Practice 5-2-1-0 all year: Ideas for May
| Healthy You | 5-2-1-0 | Kids Health
Dig in the dirt to feel more grounded and take a break from screens.
You and your family can help one another set healthy habits using the 5-2-1-0 approach. Here’s what those numbers represent every day:
Changes in seasons give you new ways to think about adopting 5-2-1-0 at your house.
Here are a few ideas for the month of May:
To eat 5 veggies and fruits per day – Use a playful theme.
Is a young member of your family learning letters, colors or shapes? Use veggies and fruit to create a theme. Will your family notice if the names of foods on the plate start with same letter? Broccoli, banana and berries. Or if the veggies or fruits are all the same color or all different? How about shapes? You might try cutting jicama, a crispy veggie, into circles, squares and triangles.
To limit screen time under two hours – Plant a garden.
Growing food or flowers can be fun for the whole family. Digging in the dirt can help you all feel closer to nature. And it’s a nice break from screens.
No yard? Pots on the patio or a windowsill might be options. Empty food tubs (e.g., cottage cheese or yogurt) and plastic clamshells (the kind that berries come in) can be used as pots.
Or you might look online for community gardens where you can connect with neighbors and learn with others. PeaceHealth supports the following shared garden sites:
- Bellingham, Washington - Common Threads’ Farm Programs
- Cottage Grove, Oregon - Huerto de la Familia
- Friday Harbor, Washington - Nourishtoflourishwa.org
- Ketchikan, Alaska - Community Gardens - Ketchikan Wellness Coalition
- Longview, Washington - Lower Columbia School Gardens
Gardening will give you a good excuse to get outdoors regularly. You can also use it to experiment with sunlight, water and soil as mini science lessons.
Seeing changes in plants can be thrilling. If things go well, you could have a bright bouquet of sunflowers to share or the satisfaction of eating homegrown lettuce or strawberries.
Learn more about health benefits of gardening.
To get one hour of daily movement – Go for a bike ride.
As weather allows, consider dusting off the bikes you stored for the winter. Check each bike for safety. See if your helmets are in good shape and still fit. (Watch this video on picking and fitting a helmet.)
No bike? Check for free or low-cost bicycles online or at garage sales. Some areas offer bike-sharing programs, such as PeaceHealth Rides – Eugene Bike Share in Eugene, Oregon.
You can even cycle indoors — without any equipment. Lie on your back on the floor. Put your legs up in the air and “peddle” as if you are cycling. See how far or long you can go.
To encourage zero-sugar drinks – Sip sparkling water.
When regular water feels boring, consider sparkling water. Bubbles can add a festive fizzy “pop” without adding sugar.
Seltzer doesn’t have to be fancy. Several stores carry affordable options in bottles and cans. If you want to reduce your family’s single-use plastic, an at-home carbonation system might be worth exploring.
It’s not always easy to stay healthy. When you or your family are sick, PeaceHealth is here for you — ready to help you get back to feeling better.
