Peggy Bowes has been here before and shared her wisdom. You might know her as the author of The Rosary Workout or a columnist at Catholic.net. Maybe you’ve come across her blogging, Twittering, and Facebooking.

Today, Peggy shares her tips for packing healthy lunches for your back-to-school kids (and I’m going to use some of these when I make lunches for the rest of us — husband included — too!).

Check out the statue of Mary she’s sporting on her kitchen counter. (But I was paying attention to the other tips too!) The website Peggy refers to for the saint of the day information she prints out for her children’s lunches can be found here.

I think I’d like her to make my lunches, after watching this video…

Thanks, Peggy, for sharing your ideas with all of us!

What are your ideas for healthy and/or Catholic box lunches?

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“And from the fig tree learn a parable: When the branch thereof is now tender, and the leaves come forth, you know that summer is nigh.” (Matthew 24:32)

Oh, the joys of summer food! Double-scoop ice cream cones dripping onto the sidewalk, corndogs and cheesecake-on-a-stick beckoning at the county fair, burgers and dogs sizzling on the grill, and icy-cold watermelon on the front porch bring to mind the lazy days of summer.

It’s fun to indulge in a few less-than-healthy summertime favorites, but this is the perfect time to add a variety of delicious and healthy foods to your diet.

Take advantage of low prices on fresh fruit to create smoothies, fruit salad, or low-fat cobbler. Berries add nutrition and flavor to cereal, pancakes, oatmeal, yogurt or dinner salads. They’re rich in antioxidants, which help slow aging and prevent disease.

Stock up now and freeze some to enjoy later in the year. Peaches, plums, apricots, cherries and watermelon are also in season and affordable. Take advantage of the bounty of summer fruit to experiment with some new recipes.

At lunch, ditch the sandwiches in favor of something new and different. Try pasta salads made with whole grain pasta and fresh vegetables. Or mix wild rice, brown rice, or quinoa with dried fruit, nuts, onions, chopped veggies, and a vinaigrette. Beans of all varieties can be mixed into salads using creative recipes you can find online (see links below). Use yogurt to make a calcium-rich smoothie or a parfait, layered with fresh fruit and granola.

Why heat up the kitchen during these long, hot days when you can go outside in the cooler evening hours and grill? Instead of the usual burger or steak, try leaner cuts of meat like flank steak, chicken breasts, fish and pork tenderloin. Marinades add flavor and reduce the carcinogens (cancer-causing agents) in grilled food. Serve with a healthy, homemade fruit salsa instead of a bun to add nutrition and reduce calories. You can find plenty of great recipes for mango, peach, or pineapple salsas online.

Main dish salads are filling and increase your daily vegetable count while reducing calories. Top a plate of fresh greens and veggies with grilled chicken, fish or beef. Mix up a flavorful vinaigrette instead of using calorie-laden creamy dressings.

It wouldn’t be summer without dessert, but try some healthy alternatives to the usual. Angel food cake is low-fat and pairs perfectly with fresh fruit. Chocolate-covered strawberries are a healthier alternative to pies and cakes. Pudding is typically low-fat and contains calcium, which helps strengthen bones. Popsicles made with real fruit juice are a better choice than ice cream. (If you do crave ice cream, take advantage of those mini containers in the freezer section that allow you to indulge while limiting fat and calories.)

These delicious summer foods are a gift from our Creator. “These all look to you to give them their food in due season… They gather it up; when you open your hand, they are filled with good things.” (Psalm 104: 27-28)

Here are a few of my favorite healthy recipe websites to help get you started:

• Cooking Light
• Eating Well
• Healthy Recipes from Fitness Nutrition Experts
• Test Kitchen at the American Institute for Cancer Research

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Humility is not something I do well. I always seem to get it wrong, either resorting to self-serving practices or cowering meekly under the cover of false humility.  I came across a lovely prayer for divine assistance in the “Litany of Humility,” but it’s not exactly a “how to” manual.  I want to learn how to curtail my pride while using my God-given talents for the benefit of others.

I look to the Blessed Mother, the personification of true humility, as the perfect example.  She is the “woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet.” (Rev 12:1)  Like the moon, she does not give her own light, but reflects the light of her Creator.

Although it is hard to wrap our minds around this, Mary was part of the Divine Plan from eternity. As we read in Genesis 1:16-18, “God made the two great lights, the greater one to govern the day and the lesser one to govern the night, and… God saw how good it was.”  Mary is the “lesser light”.  She is not to be worshipped, but to be honored as the greatest of saints and the Queen of Heaven and Earth.

In her inspired canticle, the Magnificat (Luke 1:46-55), Mary declares that “God… has looked upon his handmaid’s lowliness,” yet she admits that “all generations will call me blessed [for] the Mighty One has done great things to me.”  She models humility by acknowledging her gifts while giving God all the credit.  Mary shines because she is in perfect accord with the will of the Almighty.  How does she do this?

Again, the answer can be found in the Scriptures.  When asked the most important question in human history, Mary gives the perfect response, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord.  May it be done to me according to your word.” (Luke 1:38)

I too am a handmaid. I am a servant (maid) with a role (hand) in the Divine Plan.  To practice humility, I must learn to match my will with that of my Creator.  With Mary’s help, I can aspire to be a small moon, reflecting the light of the Son.

Image source

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As the mother of two and a former homeschooler, I am no stranger to the challenges of fitting exercise into a busy and hectic day. Yet as a personal trainer and fitness expert, I know that it’s crucial for my health AND my sanity.  Here are three different approaches to making exercise a priority for multi-tasking moms.

