The summer is a wonderful time of year – full of celebrations, friends, family and time off doing the things we love. Summer, especially the summer holidays, is also a time for little to no routine. For families with kids, this can mean kids’ usual healthy habits like balanced lunchboxes and extracurricular activities fall by the wayside. This is of course normal and part of the holiday fun. But there are some simple habits you can make, or keep, that’ll see you and your family as healthy as you can be this summer.

Keep food balanced, but fun

When the summer rolls around and kids break from school, and parents from work, it can be hard to maintain a good routine with cooking and meal prep. A simple way to not get caught short when it comes to lunchtime is to carry on making lunchboxes and, with the kids off school, why not turn it into a fun at-home activity? Looking for new, healthy recipes that kids can help with in the kitchen is a great way to check off two boxes in one: keeping them busy and keeping them well fed. Rather than focusing so much on limiting treats, although moderation is key, it can be good to instead focus on adding nutrients. Adding lots of the summer fruit and vegetables to meals, wherever you can, is a great start.

You might want to consider using an all-natural and organic nutrient booster like a family-friendly protein powder or greens or berries powder you can add to smoothies. Australian wellness brand Nutra Organics specialises in whole foods supplements that supercharge your regular diet. They have plenty of kid and family-friendly options, which make it easy to boost the whole family’s nutrient intake. Nutra Organics’ family protein powder is a great addition to any summer smoothie – it’ll be sure your family gets the right start to each day.

Boost your immunity

Boosting our immunity and maintaining a strong immune system is important all year long, but many of us forget to try in the warmer seasons. Small nutrients like vitamins A, C, D and E are great for boosting your immunity. So too are minerals like iron and magnesium. A super greens powder like the one from Nutra Organics is a great way to boost you and your family’s immunity. A greens powder is full of micronutrients that are abundant in leafy greens like spinach and in grasses like spirulina. It can be hard to get kids to eat enough greens, which is why a Super Greens Powder is a great solution. You can use a greens powder to make healthy treats with the kids too, like bliss balls.

Stay active

When we’re in our usual routines of school and work, it’s easier to maintain a fitness and exercise routine. When you’ve got kids off school and more social events, it becomes harder. The trick is to remember that this is normal, and we all deserve to be gentle with ourselves. The trick to staying active in the summer is to pick a time that works for you and stick to it – this might be a different time to when you’re in your usual routine. You also might like to think of activities that the whole family can do together that involve exercise. This can be as casual as a family bike ride or getting a day pass for an adventure or recreational centre. When it comes to staying active in the summer, choosing cool and shadier times of day or indoor activities is always the best. It’s also good not to get too caught up on routine and instead focus on incorporating some form of physical activity every day.

Be sun smart

Being sun smart is crucial to staying safe all year round, but particularly in summer. When the weather is warmer, the sun’s UV rays are stronger and more damaging. UV rays can burn our skin – this damage causes the skin to peel and, over time, can cause age spots, and cancer. One of the best ways to keep you and your family sun safe is to limit the amount of time you spend in the sun, especially direct sunlight. Ensuring you and your kids wear hats and protective clothing is also important. Of course, sunscreen is an integral part of any sun smart routine. If you want to keep your family safe this summer, avoid chemical-based sunscreens. Zinc or physical-based sunscreens tend to be the safest for kids’ skin and are less likely to cause sensitivity. When applying sunscreen, be sure to apply it at least 20 minutes before sun exposure and reapply it at least every two hours and after going in the water.

Find stillness

The summer period can be a hectic time – full of social events, festivities and the need to keep kids entertained. Kids can also be affected, whether they realise it or not, by having less of a routine in their lives. Mindfulness is just as important for kids as it is for adults. Mindfulness helps children stay in the present and manage or reduce negative thoughts. Adding a short mindfulness exercise into your kids’ day can be a new activity for the summer period – one you might want to bring into your routine all year round. There are plenty of options for adding mindfulness into your family routine. You can try a breathing exercise where your child places a soft toy on their belly and focuses on their breathing motion, the rise and fall of the toy. Or you can try a moving mindfulness exercise like mindful walking that teaches children to focus on their body and how it feels in the present moment, as they move.