No Junk Food or Alcohol for a Whole Month!

November was bad, December was much worse and January may have even been the absolute worst - as far as bad eating and over consumption for our family goes!  So we(I) have decided on a new rule that will be strongly incentivised - no unhealthy food for a whole month.

Christmas celebrations start early here - in November the round of parties, end of year get togethers and general over indulgence starts and believe me it does not end with Christmas.  In Australia, normality does not return until after Australia Day (26 January).  When the kids return to school a couple of days later, we are finally get back to "normal".

Summer holidays mean ice creams on the beach and maybe another one after dinner.  For the grownups it is often an extra glass of wine or beer.  Chocolate is constantly available for snacking on. After having a lovely holiday away  just before Christmas I made the announcement, "Come February, we THERE WILL BE NO JUNK FOOD FOR A WHOLE MONTH".  As we were driving in the car at the time, I had a captive audience who had to listen to what I was saying!  I think the kids have pretty much absorbed and accepted the decision and they have even made this poster:

Healthy Eating Poster

I love that right at the top they have stated no wine or beer!  Dry February it is for us then.  Not that I am a big drinker at all but I do have the odd glass of wine when I am socialising or celebrating and there has been quite a lot of that lately.  The Cyclist loves his beer and quite easily has 2 beers a night, sometimes more if he is out socialising.  Not good.  As he is training for the Cape Epic which is next month it will be a good way to lose a few kilograms and "healthy up" before the big race.

The Scientist is most concerned that he won't be able to have his normal Saturday morning treat - a bacon and egg roll and a milkshake.  I am currently wavering on the bacon and egg roll (can they serve it on wholewheat bread?) but there will definitely be no milkshakes allowed.

And yes, like any good mother I have resorted to bribery and corruption - the children have been promised a reward at the end of the month if they stick to the healthy eating regime for a whole month.  A non food reward.  It is called "incentivising".  When I think of all that money that will be saved by cutting out all the bad eating and drinking, there'll definitely be enough money saved to cover the cost of a new box of Lego each.

I think the absolute hardest part of the Healthy February thing for me will be sacrificing chocolate - my one and only true addiction.  I simply adore Lindt salted dark chocolate and have been consuming up to a slab every 2 days for the past couple of weeks - well it was on sale for $2!  There is a reason I run/cycle and it is to maintain my chocolate eating habit.  This will be a huge sacrifice for me so I have made sure I have finished the last slab in anticipation.

The Cyclist has just sent me a text asking if he will be allowed coffee for "Healthy February".  In order to prevent absolute meltdown and crankiness I have allowed this - as long as he limits it to less than 3 cups a day.  He has them black with no sugar so it is more the caffeine that is a problem than anything else.  Green tea would be ideal but hey the poor guy is already cutting out his beer!

So I posed the following question to the kids:  "What do you think of no treats for a whole month?

The Scientist:  "Awesome!  I love heathy food" - and yes, he actually does.

Sportsgirl:  " "I suppose it will be worth it for the Lego" - she has a very sweet tooth and loves what she calls "junk"  so I hope the incentive works.

Two kids, two completely different personalities and answers, what can you expect?


Feel free to link up and do your own "Healthy February" thing - let me know what foods are "banned" and how is it going?




Have you ever done absolutely no junk food for a whole month?  How did it go?

Would you impose this on your kids?  How do you think they would react?