I should start this off by saying that I am not a doctor, a personal trainer, a weight loss expert, or anything similar. What I am is corporate attorney who, about a year ago, got tired of seeing not-so-good numbers come back at the company’s health screen. I was in denial at that time, thinking that the numbers must have been wrong and that I really wasn’t in as bad of shape as it would seem, and that I really didn’t need to lose weight.

Eventually I had to admit that my weight (191 pounds) was too high for my height (5’8″ – ish..). My BMI listed me as just under obese, which was definitely an exaggeration, but still, I did not feel good and I really wanted to get into better shape and lose weight. Looking back, what I really needed was a little bit of motivation.

THE MOTIVATION

Lucky for me, that motivation came at my company’s annual kickoff meeting in January. My company always invites a few employees to come up with speeches on different, non work-related topics.

The first topic that lit a fire within me was a speech that was given by one of the company’s managers. The main theme of his talk was about setting attainable fitness goals  and doing everything that you can do reach them. He started out by showing a picture of himself at the NFL combine. He was clearly overweight and I honestly would not have recognized it as being him if he hadn’t told us. He told us how that was a low point from a fitness perspective in his life, and soon thereafter he decided to change and to lose weight. He started out by setting intermediate goals and working as hard as he could to meet them before moving on to a new goal. He said that by creating this routine, he was able to shed fat, lose weight, and build muscle. He ended his talk by showing a current picture in which he was in very good shape and almost completely unrecognizable from the first picture he showed. This helped me realize that I too could set fitness goals and work hard to attain them.

The second topic got me excited about fitness was given by another employee who was already in great shape. The topic of his talk was about running. He started by telling everyone that he had not always been a runner. In fact, he said that he used to   dislike running with a passion. He then went on to tell us about a book, called “Born To Run,” that completely changed his life. After reading the book he learned to love to run and eventually ran a 50 mile race – yes 50 miles! During the rest of his talk he talked about his preparation for that run and his experience running and finishing it.

After hearing both of these talks, I had the motivation that I needed to begin to lose weight. I admit that I had my doubts about whether I could make the necessary changes in my life to become more healthy – particularly I was very doubtful that I could ever learn to love to run. Nevertheless, I decided that there was no better time than the present to take the plunge to see if it could help me lose weight.

It has now been a little bit over a year since that meeting, and I am happy to say that I have lost 26 pounds and am now down to 165 pounds – which is about what I weighed when I was a year out of high school.

So how did I do it? Really there are two main steps that I took to lose weight and keep it off, and that is what I want to share today.

Before I start, I just want to say that I know that this two step plan may not be right for everyone. I know that everyone has different circumstances in life and different struggles. I know that there are many other plans that may be just as, or more, effective than what I have to say today. With all of that out of the way, I will say that this is what has helped me lose weight, and I am much happier now than I was a year ago.

STEP 1 – LEARN TO LOVE TO RUN

For some of you, this might sound psychotic – love to run? Are you kidding me? I know this, because that was me for first 28 years of my life. In fact, before March of last year I had not run more than a mile at one time since I was playing baseball in high school. Even thinking about running made me cringe. Even in the earlier occasions where I was working hard to lose weight, I almost never would run, and if I did, it was only for a half a mile at the most.

That all changed when, at the recommendation of the co-worker mentioned above, I began to read “Born to Run” written by Christopher McDougall. Now you may be asking how one single book could change me from someone that hated running, to someone that loves it. To be honest, I am not even sure how it happened. I started listening to the Audible version on my long commute to and from work shortly after that company meeting. At first it seemed a little bit slow and I was wondering what all the hype was about. However, after about week of listening to it I started to “get” it. I don’t want to go into too much detail about the book, because it is something that you really have to experience for yourself. To be brief, I will just say that it takes you through the story of the author as he tried to figure out what he needed to do to be able to run and how he could learn to love it. He takes you with him down to Mexico to experience the life of the Tarahumara – a group of people that truly believe that they were “born to run” (and they are very good at it). If you want to learn to love to run, this is the book to read. It won’t necessarily show you how to run, but it will convince you that you can – and should.

