The project is all about bettering the health of Aussies one small step at a time.
So rather than making a big deal about diet and exercise, it's about incorporating small changes into our lives that are quick and easy for everyone to try - no matter how fit (or unfit) they may be feeling.
Although we all know that diet and exercise are important, the Heart Foundation's current focus is to point out that it's not necessary to spend a lot of time, effort, money and stressing about diet and exercise to make a difference to our heath, fitness and shape. There are simple changes we can all make to our lifestyles and menus - and even our shopping habits - to firm up our bodies and the way we feel about ourselves and our lives.
And that's what Mums United is all about.
Sharing the knowledge and the love and even the recipes that help make those changes easier.
For us, the first step was taking a closer look at choosing Heart Foundation Tick approved products when shopping. And I was amazed at how many there are. (Some 2000 of them!).
Cereal, flavoured milk, oils, pasta, frozen pizza, and even ready meals are among those that get the tick. To be honest, there are some items on there that I'm not sure should get the tick! But then, I'm not a nutritionist, so it's not up to me to judge. I'm just surprised is all! Could it be that easy? That forgiving?
Where are the celery sticks and prunes? We could eat yummy, delicious meals and be healthy and heart-friendly too!
The other thing easy thing we did was to make what we could at home from scratch, which is something I always try to do anyway.
Recently, we visited one of my best friends at his family farm, where we were encouraged to help ourselves to their produce-laden trees. Limes, lemons, avocados, and mandarins, were all ripe for the picking, not to mention eggs from their happy chooks.
We came home relaxed from a get-together with friends, a walk on a farm, and a drive in the country. We used the lemons to make home-made lemonade, the mandarins went in the school lunch boxes every day that week, the avocados were used in salads and on sandwiches, and the limes have freshened our water and tea daily.
If you don't have a farm nearby to raid, there are usually farmer's markets in most towns and cities around Australia. We've been enjoying the tastiest potatoes, pumpkins, carrots and cauliflower
which we purchased from a local market that same weekend. They've been cooked and served in all sorts of ways and inspired from all sorts of cultures. You really can taste the difference that comes from the produce being so fresh and knowing where it comes from, and I find the kids gobble up their veggies without complaint.
Mr 12 has been enjoying baking bread from scratch, and Miss 10 has loved making school lunchbox snacks like muffins and biscuits rather than buying mass-produced muesli bars and so-called fruit snacks. (And I don't know if home-made muffins and biscuits get the heart-foundation tick, but they should, because we make them with love and with natural ingredients like honey and oats, and we know everything that is in them, and they have to be better than things that sit on the shelves for weeks or months. So there.)
Anyway.
We've also swapped driving, for walking, riding or scootering, wherever possible. Having a dog helps, even though our dog is tiny. (She has loads of energy).
"I think we're a healthier family these days," said Miss 10 the other day.
And I think she's right.
Readers, do you have a simple tip to live healthier?
This is my idea of a vegie patch!
Fresh limes
Peach blossoms ...
Happy chooks - and egg collector
Stay tuned for more teensy, tiny ways we are making our lives healthier - and happier!