It's almost time... the chaos of summer will be replaced by the chaos of the school year! Drop offs, pick ups, practices, homework and everything in between! Here are three things you can do to set yourself up for a (more) successful back to school!
1. Plan Your Workouts
Think through the drop off and pick up schedule. Write down what it looks like Monday thru Friday and put your workouts on the calendar. It may mean you have to change workout times, or that workouts fall at different times throughout the week.
The trap: Telling yourself, "I'll just wait and see how the first few weeks go and then get back into my routine." Not a winning strategy! Prioritize yourself too!
What the best of the best do: If your workouts will change time during the school year, say from 9am right now to 615am in the school year, start now. Change your workout routine before the kids go back to school. That way you are already used to the change and don't have the pressure to adjust when the kids are adjusting too.
2. Get dinner back on track
If you're anything like us, dinner right now is hit or miss. Inconsistent and not well planned. Get back on track the next couple weeks by using a meal planning app (we use eMeals) to make the recipes and shopping easy.
The trap: Telling yourself, "I'll figure out a dinner routine once the kids are back in their routine." Don't wait, start now!
What the best of the best do: Have a weekly family meeting. Plan the meals for the week. Sure, some nights will be leftovers or on-the go, but if you plan it in advance you have a greater degree of control over the healthy choices you make!
3. Clean out the pantry
Oh the summer has been full of snacks and treats! Am I right? There's no shame in having some treats on hand, but sometimes the pantry can overflow with cookies and chips and all the things you know you shouldn't have! Take one hour and clean out the pantry before school starts. You don't need that half-eaten bag of chips from the July 4th party or the candy from the parage!
The trap: Saving everything because it isn't "expired yet." Yes, the chips and crackers haven't expired because they're engineered to last forever.. and that's a sign those items aren't healthy for you!
What the best of the best do: One, the best don't buy many treats to keep in the pantry. And two, when they do, it's in small quantities and not saved for more than a week or two. Consider buying some nuts or trail mix to keep in the pantry instead of the chips and candy.