Of course in learning to love to run, it is implied that you actually will be running, right? Like I said, the book won’t teach you everything about how to run, so you may still have to do some research. I am no expert on running, but these are some things that helped me learn to love it, and in turn have helped me to lose weight.

• Run Outside Whenever Possible

  I finished reading “Born to Run” right near the end of February, 2015. If you know anything about Colorado, you know that February isn’t the best time to be running outside. Colorado has very “bi-polar” weather. In the span of one day it can be rainy, sunny, and snowy. That said, I didn’t have access to an indoor track or treadmill, so I decided to bundle up and brave the cold. The first time that I got out and ran, I admit that it was very cold – but it was also an amazing experience. We have a trail in our neighborhood that goes on for miles and is surrounded by trees and for the most part is out of the way of the roads in our town. There was something so peaceful about being out in nature, running along a trail and breathing in fresh air (and trust me, I was breathing in a lot of it that first time!). Its always great to see the deer and other wildlife stop and stare as I run along the path. I know that sometimes it is more practical to run indoors, but I truly believe that the outdoor aspect of running is one of the best parts. If you do prefer to run indoors, you can get your first month free at 24 Hour Fitness by clicking on the image below.

  
  

• Make Sure You Have The Right Attire

  Running outside meant that for the first few months, I had to wear thermal pants, a warm hat, gloves, and a warm, long sleeved shirt for running. I thought that this would take away from my ability to run effectively, but I found that the opposite was true. Whenever I went out under dressed for the weather, I could not go very far, and I almost always had to stop running earlier because of the cold. I found most of my clothes at Target, but you can find them online too.

  You will also need a good pair of shoes. I know that some people will tell you that you have to have a specific type of shoe, and maybe that is true. However, I found this nice pair of running shoes (as you can see, there is nothing fancy about them) and they have lasted me well over a year without breaking and without causing any adverse effects. I was tempted to splurge and spend a couple hundred bucks on shoes, but looking back, I am glad that I didn’t. That isn’t to say that those more expensive shoes aren’t good – I just didn’t have a need for them.

• Take Along Some Music

  I find it much easier to run when I have some music to listen to. It helps me to stay focused and to keep going. It can really be anything. I am a huge fan of country music, so I take that along with me and it keeps me going. I know country music isn’t really what people think of when they think of running music, but it works for me, so I am confident that whatever music you choose will be right for you too. Now running with headphone cords can be kind of frustrating, so I would suggest getting some good bluetooth earbuds or headphones like these. It is also a good idea to get an armband to hold your phone so that you don’t have to keep it in your pocket or in your hand while you run.

• Track Your Progress

  This really made the difference for me. Being able to track my progress and actually see progress helped to keep me motivated. With all of the technology that we have now, there are many ways to track your running progress. If you search your app store for “running tracker apps” you will see many. I am sure that almost any of them will do the job, but the one that I chose is called Runmeter, and I couldn’t be more satisfied. The user interface is clean and easy to navigate and it has tons of great options. I started out with the free version, but quickly upgraded to elite for only $4.99 per year. It tracks your speed, your ascent and descent, your split times, and more. One thing that I really love about it is that it has voice announcements, so as I am running it will tell me how far I have gone at set intervals, what my current pace is, and what my total time is as well. You can then look back at your history and see how your speed and distance has increased. You can even download it to your computer if it is easier for you to track it there. 

•   Work  Your Way Up Slowly

  The first time that I got out to run, I was really motivated and thought that I could get out and run a mile with no problem. At about the 1/4 mile mark I was already gassed and ready to say goodbye to running. I decided to turn around and run back to my car for a total of 1/2 mile. I was happy that I didn’t stop running, but I was disappointed that I didn’t go further. Instead of giving up, I kept going out every day and every day I went a little bit further until within 2 weeks I was able to run 2 miles without stopping. From there it just got easier and easier until I ran 8 miles just 3 months in. Most of the time I can’t go further because I run in the morning and have a limited window of time before I have to get to work. On those days when I can’t go further, I focus on going faster and that helped me to continue to improve. If you had told me that first day that I started running, that a few months later I would be able to run 8+ miles I would have told you that you were crazy. Nevertheless it happened, and I was loving it.

