The hottest month of the year is finally here! It can be tempting to reach for those summer sweets to cool off, but even with the temptation of such treats, it is important to stay active and eat treats in moderation. For busy families, finding time to prepare meals for kids at home can be an added stress. Noted nutritionist Keri Glassman says finding the right balance is key. “My philosophy of my practice over all these years is all about the details, which I would say it’s not just about the food,” Glassman says.
Glassman is the founder of Keri Glassman Nutritious Life, a website that provides content about what makes up a healthy life and how to live one. She says there’s more to it than food. “It’s other pillars including stressing less that work together from a behavioral standpoint and a theological standpoint.” She is also a registered dietitian and healthy cooking expert. “For example, if you sleep well, you’ll have more energy to make better food decisions,” she says. On nutritious life.com, you’ll find content and information to help you, not only the science behind it all, but also practical advice to be put into action.” She is also a member of Women’s Health magazine’s advisory board, a Yahoo Health advisory board member, a People magazine weekly contributor, and health expert for the “TODAY Show’s” Tastemakers team, and author of four books.
Glassman’s healthy lifestyle is also instilled in her children. She has a 14-year-old son and 10-year old daughter who know their way around the kitchen. “My son likes to make smoothies,” Glassman says, “That’s something he’ll be in the kitchen making after dinner or in the morning.” Even at a young age, her younger daughter cooks a variety of foods. “My daughter cooks a ton,” she says. “I mean, everything. Pancakes and eggs for breakfast to shrimp and rice for dinner.” At the same time, she understands the challenge of balancing school and extracurricular activities. “A lot of the times when I’m cooking, they’re often doing homework so they’re not always as involved as they want to be,” Glassman says.
For busy families who don’t have time to prepare meals every day, Glassman suggests meal prepping during the weekend. “Sometimes I’ll even make some things like egg frittatas or some overnight oats,” she says. She goes to the farmer’s market on Saturday and cooks a variety of vegetables and protein on Sunday. “What I’ll do then during the week is it’s less cooking and more assembling,” Glassman says. “In the morning, I might take one of the egg frittatas or take a piece of fruit, slice it for breakfast, and add it to the overnight oats I already made.”
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Glassman says BBQ’ing poses one of the biggest challenges to healthy eating in the summer months. “They’re socializing and barbequing all afternoon into the evening so there’s a lot of picking at food all afternoon and often a lot of unhealthy food,” Glassman says. Another challenge is the coveted sweet treat of the summer: ice cream. “It’s a thing to get after dinner instead of doing homework and going to bed,” she says. She suggests indulging once every few weeks. “If there’s an ice cream you really want, have a scoop of that a couple times throughout the summer instead of finding all these fake options,” she says. She suggests finding ways to make food taste more indulgent. “You can freeze bananas and dip them in chocolate for chocolate dipped bananas,” she says. “That’s so refreshing in the summer it’s not even that indulging.”
Summer vacations can also be a challenge. Vacations often mean dining out, and people often treat themselves when they eat out. “When you’re dining out, I generally say to double up on veggies to fill you up,” she says. “Not because you can never have rice, but in a restaurant, you’re not controlling your portions, you’re not controlling how it’s made.” Another option she suggests is ordering an appetizer instead of a main course. “The other thing to think of is having a protein appetizer as a meal,” she says.
Whether it’s limiting your sweets or eating out, it’s also important to stay active. Glassman says anything outside is a fun way to get moving. “Regarding family activities, I would say hiking, biking, kayaking, paddle boarding are fun ones,” she says. A day trip to the beach can be a fun family outing as well. Glassman suggests bringing a picnic basket of food to eat and keep hydrated. She recommends some recipes like Hummus with broccoli rabe pesto, Chickpea, Broccoli Rabe, Tomato, and Cucumber Salad and Roasted Chicken Lettuce Wrap to spice up your basket.
To learn more about Keri Glassman, visit nutritiouslife.com!
