Happy Halloween: Give Me Candy


Keep-Calm-and-Give-Me-Candy-HalloweenI’m all about health and fitness but I do think that there are certain days where you need to just need a bit of breathing room from all the rules. Halloween is one of those days for my kids.

My friend Leah, who owns CrossFit Nation in Maryland, posted about a story about a woman handing out letters on Halloween to children she thinks are obese. Leah and I share the same outlook on this situation and with regards to letting kids off the hook on certain days:

There is a lady in ND handing out letters for Halloween to children she deems obese. While I feel her heart is in the right place she is accomplishing nothing but pissing off parents and hurting children’s feelings. The root of this problem is far deeper than any night of trick or treating. It’s a holiday, meaning a break from reality. When my boys were growing up we had built in hooky days. Birthdays, first beautiful day of spring and the day after Halloween to eat as much candy as possible. Life needs to enjoyed and lived smartly and healthily but that doesn’t mean you can’t play.

Sometimes we can get wrapped up in what we ought to do, that we forget to LIVE. Kids need some freedom to be kids and I know some of my strongest memories are of Halloween — trick or treating, then sorting and trading with my sister, and then eating my favorites!

It’s also not up to us to parent children that aren’t ours. Yes, there are some kids that definitely need a bit more heavy handed parenting but that’s not up to us to determine and handing out letters is not an effective or appropriate way to help people learn to live a healthier life.

For all of us CrossFitters, that get caught up in what our time was, and our own head — read this. It reminded me of one of the things I love      about CrossFit – being able to help lift someone else up. “What matters is taking care of others, lifting them up, being that encouraging word…

Good info for those starting out eating Paleo. Keep in mind it’s a blueprint –you may need to make modifications depending on your own personal needs.

I am constantly thinking about intentions when I take an action or think about something that is going on. What is the intention behind whatever it is — it really helps sort out all the toxic garbage and helps you think straight.  Try asking yourself “What was their intention” the next time you start to get mad about something someone said —

Happy Halloween Everyone! 

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