• Push Yourself to Get Better

  If you don’t keep looking for ways to get better, it can be easy to fall into the same routine. One technique that has worked for me is to park my car, and then run a set distance, knowing that I have to get back to my car by a specific time in order to make it to work in time. This forces me to run all the way back without stopping, because if I do start walking, then I know that I am going to be late to work. The first few times that I did this, I almost gave up and started walking, but instead I kept going and each time I am able to catch a “second wind” and finish my run.

Trust me, learning to love to run is not easy, but if you can achieve it, I am confident that you will be able to meet your weight loss goals. However, it isn’t enough just to get out and run. You have to make other changes in your life as well. Which leads me to Step 2 of this 2 step plan to lose weight and keep it off.

STEP 2 – PERMANENTLY CHANGE YOUR EATING HABITS

I love to eat. I always have and I probably always will. As you can see here on my wife’s blog, there is no shortage of delicious food to eat around here. I was actually a pretty picky eater growing up, but over the years I have learned to eat just about anything.

This love for food is what got me in trouble with my weight in the first place. It wasn’t so much that I loved eating, it was that I was unable to control my portions. If something was delicious, I just wanted to keep going back for more. If I saw a cookie, I had to find where the rest were hidden and eat 5. When we went out to eat, I couldn’t eat only part of my meal – I had to eat the whole, ridiculously over sized portion. When I was younger and had better metabolism this wasn’t such an issue. I could eat and eat and didn’t see any noticeable difference in how much I weighed. However, after I got married I realized very quickly that I couldn’t keep eating the same way, or that if I did, I wouldn’t be in good shape for long.

Unfortunately my desire to eat trumped my desire to be in good shape and lose weight for the first few years of our marriage. I quickly went from size small, to size medium, and finally to size large. I knew that I was getting bigger, but it never really registered until I saw some pictures of me that were almost unrecognizable. Another breaking point came when we were visiting Mexico a couple of years ago. About a year (and 10-15 pounds) earlier we had visited my wife’s family in Mexico, and when we were at church a sweet little girl told my wife that when she grew up she wanted to have a “Ken” doll like my wife’s (she was talking about me). I took that as a compliment and it actually made me feel good about myself. The next year when we went back, the same little girl told my wife that I wasn’t her “Ken” doll anymore, because I was fat. It was kind of funny at the time, but it made me realize that I was going down a path that I didn’t want to.

Fast forward to last year after our company meeting. After seeing the change that the first speaker made in his life and all the weight that he lost, I realized that I had to do something different in order to lose weight too. Running was the first step in order for me to get the exercise in, but the second step was figuring out a way to eat better. I knew myself and knew that I was never going to be someone that could eat only vegetables, salads, and smoothies. I love food way too much for that. However, I did decide that there were some changes that I could make, and as I did I noticed a huge difference in my life. So here are a couple of things that I did that made all the difference and helped me lose weight.

Portion Control

The first change that I made was to start managing my portions. Before I made this change, it was normal for me to eat 2, 3 or even 4 portions of dinner. The food was always so good, that I               figured I had to keep eating it. I decided to force myself to only have one portion of dinner every night. At first I served myself a pretty large portion, but I stuck to it. Within a few weeks my               average portion size began to shrink and to my surprise I wasn’t as hungry as I thought I was. The good thing about this technique is that I could still eat pretty much anything, but it was just            in smaller portions. This made probably the biggest difference in my weight loss journey.

Smart Snacking

I used to eat snacks all the time – donuts, chips, and cookies were the most common culprits. What I realized later was that I was not snacking smartly. So how do you snack smartly? For me it meant replacing those sugary, high-fat snacks with things like almonds, fruit, and vegetables. I also started having more snacks rather than less. I found that when I ate 3-5 small, healthy snacks per day, I was not as hungry at mealtime and that helped me with my portion control. Now I won’t say that I cut out those other snacks completely – I still love sweets – but I did cut back on them and I find now that I don’t crave them as much.

