Handle food safely
26. Before you prepare and eat food, wash your hands for at least 20 seconds with soap and hot water to kill germs that can make you and your family sick. Alcohol-based hand-washing gels (sometimes called sanitizers) and hand wipes remove germs just as well when you're away from a sink.
27. Barbecue a healthy, easy meal. Choose lean meats, heat the grill for five to 10 minutes before adding food to kill any bacteria, and remove any charred parts after cooking (they have been associated with cancer).
28. Don't pierce meat, poultry or fish when you marinate it –- piercing can transfer bacteria from the outside to the inside, where it will take longer to kill through cooking. For more food safety and preparation tips, phone 1-800-892-8333 or visit www.foodsafetyline.org .
29. Keep pick-your-own fruit and vegetables fresh in a cooler with ice packs. Remember to pack the cooler in the air-conditioned part of your car (not the trunk) until you get home.
Drink up
30. Stay hydrated when you work out by drinking water, especially when it's hot. The guideline: 250 to 500 millilitres (one to two cups) 15 minutes before exercise; then about 250 millilitres every 15 minutes during your workout.
31. Carry a water bottle so you'll remember to drink water more often. Remember to wash all bottles with soap and hot water before you refill them to keep them bacteria-free.
Dine alfresco
32. Freeze a bottle of water the night before you go on a picnic to use as an ice pack in your cooler. It will be thawed out but still deliciously cold by the afternoon for drinking.
33. Keep the picnic cooler out of the sun and cover it with a blanket or tarp to help keep food cold.
34. Make the most of a long, sunny afternoon and have a tea party in your garden with your friends or children.
35. Make your own Popsicles from fruit juice and eat them outdoors.
Be social, be happy
36. Organize a friendly community baseball game and invite neighbourhood parents and their kids.
37. Coordinate a day of hiking with friends or family. Elvia Picco of Calgary likes to invite her friends' friends as well -– the more the merrier!
38. Host a potluck barbecue and get to know your neighbours in a relaxed setting.
39. Find out when your community holds a litter clean-up day –- and volunteer as a family. Everyone will get a mental boost from cleaning up the neighbourhood.
40. Play miniature golf with friends and their kids.
41. Take family or friends to an outdoor concert or play for a taste of culture and a breath of fresh air. Try Shakespeare in the Park or a local music festival.
Bust stress
42. Garden. All that digging, planting and stretching is good for your body and your mind.
43. Stretch outside. Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart, says Judy Cline, a physiotherapist in St. Catharines, Ont., and lift up your rib cage as you stretch both arms overhead and reach up to the sky. Breathe in deeply, then exhale slowly with a long sigh as you lower your arms. Look into the distance and enjoy the moment.
44. For a total mind-body–and-nature experience, practise your favourite yoga posture outside or check yoga centres near you to see if they run outdoor classes.
45. With the kids home from school all summer, Shannon Corby of Ajax, Ont., says the day care at her fitness club is a sanity saver. Four-year-old Andrew and six-year-old Hannah have fun playing while she gets time alone to work out.
46. Take a deep breath to clear your mind. Eoin Finn, a yoga teacher in Vancouver, offers this exercise: close your eyes and take one long breath in (about 10 seconds) and out (about 10 seconds). Repeat three times.
47. Try fly fishing. Many enthusiasts say its lure is the peace and quiet that's only punctuated by the sound of the line hitting the water.
48. Help your kids balance their yin and yang in a Yoga for Kids class. It can help them relax when they're nervous or even help them sleep. Search online for “yoga for kids” to find videos or classes in your area.
Savour the moment
49. Share a good-for-the-soul moment with your kids: lie in the cool grass, study the clouds and share the different shapes that you find.
50. Skip stones on a calm lake.
51. For a little outdoor R&R, read or snooze away an afternoon in a hammock. There's no place like it!
52. Listen to the birds sing and get a healthy start to the day with an early breakfast of fruit and yogurt on the patio.
53. Sit outside and just listen. Wind chimes, a wooden screen door banging, birds splashing in the birdbath and crickets singing take you back to childhood summers and soothe your soul.
Page 2 of 4 – mort tips for optimal summer health on page 3!
