Meet Kathryn Szklany, MA, the Fleet Feet Sports nutrition blogger. Kathryn finished her masters in Nutrition Science in May of 2011 and is currently a Syracuse University Dietetic Intern. After completing the internship she will be eligible to sit for the Registered Dietitian exam. She is also a part-time employee and half-marathon coach at Fleet Feet Sports. She will be writing a weekly nutrition blog which will appear Friday mornings and posting recipes to our blog on Sundays on our new website.

Plan for your success
By Kathryn Szklany

School is back in session, and as the summer fades away for most of us it means less vacation time and more time in the office. Life is a balancing act and sometimes it’s easy for us to put health on the back burner. Even I have fallen into the trap of too many skipped meals, frozen entrees, and skipped workouts due to stress and a busy schedule. Here are some simple tips to help you fit health into your everyday routine.

1. Make a menu- Every Sunday, my husband and I sit down and discuss our schedules for the week and how this will dictate our dinners. We decide who is cooking what day, what we are having for dinner, and then check the cupboards for what we need to purchase. On days that we are both working late we try to pick easy dinners, such as soup and salad, or black bean quesadillas. It’s important to remember that all foods fit and that if your time is truly limited there are some healthy options that you can pick up such as Wegman’s six dollar meals and Amy’s frozen entrees, just to name a few. 

2. Go shopping ahead of time- After we make our menu, we make a shopping list based off of it and buy everything we need for the week. This is really helpful, because it saves last minute trips to the grocery store, which can always lead to unnecessary purchases.

3. Schedule your workouts- Just like we make a menu, I also plan my workouts for the week. Writing them down in a planner is a nice way to remind yourself that you scheduled time to exercise and it is a written commitment to yourself and your health. When I complete a workout I put a little check mark next to the note I wrote in my planner. This is a simple way of tracking my workouts and is reminder of what I accomplished this week or what I need to be better about for the next week.

4. Remember to take time for yourself- Once the kids are asleep or before they wake up in the morning, take at least 10minutes for you. Read a book, watch your favorite TV show, or enjoy a cup of green tea. If you don’t take time for you, you can end up overworked and then you are no help to yourself, your coworkers, or your family.

Overall, planning ahead is the key to keeping health in the forefront of your mind even as life gets hectic.

What are some of the things you do to keep a healthy lifestyle? Leave a comment once this blog is posted to the website to see what everyone else is saying.