Healthy Replacements

One thing that helped me out a lot was making healthy replacements. This doesn’t mean that I replaced a bad meal with a good one necessarily. Rather, it mean that I replaced bad ingredients with good ingredients. Instead of using a lot of canola or vegetable oil, we used more olive oil and coconut oils. Instead of eating tons of white bread, we started using more whole grains. Instead of frying certain foods, we decided to bake them when possible. By making these small changes, my wife and I both noticed that we felt better most of the time and we were feeling in much better shape.

Track Your Progress and Hold Yourself Accountable

Just as it was important to track my progress when running, it was equally important for me to track my progress and hold myself accountable. I used a couple of different fitness and calorie trackers to do this. Whenever I had a bad day of eating, I would make a note of how I felt and that motivated me to do better the next day. As I met my goals and was able to stay under my                 calorie benchmarks for the day, I started to really realize that I could do this and that I would.

This second step was as or more important than first. The good thing about the steps I mentioned above is that they are things that you can do on a permanent basis. I had tried other diets in the past where I had to pretty much give up everything that I loved. While they did work at first, I was never able to keep up with it and I always ended up worse off. Now that I have been applying these principles in my life for over a year, I can say that while it hasn’t always been easy, it has been worth it.

FINAL THOUGHTS – WEIGHT LOSS RESULTS

So there you have it! A two step plan to lose weight and keep it off. I never said that those two steps would be easy, but I can say with confidence that they have been worth it. I am now in better shape than I have been in in years, and I feel better both mentally and physically. It feels great to be able to purchase size small clothes again. It feels great to be able to fit into size 32 (and sometimes 31) pants again instead of 34+. It feels good to look at myself in pictures and feel good about myself again. In total, I have lost about 26 pounds – so I am down from 191 to 165. I never took an actual “before” photo, but this first one pretty much sums up how I looked off and on for years after getting married (although I did choose about as unflattering a picture as I could). The after picture was taken right after I ran my first official 5k a couple of months ago, and I’m happy to report that I have been able to maintain the weight I have lost even through the holiday season which is always the hardest time for me to stay strong!

My final words are these – if you think you can’t lose weight – stop! You can do it! If I could do it (and continue doing it), then you can do it too. I would love to hear your thoughts in the comments below on what has worked for you too!

The post 2 Step Plan to Lose Weight and Keep it Off appeared first on My Latina Table.

I want to start this article out by saying that I really like to spend money. Unfortunately, in order to spend money, you have to make it and save it! In our personal situation, we are not poor, but we also aren’t rich – but sometimes I like to spend like I am. I love to have new clothes and shoes, and to go out to eat for dinner every once in a while. I usually don’t feel too bad about it, because my husband and I set a monthly budget and we try hard to stick to it. That said, I always like to have little bit extra so that I can treat myself or my family every once in a while. So now you may be asking – what do you do to have that extra money? In this article I hope to show you how to save hundreds of dollars per year and how that can allow you to stock up on essential products that your family needs!

I am definitely not an expert, but these tips really have helped me to save hundreds of dollars, so I feel like it is my obligation to share them with all of you as well.

Here in the United State we have so many tools at our disposal to save money, such as coupons and apps on our phones. In other parts of the World, like Mexico where I am from, these tools are not available. While most of this article will focus on the tools that we have here in the United States, there are some other tips that can be applied in any part of the World.

For some background, a few short years ago my husband was in law school, and because he was only working part time, our budget was pretty tight. I was determined to stay at home with my young children, but at the same time I felt like I wasn’t contributing or helping us to have enough money. That is when I started looking into ways to save money. I started learning how to use coupons and after a couple of months I was able to see the results. Now, I have to say – couponing can be addictive. I know people that buy tons of things that they will never use, which can be counterproductive – no matter how cheap something is, if you keep buying things that you don’t need it’s hard to say that you are saving money!

I hope that these tips and tricks can help you, and that you are able to not only have a little bit extra to spend, but that you are able to save hundreds of dollars per year as well.

Be Persistent (aka don’t give up!)