The first approach is to include your children in your exercise or to work around their schedule. One idea is to put the child(ren) in a stroller and power walk or run.  Running strollers are fairly affordable, but any type of stroller will do. If the weather is bad, walk in a mall.  Most malls open before or after hours for this purpose.  If your children are too big for a stroller, get out the bikes, roller skates, or other wheeled apparatus or have them walk beside you.  Granted, this may be a short outing, but at least you all get a little fresh air and exercise.  You’re also building good exercise habits, and the day will quickly come when they shout, “Come ON, Mom, keep up!” Other ideas include playing outside, dancing in the living room, or going to a park or playground together.

Working around your children’s schedule may be a bit easier, especially when they’re very little. You can buy a treadmill, elliptical, step, weights, stretch cords, etc. to use after bedtime, early in the morning or during naps.  You can find a huge variety of exercise DVDs and videos to buy or rent.   I like this site.

The second approach to finding exercise time is to join a gym or health club with supervised child care. Your children may complain, cry, and otherwise induce guilt, but most will adapt quickly.  Gym child care has come a long way in recent years, and you may find that the children don’t want to leave.  Some facilities even offer classes for children, especially YMCAs and community centers.  To make it easier on everyone, find a friend (or friends) with children to join you.  Not only will you have a workout partner and companions for your children, but you can often barter a better deal on membership for two or more.

Finally, enlist the support of your family, friends and community. Can your husband or another family member watch the children while you go for a quick run or power walk?  Perhaps you can find a friend who wants to trade off babysitting and workout time.  Consider hiring a teen in your neighborhood or parish to watch the children for an hour.  If funds are low, you might negotiate childcare in return for homemade goodies, tutoring, or some other service.

Even if you have to “mix and match” these approaches, do find time to exercise. You’ll benefit from increased energy, better health, and stress relief so that you might better fulfill your vocation as wife and mother.

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Thanks, Peggy, for sharing your wisdom here with us today!

Image source

“I did not want my exercise program to be yet another entry on the crowded list of quick-fix, instant-result workout plans. Instead, I decided to create a plan that would help a person improve both physically and spiritually.  This is not a multi-tasking prayer-and-exercise plan, but rather an integrated approach to taking care of the body and soul together.”

When I saw that (a) it was an e-book and (b) it was 250 pages long, I almost faltered. I almost gave up on the idea before I gave it a chance.  I’m glad I didn’t.  Though I prefer books with pages, I was able to read through this with an appreciation for the ability to click through on the reference links (and there are a delightful many of those) and knowing that I would be able to print out parts for reference.  There are five parts (the fifth is the largest, and you’ll see why below).  (Note: the links in this section open PDF documents.)

• Part I – a summary of the Rosary, its history, the significance of Rosary prayers, and its power as an intercessory prayer. See a sample page.

• Part II – an introduction to the concept of the Rosary as the School of Mary and the importance of Mary’s role as advocate and teacher,  the Nine Choirs of Angels and their significance in Rosary prayer. See a sample page.

• Part III – an explanation of the scientific principles of exercise that are the foundation for the workouts and great information on nutrition and hydration. See a sample page.

• Part IV – the preparation to begin the workouts, including suggestions on how to start and commit to The Rosary Workout™ and how to handle setbacks. See a sample page.

• Part V – the workouts, divided into Beginner, Intermediate, and Advanced levels, with graphics to explain the workout instructions. See a sample Intermediate Level workout.

“The program builds on this foundation with a scholastic approach to exercise and prayer. I will show you how Mary is our teacher in the ―school of the Rosary, leading us to a deeper understanding and love of her Divine Son and ultimately, our Heavenly Father.  Concurrently, I will guide you in a periodized exercise program using the unique structure of the Rosary and the latest principles of exercise science to advance your fitness level and overall physical health.”

My problem in the past has been a combination of time and motivation. I think I’ve found motivation in a way I never looked for it before: through my favorite prayer (though, admittedly, the hardest one I have to pray).  I love that Peggy encourages readers to keep a journal that includes not only details about each workout, but also details about spiritual things.  Did you go to Confession?  Have you been struggling?  Do you have a special intention?  Tying my physical and spiritual health together in such a tangible way feels right in a way that excites me, that makes me, for once, WANT to work out (though I’m sure I’ll change my mind next week, once I actually start).

“With the Rosary, the Christian people sits at the school of Mary and is led to contemplate the beauty on the face of Christ and to experience the depths of His love.  Through the Rosary the faithful  receive abundant grace, as though from the very hands of the Mother of the Redeemer.”

- Pope John Paul II in his Apostolic Letter, Rosary of the Virgin Mary

Leave a comment on this post to be entered to win your own copy of The Rosary Workout. But wait; there’s more! Everyone is a winner today, because Peggy has shared a discount code that’s good for the month of October, when you go to purchase The Rosary Workout online.  Enter MARY (caps needed) during checkout before October 31 and you’ll save $1 off the normal price.  Note: this doesn’t affect the amount donated to St. Vincent de Paul (10% of the retail price of each e-book sold).  If you’re inspired to learn more or purchase your own, all the details are here.

Will you join me? Most of you probably already work out and are experts at the health thing.  I’m not.  (FAR from it.)  Can we support each other in praying and keeping up our temples?  (If you’ve never prayed the rosary before, NEVER FEAR.  This might be one of the best introductions to the technique that I’ve seen.)

Be sure to visit Jen at Conversion Diary, the Quick Takes Headquarters.

Update: Congratulations to commenter Susan, who was the winner!