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The Youth of the Nation
Eric Belliveau • Sep 05, 2017

One of the biggest health threats facing society today is obesity. Scary as that is, childhood obesity has also been on the rise, which is even scarier. Not only are today’s adults getting bigger and less healthy, so isn’t our future generations. That’s not good. How do we change it? I have a couple ideas.

There are a lot of reasons why this has become a problem in the first place. Whether it’s political, societal, socioeconomics, or whatever, I don’t really want to get into all of that right now. My biggest theory is simple: it’s the gross lack of physical activity of kids today. Plain and simple, kids everywhere do not move and play as much as they once did in past generations. I’m not THAT old, but my brother and I used to be outside all the time. Skinned knees, skinned elbows, bumps, bruises, scrapes, bee stings, bug bites, eating dirt, black eyes were plentiful and a regular occurrence. Now we live in a time where people are afraid of their kids getting hurt, which puts some limits on the child. The best way for a kid to grow, cultivate a sense of self, develop creativity, and, for lack of a better term, “toughen up”, is to be active, be outside, play, explore, get dirty…and frankly be a KID. Instead, they sit at school all day, often times in front of a computer screen, and get limited time to move and be active due to scheduling constraints or the removal of certain programs/classes like gym and phys. ed. Often times, this can happen at home as well. TV’s, video games, iPad’s, iPhone’s, iThis, iThat are accessible. All this crap that’s turning kids into little zombies sitting on their asses with their faces buried into some sort of electronic device, and probably snacking on something while they do it, is making them pack on the pounds.

Secondly, who is ultimately responsible for today’s youth, who do they emulate most, who sets the example for them to follow? Yes, US! Responsibility to set a good example for children falls on the shoulders of all of their role models (teachers, coaches and parents).

Children are sponges that absorb everything we do or say.

Children are sponges that absorb everything, even, and maybe especially, the bad things we do or say. If you have bad habits, don’t exercise, eat crappy food, etc. then so will they. You are setting both yourself and your children up to fail and fall into a lifetime of health issues. Conversely, if you have positive lifestyle habits, they will pick up on that too. Take a second to think about some of your habits. Could you make some adjustments? Remember, it’s not just for your well-being.

I know this may seem like I’m up on a soap box telling people how to raise their kids. That’s not my intent; my intent is to bring to light something that is a big problem and becoming a bigger problem. The health of our nation/world is deteriorating. People are becoming less healthy and relying more and more on drugs, medications, and surgeries to cure what was ultimately a lifestyle choice. I think a good start in correcting part of the problem is starting at home and getting our kids into good habits that last a lifetime. I’m not bashing anyone as a parent, you can raise your kids how you want, but use this as a friendly reminder to check up on some of YOUR habits. I get it, we all get busy and we get a little too relaxed with certain things or into certain routines, especially ones that don’t seem that detrimental, but ultimately can be. I’m hoping this just serves as a little reminder to stay active and foster a lifetime of wellness for your whole family. Get out and move, play, be active!

Here are a few things to think about while trying to make those moves to a more active lifestyle, especially with kids in mind.

  • MAKE IT FUN: we all know that kids (everyone) like to have fun, if it’s boring and sucks, it’s not going to happen.
  • KEEP IT SIMPLE: play a game of tag, hide and seek, play catch. You don’t have to spend money or have the American Ninja Warrior course set up in your back yard. Be creative.
  • ANYTHING IS BETTER THAN NOTHING: seriously 15min is better than no minutes.
  • GET RID OF THE GADGETS: set limits and stick to it on how much tv, video game, or cell phone time is allowed each day.

Get out there and skin a knee or two.

The Meat Hangover

By Eric Belliveau • 07 Oct, 2020
When it comes to taking meat out of your diet, some people have the idea that they will only see positive changes immediately following this choice. While those positive changes are definitely part of the deal, so is an adjustment period for your body.