When you start using coupons or doing anything else to save money, it can be very easy to get discouraged. It is so important push through the hard, stressful times, because it will be worth it in the end.

To illustrate this point, I want to share a personal experience. When I had only recently arrived in the United States in 2010, my husband was still doing his undergrad, and our budget was pretty tight. Luckily for me, one of my sisters-in-law lived right around the corner from us, so we got to spend a lot of time together. At that time, she introduced me to couponing. She would always tell us how she was saving lots of money. One day she told us about a great deal that she got at Rite-Aid on diapers. She explained it to me perfectly, and I wrote it down and excitedly told my husband that we had to go that day. Well, we got to Rite-Aid, found the diapers, and thought we were doing everything right. When we got to the cash register and paid, the amount that came up was about 5 times as much as what my sister-in-law had paid. Since I was still new to couponing, I didn’t know what I had done wrong, so instead of questioning the total, we quietly paid and walked out – feeling discouraged.

It took me four years before I decided to pick up a coupon again after that experience, and that is a huge regret.

When I started again in 2014, I had some very discouraging experiences – from my coupons not working, to having extremely rude cashiers, and more. My husband always encouraged me to keep on pushing forward, and as I did I learned more and I couldn’t be happier now that I have seen the results.

So, when you feel like giving up – DON’T!

Use All Available Sources to Find Coupons

You may be surprised to find out that there are many places that you can find coupons. If you are only using coupons from one source, then you are missing out! You can find coupons online, in the newspaper, in the mail, in stores, and by signing up for certain programs. Here are a few sources that I use every week.

1. Local Newspaper – everywhere that I have lived has had a local newspaper that you can subscribe to. They all have had at least 1-3 coupon inserts in every Sunday, Wednesday, and Thursday edition. The inserts are usually from Red Plum, P&G, and SmartSource. You should be able to get a subscription for those days only for less than $20 per month. You will also find that you won’t always want all of the coupons because they aren’t useful for you, so what I usually do is look up what coupons will be arriving (as I will discuss later) and only buying the newspaper at a convenience store on the days that I know I will need the coupons. That has saved me from having to get a subscription.
2. Online Coupon Websites – There are quite a few websites online where you can search for manufacturer coupons for specific products, and print them off. Usually you have to download and install a special “coupon printer” that allows you to print them off, but it is free and only takes a few minutes. These are some of my favorite sites: redplum.com, www.smartsource.com, and  www.coupons.com.
3. Specific Products Websites – Many brands like to promote their products by offering exclusive coupons on their website or social media pages. Sometimes they will require that you sign up on their website, or play a game, watch a video, or something else. Whatever it is, it usually is pretty simple and is a great way to multiple your savings, so keep your eyes open for these opportunities on your favorite brands’ social media pages.
4. Store Specific Websites – Many stores offer their own coupons that you can use together with manufacturer coupons. For example, you can go to coupons.target.com and you can find both manufacturer coupons and other coupons that you can only use at Target. Make sure you read what the coupon says, because sometimes the stores will put their logo on it, but they are actually manufacturer coupons that you can use anywhere. If it says “store coupon” or something similar instead of “manufacturer coupon” then you will know. Some other stores, like Kroger, will send you special coupons directly to your house if you join their club or sign up for pharmacy points. For example, Kroger and Kroger affiliates have digital coupons that you can load directly onto your loyalty card and they will automatically take the discount off when you purchase the corresponding product!

Coupon Planning and Organization

While just finding occasional coupons that you can use on your daily or weekly shopping trips can save some money, you will multiply your savings by a lot by taking some time each week to organize your coupons and plan out a coupon strategy.

1. Organization

There are many ways to organize your coupons. Some people like to have a large notebook, separated out by coupon type. You can use any three ring binder that you have, but you will probably want to add sleeves to it, like the ones that you can use for baseball cards. They even have some online that you can buy that are made specifically for coupons, like this one. While there is nothing wrong with this method of organizing coupons, it isn’t always the most convenient option, which is why I chose another method. I have seen many people that take their whole binder to the store and they pull it out and struggle to look through all of the pages to find the right coupons. That may work for some, but I prefer not to carry something so big with me all the time.

