WELLNESS 2022:
"Teamwork Makes the Dream Work"
ESHCA Wellness Newsletter
October 2022
|
|
Fall Nutrition Challenge (PowerPoint):
$50 Incentive
|
|
"Take Action":
Participate in the Fall ESHCA Nutrition Challenge!!!
Watch PowerPoint Presentation and fill in the Worksheet
Available: 11/15 - 12/31
(Note: this is not a newsletter challenge, all members and member-spouses are eligible to participate!)
60% of Americans have 1 or more chronic diseases!
Including high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, and low back pain.
80% of chronic disease can be managed or cured through lifestyle!
"Let Food Be Thy Medicine and Medicine Be Thy Food" (Hippocrates)
Drinking 64 ounces of water per day reduces risk of heart disease 41% in women and 54% in men;
Lean Proteins (chicken, fish, eggs) repair tissue damage and control blood sugar;
3 stalks of celery per day lowers blood pressure;
Almonds reduce cholesterol and control blood sugar;
Blueberries are loaded with antioxidants;
-and-
Broccoli lowers your risk of cancer!
|
|
How Many Steps Does It Take?
(Using a Pedometer)
|
|
How many daily steps does it take to promote good health? Hopefully, you have been following along and are aware chronic disease comes with a hefty price tag, not only for the health insurance but more importantly on one's quality of life!
|
|
The premise: 80% of Chronic Disease can be managed or cured through lifestyle including diet, exercise, and smoking cessation!
-
In some cases, chronic diseases are not a result of what is "medically" wrong with the body, it is an "imbalance within in the body".
- Our bodies are full of sugar, sodium, and saturated fat that can be "burned off with exercise" and "depleted through diet".
|
|
A recent study (Vanderbilt University Medical Center) answered the question:
- Data collected over 4 years
- 6,042 participants with a median age of 57 years old
- Fitbit wrist bands were used to measure step counts; participants averaged 7,731 steps per day
- Most cellphones are equipped with a pedometer, check your steps!
|
|
Conclusion: walking 8,200 steps per day reduced the risk of chronic diseases, including:
- Obesity
- Sleep Apnea
- Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD)
- Major Depressive Disorder (MDD)
- Diabetes
- Hypertension
Further analysis: The more, the better...more steps continue to increase the benefits in nearly every health condition studied.
|
|
What is the November Project?
- In November of 2011, two former collegiate rowers wanted to race each other up the steps of Harvard Stadium. They made a pact to meet every day in the month of November at 6:30 am. The goal was to continue working out through Boston's cold winter months.
- Their fitness community grew, today there are 58 locations worldwide including three in upstate New York (Buffalo, Rochester, and Syracuse). The program averages 4,500 participants per week worldwide and over the past 10 years 250,000 individuals have taken the challenge!
- The November Project is "free" and open to all. Workouts vary but often focus on running hills or stairs and doing calisthenics. Refer to the November Project Website for details!
Creating our own November Project! Getting cardiovascular exercise has always been difficult for me. I love playing sports but jogging, biking, or rowing as a means of conditioning my heart and lungs is torture (boring). Four years ago, while sitting on my butt watching TV, I was reminded of my wrestling days and how we ran stairs for conditioning. I grabbed a pair of headphones, linked to a podcast, and walked up and down the stairs for 5 minutes (start slow). After a couple of weeks of success, I set a goal to complete 150 sessions over the course of the year (3 days per week). Gradually, I have increased time and days, for 2022, I am doing 5 days per week (260 workouts) for 30 minutes (note: the American Heart Association recommends 30 minutes of moderate exercise 5 days per week).
What do I like about stair workouts?
- 1) Time efficient! It does not require changing clothes or going to a gym. A 30-minute workout is literally only 30 minutes out of the day.
- 2) Cost! It is "free" (except for the mortgage payment), you do not need to buy a piece of equipment or a gym membership. No stairs? Jog or march in place, it is remarkable how effective it is!
- 3) Good results!
- HDL good cholesterol increased from 44 to 63 (above 60 is ideal for heart health)
- A1C dropped from pre-diabetic 5.8 to normal range 5.2
- Blood pressure lowered from 140/90 to 125/80
- Weight is down 30 lbs. since 2017 (improved diet as well)
- It is a low impact workout that conditions the heart and lungs. Additionally, it strengthens the knees, hips, and low back.
|
|
$25 Monthly Challenge - Are you up to the November Project?
-
1) Download the November Project Workout and the Workout Log.
- Cardio, Stretching, and Strength Training
- 2) Complete the workout assignments, fill in the log, return the log and receive a $25 incentive card.
- Note: the plan provided is just a guide, if you want to follow a different schedule (exercises and dates - or - maybe you just do the cardio or stretching section) that is fine, the objective is simply to work on being active headed into the winter months! Log your current workout, I will take it!
-
How many workout assignments do I need to do to get the incentive? Complete a minimum of 4 workouts (1 per week) to receive the incentive.
-
3) Return the "Workout Log" via email (attach a good cellphone picture), mail, or fax.
-
3) All members of the household are encouraged to participate, however, only one incentive can be issued to each member-household with the exception that more than one employee-member lives in a household. Each member-household is limited to 6 incentives per year, if you participate in more than 6 newsletter challenges your company will be given additional participation points toward the "Golden Boot" award, recognizing the ESHCA Wellness Company of the Year!
Special offer: Get your crew involved!!!
- Take the lead, be a "Wellness Champion". Encourage the members of your crew to participate, have a group discussion and develop strategies to be successful on the job (Tool-Box Talk). For example, record your stretch & flex or your "daily step count" (most cellphones have a pedometer). Send in the "Workout Log", each will receive the $25 incentive (note: ESHCA members only).
|
|
The Wellness Program offers a number of incentive programs encouraging, motivating, and rewarding the "practice" of a healthy lifestyle. Check out the 2022 Wellness Incentive Program:
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
