It's Time to "Get Up and Go" With the Cast of Disney's "Newsies"

Photo Credit Disney Theatrical Group

Last April, one of my family’s favorite parts of the Disney Social Media Mom’s Celebration was experiencing the Disney Magic of Healthy Living Program first hand. From the Disney TRYit Campaign to the Disney Magic of Healthy Living, Disney continues to be a leader in encouraging parents to inspire their own families to lead healthier lifestyles.  Through their engaging content, useful tools and unique experiences, the  Disney Magic of Healthy Living Program helps families by making nutritious eating and physical activity more appealing and more fun.  And now Disney has really taken the next step in introducing the latest component in making their movement program as easy as 5, 6, 7, 8. 

Photo Credit Disney "Newsies"

Now you too can “Get Up and Go,” a new initiative to promote a healthier lifestyle in kids through dance.  Disney Theatrical Productions’ new wellness and fitness program “Get Up and Go” promotes fun ways that kids can lead healthier lifestyles through dance, inspired by the Disney’s Broadway shows and award winning choreography. The program launched in December 2013 and is currently offered to schools participating in Disney Musicals in Schools, Disney Theatrical Group's outreach initiative that builds sustainable theatre programs in New York City schools.

Check out this video that features Newsies Tony Award®-winning choreographer, Christopher Gattelli, who will leads aspiring dancers, or just people that want to have fun through dance, through a step-by-step tutorial in learning choreography from the thrilling production number, “Seize the Day,” that kids can do together in their schools and at home with family and friends.

This exciting new program will expand nationally with the onset of the recently announced Newsies National Tour in the fall of 2014. Programs in select cities will be announced at a later date. The program will expand to include sessions from The Lion King and Aladdin in 2015.  In the meantime, check out this high stepping fun when it hit the streets of New York on "Good Morning America".

“Get Up and Go” is in support of Disney Magic of Healthy Living which partners with parents and inspires kids and families to lead healthier lifestyles. This initiative  pairs the fun of Disney’s stories and characters with a well-balanced portfolio of foods and healthier lifestyle choices. Disney’s nutrition guidelines, which were first introduced in 2006, were developed with the help of experts and align to federal standards. For more information, please visit: www.thewaltdisneycompany.com/mohl

 It may be geared toward children, but this mom of a houseful of dancers is not going to pass up an opportunity to learn those impressive Newsies moves.  What are you waiting for?  If you can move you can dance! Throw on your dance shoes, grab some newspaper and along with the complete dance tutorial Be sure catch Newsies at the Nederlander Theatre before it closes on August 24 or when the Newsies seize the day in a city near you.  In the meantime, be sure to “Get Up and Go”.

Who Knew Healthy Could Taste So Good! The Disney TRYit! Campaign

Two Thumbs Up for the Disney TRYit! Campaign!

Anyone that knows me, and even those that may not know me, knows that the words “Healthy Eating” and “Gayle” are usually not two things associated together. As much as I hate to admit it, I live completely and totally on, well, not the healthiest of diets. All that has changed thanks to the Disney Social Media Moms Celebration held a few short weeks ago at the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California and the Disney TRYit! campaign.  

Truth be told, I had no idea that eating right and eating healthy could taste this good! Thanks to the magic of the Happiest Place on Earth and the TRYit! Campaign, all of the attendees and our families were treated each day to a wide variety of healthy and mouth-watering food.

 Each day from the opening night dinner for ourselves and our families at Big Thunder Ranch Jamboree to the closing breakfast on Sunday morning in Cars Land, the magical people at Disney went out of their way to show all of us just how easy it is to eat meals that are both delicious and nutritious. Through the Magic of Healthy Living and their new TRYit! Campaign, the good folks at Disney are looking out for each of us by encouraging families to try a variety of new foods and fun moves in an effort to teach everyone that living a healthier lifestyle is easily obtainable.  Throughout  the Disney Social Media Moms Celebration, we found ourselves with incredible food choices that would satisfy even the pickiest of eaters, yes even me, and it wasn’t just the grown ups filling up their plates with salads, main entrees and scrumptious desserts  (even the s’mores were healthy) –kids were going back for seconds and thirds as well.   

 Not only did the magical people at Disney have us eating healthier, but they had us up and out of our seats and moving, whether it was to the band playing at the Big Thunder Ranch Jamboree to the DJ spinning for us in Toontown on Saturday Night to our very own Disney Fun Run on Sunday morning, it was all about learning a better way of  living.

One of the ways Disney has already implemented their healthy eating initiative into the Parks and into our lives is with their Mickey Check seal of approval. What is the Mickey Check?  The Mickey Check is a tool that makes it easier to identify nutritious choices in stores, online, and while on vacation at Walt Disney Parks and Resorts. The Mickey Check can be found on select kids’ meals and fruit carts throughout Walt Disney World® and Disneyland® Resorts, on various Disney-licensed food products sold at grocery stores across the country, and on qualifying recipes at Disney.com/tryit and Spoonful.com. To receive the Mickey Check, foods must meet Disney Nutrition Guidelines developed by health experts and align to federal dietary guideline recommendations.  Now all families can keep a healthier lifestyle and still enjoy all the fabulous food you’ve come to know and expect when visiting any of the Disney Parks. 

You don’t have to be at the Disney 
Social Media Moms Celebration to eat healthy at the Disney Parks.  Trying a variety of new foods and fun moves is part of living healthy. That’s the message of Disney’s TRYit! Campaign. From inspirational messages on-air and online to a special TRYathlon event and road tour, kids and families are being encouraged to take action to be their best.

The TRYit! Campaign is not just for inside the Disney Parks. Any Disney fan already has seen this plan come into our own homes though the Disney Channel, Disney XD, Disney Junior and Radio Disney in the form of storytelling and short-form programming. In August, a TRYathlon TV Special on Disney XD and Disney Channel will bring together real kids and Disney talent to demonstrate how good for you can be fun too! Kids will compete in a one-of-a-kind TRYathlon that tests their skills, fosters teamwork, and allows them to discover new ways to challenge themselves.

The TV special will kick off a road tour – hosted by Radio Disney – to bring the TRYit! Campaign to 10 cities across the U.S. Go to www.Disney.com/TRYit to find inspiration to be your best or to stay up to date on local events, contests, and other ways to participate in TRYit!

So let’s review-great food, delicious and nutritional selections that are easy to make and bring about a healthier and happier you-sign me up!  For more information of the Magic of Healthy Living or the Disney TRYit! Campaign, or for great recipes and suggestions on how easy it is to implement these quick and simple changes into your own family’s day to day life, be sure to check out http://citizenship.disney.com/try-it  or go to Spoonful.com for a wide variety of activities and recipes and ideas the whole family will love.  If I can do it-anyone can!

Disclaimer: I was invited to the Disney Social Media Moms Celebration at Disneyland and have offered a special discounted rate that was offered to all attendees and their families. In addition, I have received products to help make my experience even more magical.  I will be sharing the unique things I learn throughout the Celebration however these are my own personal thoughts and opinions, not those of the Walt Disney Company.

Gayle is a lifelong educator by day and avid blogger by night and is the owner and cofounder of the Disney Gals, one of the most popular Disney blogs around! Proud mommy to 5, Grammy to 4 she is blessed to share her life with amazing family and friends who encourage her to chase her dreams no matter where they may lead.  When not in the classroom, she can be found following her son as he dances his way through life, or working with young performers in free nationally recognized after school children’s theater program that she founded 13 years ago. On any given day you will find Gayle skipping her way through life with a giggle and a smile knowing that today is meant to be lived and enjoyed. To learn more about Gayle, click here.