I prefer to organize my coupons at home into different categories, and then I create a labeled envelope for each. Some examples of the labels I use are: Laundry, Frozen Food, Dairy, Personal Care, etc. After I have the envelopes ready, I put the corresponding coupons in each one and I put them in a small bag that easily fits inside my purse so that I can take them out easily and I can find what I am looking for quickly.

No matter what way you decide to organize your coupons, it is important to do it. If you know exactly where your coupons are when you get to the store it will make it much easier to make sure you are getting the best deals.

2. Planning

One of the most important parts about using coupons to save money is knowing what coupons to use, how you can combine them with sales, and when is the best time to use them. The best way to plan is to figure out what stores are having sales, and then determining what coupons you can use to save even more off of the sales price.

While it is possible to go through all of the local store ads, and then manually look through your coupons, there are other resources online that do that work for you! My favorite website to find out what coupons to combine with what sales is www.thekrazycouponlady.com. This site is great, because you can search for the specific stores that you have in your area and they have already done most of the research. This is also the site that I check to find out what coupons will be coming in the following weeks’ newspaper. Their posts will also usually tell you the specific coupons that you need to use and what deals to combine them with to get the most savings. The great thing is that sometimes different stores have even better deals going on in your specific area, so you end up saving even more than you expected.

Another way to plan is to go to the clearance section of your favorite stores, and write down any specific products that you see there that you want. Then, when you get home you can check your coupons to see if there are any that you can combine with the clearance prices – I have ended up with many free products using this strategy!

Use Coupon Apps to Multiply Your Savings

When I started using coupons to save, I was pretty much limited to paper coupons that I could print off or cut out of the newspaper. However, a few months later I learned about an amazing app for my phone called Ibotta. This is how it works

• Sign up for an account and then download the app;
• Unlock rebates (watching videos, reading about the products, etc.)
• Go to the store and buy the products that have a rebate;
• When you get home, upload a picture of your receipt and scan the products;
• Wait for the rebate to be approved and added to your account.

Once you accumulate $20, you can have them pay you via PayPal or Venmo. Trust me, it doesn’t take long to get to that threshold! As you can see, I have received hundreds of dollars in rebates in the time that I have been using this app.

There are other apps too that work almost the same way. Some of my favorites are:

• Checkout51
• SavingStar
• Mobisave
• Snap by Groupon
• Shopmium – (use code YKFUKCWE)

The great thing is that you can combine savings by submitting the same receipt in different applications. For example, sometimes Ibotta will have a rebate for $.50, Checkout 51 will have a rebate for $.75 and Mobisave will have a rebate for $1.00 – all for the same product. If you submit your receipt on all three you will end up saving $2.15! Just make sure that you don’t try to submit the same receipt in the same app (even on different accounts), because that is not permitted.

One thing that I love about these apps is that most of them offer rebates on products that you are buying anyway, like bread, milk, eggs, etc.

Lastly, I love to combine these rebates with other sales, paper coupons, and for products that are on clearance. Many times you will end up paying next to nothing (or literally nothing) for these products.

Other Tips to Save Hundreds of Dollars 

I have saved hundreds of dollars using the above strategies, but now I want to end by sharing some other practical tips that will help you have a better, less stress-inducing experience.

1. Create a meal plan every week

This one has been hard for me, but whenever I do it, I end up spending less on groceries. You should start by planning out every meal that you are going to make during the week. Next, make a        list of the ingredients that you will need to make them. Finally, go to the store and stick to your list. This will help you avoid buying products that you don’t need. Of course you can always buy          a few extras, but this is a great place to start.

There are some good meal planners that you can buy that will help you stay organized and that will help you plan out your meals every week. This is the one that I use: Weekly Meal Planner.

2. Don’t go to the Store Hungry

This may seem kind of silly, but it really does make a difference! I find that when I go to the store without eating, everything looks delicious and I end up buying things that I wouldn’t have               otherwise. If you follow my first tip above and are able to stick to your list, that will help too. You can avoid going to the store hungry by eating a small snack or a meal right before going to                 the store.

