, there’s exciting winter fun everywhere. To Keep Your Kids “in motion” This Winter by Deanna Betteridge, Winnipeg in motion Coordinator winnipeginmotion.ca There’s no fun like snow fun! Got snow? Got kids? Then you have the ingredients for great winter fun. Encourage your kids to be creative and find new and exciting ways to be active, such as: Fill ‘er up – Gather the family and neighbourhood kids for a fun relay. In teams race to fill up a bucket with snow, using a scoop or a cup. Pile it on – In teams, see which team can build the biggest snow pile. Ready, set, go! Construction Zone - Start your own snow construction company and build snow people, snow sculptures and snow forts or igloos. Or build a small hill for sliding – younger kids will love it. Treasure Hunt - Have an outdoor treasure hunt. Hide a box of “Treasures” in the snow somewhere in your yard, then give each child a “Treasure Map” with clues on how to find the treasure. * photo credit Too cold to play outside? There are also lots of easy, fun ways to stay active indoors. Read on for some fun indoor and outdoor activity tips that the whole family can try as well as ones for the kids to do on their own. Outdoor skating on the pond Kids love to ice skate. It’s great fun and great exercise too. Try a family outdoor skate at a pond in your community: • Assiniboine Park Duck Pond, • Bunn’s Creek, • Harbour View Recreation Complex, • Kildonan Park, • The St. Vital Duck Pond. Each of these skating locations has heated shelters and washrooms, which are open to the public throughout the week and during posted hours on weekends. 9out of 10 children don’t get enough physical activity for health benefits Create an “in motion” winter activity box Fill a box with physical activity equipment that your kids can dig into when they’re bored. Add things like assorted balls, skipping ropes, beanbags, and hula hoops for safe, active indoor or outdoor fun. * Source: Health Canada website and Media Photo Gallery, Health Canada, http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca Reproduced with the permission of the Minister of Public Works and Government Services Canada, 2007 “We need to challenge ourselves and our children to do something active every day, even on days when we don’t have much free time. Every step counts, and even a few minutes of physical activity are better than none at all.” Jan Schmalenberg Chair, Winnipeg in motion Thrills on the Hills Everyone will have a blast whooshing down snow-covered hills and icy toboggan slides at 18 city locations. Tobogganing is just about the perfect activity. Going up the hill is great exercise and going down is a thrill. You’ll find a list of sliding, sledding and tobogganing locations in this Guide. On Your Mark, Get Set, CLEAN UP! Do your kids hate doing their chores? Add a dash of creativity and chores can become active fun for kids. Here are some ways to make sure a chore doesn’t bore: Turn picking up toys into a relay race. Set a timer and have the kids race against the clock to put all of their toys away. Or divide your snowy driveway in half and see who can clean their half the quickest. Hide your loose change in places that never seem to get dusted. Then tell the kids they’ll find hidden treasures if they dust all the nooks and crannies in their rooms. You’ll never see a room dusted more quickly. With a little creativity, you can turn chore time into an active, fun time! 60 plus 30 Canada’s Physical Activity Guide for Children and Youth recommends building up to at least 60 minutes of moderate activity (e.g., brisk walking, shoveling snow) and 30 minutes of vigorous activity (e.g., running, playing hockey) every day. More fabulous ideas for active winter fun 1. Explore a local park or nature trail on a frosty nature hike – watch for birds and animal tracks. Bring lunch along and have a picnic, polar bear style. 2. Go snowshoeing – Be ready, it’s so much fun the kids will want to do it again! 3. Build a skating rink in your back yard – you’ll find easy instructions in this Guide. 4. Go for sled-pulling walks – Mom and Dad can pull each other while the kids pull their friends or their favourite teddy bears. 5. Try snow painting – all you need is a water bottle with a squirt top, some water and food colouring, and some snow. * photo credit Hey kids! You can WIN an in motion Prize Pack! Monkey see. Monkey do. Kids are great imitators, so if they see Mom and Dad or Grandma and Grandpa being active, they’re more likely to be active too. Keep “winter hibernation” activities to a minimum and be sure to incorporate regular physical activity into your routine. Get everyone involved - Be an “in motion” family! Draw us a picture or write a story showing how you and your family are getting “in motion” this winter. We’ll post your picture and/or story on the Winnipeg in motion website, and five lucky winners will receive a Winnipeg in motion prize pack, which includes a t-shirt, water bottle, Frisbee, skipping rope and toque. Submit your story or picture by mail to “Winnipeg in motion”, 2-189 Evanson Street, Winnipeg, MB R3G 0N9, by fax to 940-8409 or by email to getactive@winnipeginmotion.ca Please send in your story or picture by January 11, 2008. Prize draw will be held on January 16, 2008. Physical activity. It’s good for your health. Do it for life! winnipeginmotion.ca