We're Trying

By Eric Belliveau • 23 Sep, 2020
We were all thrown on this crazy ride together. Emotions were running high but so were patience, empathy, inclusion, and respect. Most of us could rally behind the #WeAreInThisTogether manta. We wanted to do right by each other - donate to charities, lend a hand, check-in on one another. Do our part. As the days turn to weeks and the weeks into months these dispositions decayed rapidly. I know that this Quarantine order has been going on for a long time. I know that a great number of us do not agree on the why. I know an even greater number of us are “over it”. I am painfully aware of the difference of opinions surrounding the pandemic. It is impossible to NOT be aware of this. This leads us all to frustration, anger, resentment, and the feeling that you are not being heard. Very real and very human emotions! It is okay to feel this way. I am not only writing this from the perspective of a fellow struggling human. I do find myself struggling with everything I mentioned above. Not just daily but multiple times a day. My ability to focus has been challenged by my worry. My ability to create time for myself and focus on self-care has been derailed for fear of other things becoming more pressing. I work on this every day. I am not only writing this from the perspective of one of the business owners who were never given a playbook for this. For weeks on end I thought WTF happened to the business and how would our model need to change and remain viable, how each business owner had to either weather a period in which we were completely shut down or allowed to operate under capacity restrictions, etc. The unknown of what the timeline would bring and whether we would be able to continue our dreams or make an extremely difficult decision of not continuing. This still haunts every one of us daily. I AM very much writing this as a service provider! I am writing this as an impassioned human who genuinely loves what I do for a living. I feel incredibly lucky to be able to have built a career surrounding something I get excited about every day. I am making a stand for all of us that make their living in the service industry. To the receptionist, hostess, waiter, cook, dry cleaner, teacher, technician, barista, utility worker, automobile service technician… It is truly impossible to be inclusive of everyone here.  No one human mentioned above asked for this ‘situation’ we are in. We are sure as hell trying to provide a level of normalcy, service, care, and happiness to the lives in which we choose to serve. With added restrictions, added expense decreased capacity and the fear of being fined or shut down for doing it incorrectly, everyday.

The Meat Hangover

By Eric Belliveau • 07 Oct, 2020
When it comes to taking meat out of your diet, some people have the idea that they will only see positive changes immediately following this choice. While those positive changes are definitely part of the deal, so is an adjustment period for your body.

We're Trying

By Eric Belliveau • 23 Sep, 2020
We were all thrown on this crazy ride together. Emotions were running high but so were patience, empathy, inclusion, and respect. Most of us could rally behind the #WeAreInThisTogether manta. We wanted to do right by each other - donate to charities, lend a hand, check-in on one another. Do our part. As the days turn to weeks and the weeks into months these dispositions decayed rapidly. I know that this Quarantine order has been going on for a long time. I know that a great number of us do not agree on the why. I know an even greater number of us are “over it”. I am painfully aware of the difference of opinions surrounding the pandemic. It is impossible to NOT be aware of this. This leads us all to frustration, anger, resentment, and the feeling that you are not being heard. Very real and very human emotions! It is okay to feel this way. I am not only writing this from the perspective of a fellow struggling human. I do find myself struggling with everything I mentioned above. Not just daily but multiple times a day. My ability to focus has been challenged by my worry. My ability to create time for myself and focus on self-care has been derailed for fear of other things becoming more pressing. I work on this every day. I am not only writing this from the perspective of one of the business owners who were never given a playbook for this. For weeks on end I thought WTF happened to the business and how would our model need to change and remain viable, how each business owner had to either weather a period in which we were completely shut down or allowed to operate under capacity restrictions, etc. The unknown of what the timeline would bring and whether we would be able to continue our dreams or make an extremely difficult decision of not continuing. This still haunts every one of us daily. I AM very much writing this as a service provider! I am writing this as an impassioned human who genuinely loves what I do for a living. I feel incredibly lucky to be able to have built a career surrounding something I get excited about every day. I am making a stand for all of us that make their living in the service industry. To the receptionist, hostess, waiter, cook, dry cleaner, teacher, technician, barista, utility worker, automobile service technician… It is truly impossible to be inclusive of everyone here.  No one human mentioned above asked for this ‘situation’ we are in. We are sure as hell trying to provide a level of normalcy, service, care, and happiness to the lives in which we choose to serve. With added restrictions, added expense decreased capacity and the fear of being fined or shut down for doing it incorrectly, everyday.
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