3. Try to Avoid Taking Your Young Kids To The Store During Nap-Time

Pretty much every mom I know can understand this. We love our kids very much, but there is something about taking them to the store that flips a switch within them that makes everything            more difficult. It is not always possible to go to the store without your kids, especially when they are not in school yet, but if at all possible, try to go when they have a full stomach and have                already taken their nap.

If you know that your child is having a hard day and has been crying or fighting all day, it might be best to put off your trip to the store until they have calmed down or until they can stay                    home. If you are only going for a few things, it isn’t such a big deal, but if you are planning on doing coupons and spending a lot of time, this advice should be helpful!

Concluding Thoughts

It can be a little bit overwhelming when you start using coupons on a regular basis, so I hope that these strategies will help you. There were many times when I wanted to give up, but now that I have seen the results, I am so glad that I didn’t. It feels so good to be able to contribute to the financial security of my family in whatever way that I can. I hope that you have enjoyed this article, and I would love to hear any and all tips that you have as well – please share them in the comments below!

The post How to Save Hundreds of Dollars Per Year (Coupon Strategies for Beginners) appeared first on My Latina Table.

This article is based on my own personal experience raising my children. The tips and guidance mentioned here doesn’t substitute professional advice and individual results may vary based on each individual child. 

I am from Mexico originally, so my first language is Spanish. My Husband, a US citizen, and I got married in 2009 and shortly thereafter I moved to the United States. Apart from the culture, the food, and other difference, the most difficult adjustment for me was the language. When I first arrived in this country, I didn’t know any English, except for the most simple words, such as “Hi” and “Thank You.” Any communication I had with my in-laws was made through signs, smiles, or by having my husband translate! Although everyone was always so nice to me and patient, without a doubt, the language barrier was a challenge for me.

A few weeks after arriving, my husband and I moved to another State so that he could begin another semester of college. So we lived pretty far from most of my husband’s family, except for one of his sisters that lived a couple of blocks away.

A few months down the road, our first baby boy was born, and I was still struggling with the language, so when my husband was at school and work, I would study and practice my English all day – I watched movies and TV in English, and I tried to read in English too. As a result of spending so much time practicing my English, I often found myself saying words in English to my little baby, which made me realize that I was completely neglecting to teach him my first language – Spanish!

If you would like to teach your child to speak a second language, but you don’t do it because you think it takes too much effort, I would like to share with you a few reasons that I found while doing research for this article as to why you should reconsider.

BENEFITS OF BEING BILINGUAL 

Source

: https://www.ehow.com/info_8670835_ten-benefits-being-bilingual.html

1. Mental Flexibility: Often, bilingual children have an increased ability to take in new information, because switching between two languages exercises the part of the brain that controls those functions.

2. Concentration Skills: Bilingual children are able to concentrate on the tasks at hand and block-out distractions.

3. Listening Skills: Because Bilingual children are listening for two different languages, their listening skills are highly developed and they are better able to comprehend what is being told to them.

4. Better Resistance to Alzheimer:  The constant mental gymnastics that a person has to do by learning a second language keeps the brain active and flexible in the future.

5. Problem Solving: Bilinguals are better able to store and process information, which helps them to solve complex problems in a creative and flexible manner.

6. Communication: Speaking two languages gives bilinguals better insights into, and better ability to communicate in, both languages.

7. Personal Connections: Speaking two languages allows bilinguals to make friends and other connections in different community and to associate with new and interesting people, both at home and abroad.

8. Cultural Development: Speaking a second language also permits and encourages bilinguals to learn more about other cultures in the native tongue.

9. Employment Opportunities: Being bilingual opens up the door to many employment and academic opportunities that would otherwise not be available.

10. Traveling: Although speaking a second language isn’t a requirement for traveling, it can make it easier and more gratifying.

If after reading that information, you changed your mind, and you do want to teach your children to speak a second language, then I would invite you to keep reading these four tips below which are based on my own experiences raising my little boys.

