How to:practice proactive parenting without piling on the pounds

With many mums (and dads!) sacrificing their silhouette for the sake of spending time with their tot, a wider waistline is often an unwelcome worry when we enter the wonderful world of parenting.

Before you bin your yummy mummy (or delicious daddy) trademark, check out my top three tips on how to be a proactive parent without piling on the pounds...

1. Pause the picking.
Although the majority of minors may be able to munch on a multitude of meals without the worry of a wider waistline, parents who are prone to persistent picking whilst prepping their tot's tuck can quickly pile on the pounds.

Instead of super sizing your silhouette with sneaky snacks, try guzzling a glass of water (a natural appetite suppressant) and/or feasting on a fibre-rich piece of fruit prior to preparing your minor's meals - the latter will leave you less likely to nibble on unnecessary nutrition by strengthening satiety and fuelling the feeling of fullness.

2. Tweak your training.
Sweating it out with a strenuous spin (or gym!) session may shape a slender silhouette, but a time consuming cardio class can be a struggle to squeeze into the strategic schedule of a proactive parent.

If fighting the flab as a family feels like an overwhelming option, why not walk away a wobbly waistline by teaming up with your tot to tackle the tough terrain of an uphill hike. Although this simple substitute may seem like an 'ineffective' form of fitness in comparison to sweating it out on a stationary bike, even the smallest of hills will feel like a strenuous struggle (and shift those stubborn pounds!) when pounding the pavement with a pram.

3. Multi-task with your minor.
Slouching on the sofa with a ready made meal may seem like a sensible solution to saving time, but these speedy substitutes are bursting with an abundance of additional salt, sugar and excess energy - the core culprits responsible for leaving parents (and children) predisposed to piling on the pounds, whilst raising their risk of developing an array of detrimental diseases such as heart disease, hypertension and type 2 diabetes.

Although it may be tough to find the time to pre-prepare a selection of sensible snacks and meals, multi-tasking with your minor is a fantastic way to make food fun for fussy eaters (and teach toddlers about the importance of opting for healthier ingredients), whilst whipping up figure friendly meals for mum and dad - simply create a selection of child friendly 'chef' tasks that will speed up the process of food prep, and watch as the worry of creating time consuming cuisine (and a wider waistline!) wastes away.

Simple summary: providing that we're willing to team up with our tot and/or adjust our activities to suit our offspring - think making fitness fun for the whole family, child friendly 'cookery classes' and multi-tasking with our minor/s - there is no reason why we can't practice proactive parenting without the worry of piling on the pounds.

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