Health Together Truly Counts
1,742. That’s how many calories someone my age, height and weight should consume each day. To be honest, I’ve never really thought about calories. I grew up in a family of people with “gifted” metabolisms. I’ve always been able to eat whatever I want and not worry about weight.
As a child, my mom and I loved to eat together. Sometimes we were in the mood for ice cream, other times we wanted nachos. Whatever the case, we never really put much thought into what we were eating.
This is probably why my sister had so many insecurities about her body image when she was younger. Unfortunately, she didn’t have the same invincible metabolism that my mom and I had. She had a challenging time in school because she was overweight, and my mom and I were faced with the challenge of helping her maintain a healthy weight.
My mom and I realized we needed to make a change with her. In order to find a balance between what we ate and the amount of energy we put out and encourage a message of positive body image in our house we had to come up with a plan together. We understood that even though we were “skinny,” it didn’t mean that balance and moderation would not benefit us. So my mom, sister, stepdad and I embarked on a new lifestyle. We started going to the beach every Sunday, cooking more nutritious meals, exercising at the park as a family and eating the foods we loved and enjoyed as a reward for our hard work. We struck a balance in our lives, and my sister reached a healthy weight and we all felt more energized.
What really motivated my sister to change her habits was the fact that she didn’t feel isolated. Instead, her weight loss was a journey that we shared together, with the goal of maintaining our overall health. Today, my sister is a healthy, confident teenager who plays soccer and tennis and eats foods she enjoys. By taking on the challenge together, we all discovered a happier, more balanced lifestyle.
Has your family worked together to achieve a health or fitness goal? Share your story in the comments below.
Natalie Unger wrote this post for Together Counts on behalf of Edelman Digital.