1) SPEAK THE LANGUAGE THAT YOU WANT YOUR CHILD TO LEARN AT HOME

Talk to your spouse and make the decision to speak the language you want your child to learn almost exclusively while at home. In my case, my husband also speaks Spanish fluently, which has made it easier for us to speak mainly Spanish at home. So what happens with English you might be asking? Don’t worry, your children WILL learn English everywhere else. :).

2. USE BOOKS, TELEVISION SHOWS, AND ANY OTHER TOOL TO HELP YOUR CHILDREN TO LEARN THE SECOND LANGUAGE.

In this day and age, there are so many books, magazines, and TV shows at our disposal that can help us with the difficult task of learning two language. What has helped me personally are Dorling Kindersley books, TV shows like Dora the Explorer, Go Diego Go, Handy Mandy, and Baby Einstein videos that are available on YouTube. Of course every child is different and not everything that I have used will help your children or have similar results. I am specifically talking about the tools that I have used to help me to teach my son Spanish, and other language may require completely different tools.

4) SING SONGS IN THE LANGUAGE THAT YOU WANT YOUR CHILD TO LEARN

Bedtime is one of the best times to teach your children a second language. My little guy and I always have fun learning new songs in Spanish. This is without a doubt one of the best ways to teach a second language, because what can be better for a child than having fun, singing and dancing while learning a second language?

4) INTRODUCE YOUR CHILDREN TO YOUR NATIVE CULTURE

Even if you are not able to visit your home country very often, nearly everyone has access to the internet. You should take advantage of these resources (as well as visiting your country when you can) to teach your children about your culture. That will give them an incentive to learn the second language. For example, my mama came to visit us a few months ago and she doesn’t speak any English. My little boy recognized that she didn’t understand what he said in English, so he would say to her “quiero agua” while still telling his daddy “I want water.” That showed us that he associated his abuela being from Mexico with speaking Spanish.

And after all of those tips, if you still have some doubts about this topic, here are some common myths about raising bilingual children.

Myths about Bilingualism 

• Raising Children Bilingual will cause them to fall behind: When my little guy turned two, I recognized that he wasn’t pronouncing his words very well and most people could not understand him. So I thought that it must have had something to do with the fact that he was learning two language (we were told that it might happen by some people). Well I took him to a speech therapist, and she told me that I was wrong. She said that “Bilingual children develop the same as any other child, some have speech issues, and don’t pronounce words right, but that is because each child learns and develops at their own pace.”
• Raising Children Bilingual will confuse them: Sometimes it is easy to think that raising our children bilingual will create confusion for them and that they won’t be able to discern between the two languages. This is not true. Just like we all learn who is our mom and who is our dad growing up, children learn the difference between Spanish and English or any other languages that they are learning. 
• Children are some smart that they can learn two languages easily: The truth is that if we want our children to learn a second or third language, we have to teach them and pracice. Thinking that our children can learn a language without practicing is like thinking that we can earn money without working – it usually is not the case!
• It is too late for my child to learn another language: Although it is true that it is easier to learn languages when we are younger, it is just as true that people can learn languages as they get older, it just might take a little bit extra effort. 

Conclusion

I have written this post hoping that I can help you at least a little bit in your road to bilingualism. I know that it is not easy, and the key is practice and being consistent. Even though I have tried to apply all of these steps with my little boys, I still have a ways to go. But with a little bit of effort, practice, and consistency, anyone can achieve this goal. Please don’t miss out on giving your children this opportunity if it is possible for you, they will definitely be grateful when they are older!

Maybe you are wondering how is it possible that my child will speak English if I am always speaking to him in Spanish and all of the learning tools are in Spanish? Well, it is well known that children have better language retention than adults and their minds are better able to absorb new things than the minds of adults. Furthermore, according to experts, childhood is the best stage of life for a person to learn new languages. This doesn’t mean that older children and adults can’t do it, but it takes a little bit more effort. So to answer the above question, my son is learning English with little effort, naturally. He speaks English with his cousins, his aunts, uncles, and with his grandparents. He hears English everywhere – in the stores, at church, on TV, and everywhere else, and of course his daddy is his best teacher!

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