Jennifer Hudson is looking to pass along the lessons she's learned on living well to her young son.
In a Tumblr post for Weight Watchers' digital magazine Momfeeds, the 32-year-old mom shared some of the strategies she's used to instill good eating habits in four-year-old David Jr. and avoid the kind of junk food that has contributed to America's obesity epidemic.
"I'm always reading about what you're supposed to do and not supposed to do. What I've realized is that the secret ingredient to teaching my son anything is fun," wrote Hudson. "By taking some of the things that I've learned from my own experiences, and wrapping them up in a whole lot of fun, I'm making the healthy choice the easy choice."
The Oscar winner—who dropped 80 pounds with the help of Weight Watchers, for which she has become its spokesperson—then ticked off three ways she's found success in teaching her toddler how to stay fit.
The first is offering him choices.
"One of my favorite tricks is the fruit bowl. In fact, when I travel for work…I make sure that there's a fruit bowl waiting for us at the hotel," she said. "It's good for me because I always have a healthy snack available, but it's even better for David Jr. because, unlike me, he doesn't even think about the chips and candy bars in the vending machine down the hall."
According to Hudson, the second approach is devising games that double as exercise.
"We go out for walks and we play a lot of basketball together… talking, laughing, playing games. Sure it's exercise, but it doesn't feel like a chore to David Jr.—or to me, for that matter!"
Lastly, J.Hud encouraged other mommies to get into the kitchen with their kids.
"Sometimes instead of ordering out, we make our own pizza together. We always have a lot of veggies for toppings, so he can be creative and try new vegetables in a fun, interesting way," noted Hudson. " Plus, I love that he's learning to make his own food. And best of all, when it's over, we get to eat delicious pizza."
Good tips to be sure.
When she's not focusing on being a great mommy, the R&B star is gearing up to release next year her third studio album, which she collaborated on with Pharrell Williams and Timbaland among others. She just released the record's first single, "I Can't Describe (The Way I Feel)" featuring T.I. on her website and iTunes.