Activities for Conscious Eating Cycle – February 19th – March 4th
These are just suggested activities for you to choose from over the next two weeks. You are not meant to do them all, just what suits you. Share what you try on your blog or with a colleague. Send us your ideas – what works, what doesn’t. Try at least two.
Activity 1. Stop When Full. Just like hunger, you can practice recognizing fullness. You don't have to be a member of the Clean Plate Club! Every ¼ of your plate follow these steps; - Put down your fork- Close your eyes- Take 3-5 deep breaths- Place your hand on abdomen and focus on stomach pouch (internally)- Notice- Ask yourself - Am I full? How full am I?
Activity 2 . Adjust your Portion Size. Check out these 10 smart tips for controlling your portions: http://weightloss.about.com/od/eatsmart/tp/aa030405a.htm . Or if you want the Marth Stewart approach, check out http://www.slimware.com/ which features dinner plates with flower designs. Each flower is the size that your portion should be!
Activity 3. Try not to eat after 8pm or 2 hours before you go to bed.
Activity 4. Everything you wanted to know about being Vegetarian: Download your free Vegetarian Starter Kit from the Physician’s Committee for Responsible Medicine. This respected organization is led by the well-known Dr. Neal Barnard, author of the Program for Reversing Diabetes and Eat Right, Live Longer. http://www.pcrm.org/health/veginfo/vsk/
Activity 5. Take a nutrition quiz like the ones offered on Prevention.com (http://www.prevention.com/cda/categorypage.do?channel=nutrition.recipes&category=tools.quizzes)
You can test your knowledge about your knowledge about antioxidants, calories, food labels, low carbs etc.or test your knowledge about healthy fast food options at http://www.aolhealth.com/diet/basics/fast-food-calories
Activity 6. Watch a health related video or DVD. The following are just suggestions – you may watch one of your choosing and record it on your log:
Suggested Videos
Diet for a New America
Supersize Me
Fast Food Nation
How to Cook Your Life: a cooking class with Zen priest and chef Edward Espe Brown
(or choose one of your own and tell us what you chose)
Books
Eat More, Weigh Less by Dean Ornish
Diet for a Small Planet by Frances Moore Lappe
Dr Macdougalls’ Digestive Tune-up
Quantum Wellness by Kathy Freston
Deceptively Delicious by Jessica Seinfeld
Eat Right, Live Longer by Dr. Neal Barnard
Dr. Neal Barnard’s Program for Reversing Diabetes
Activity 7. Try a different approach to breakfast. Toms River staff: remember the smoothies we had at kick-off? Try making one for breakfast. It’s so delicious and good for you, and making it at home will save some money! My typical smoothie contains bananas, frozen strawberries, vanilla rice milk and a scoop of Peaceful Planet protein powder. Create your own with either soy, rice or almond milk, one or two bananas, and the frozen fruit of your choice. You can also add your own flavored protein powders, yogurt (regular or soy) or juice.
Remember, this is “Conscious Eating,” not dieting. Just say no to that Dunkin Donut or Fried Egg Sandwich and try a healthier breakfast for a change! For example, if you usually grab a bagel with cream cheese and latte at Starbucks for breakfast, opt for a regular coffee or tea and choose the oatmeal with fruit or raisins instead.
Activity 8. Eat one low-fat vegetarian meal a day for a week in place of a typical high-in-fat-and-cholesterol meal. Been wanting to try a veggie burger? Go for it (just watch salt content, soy allergies, etc. if you have any dietary restrictions). Try one of the delicious and easy recipes from the site Physician’s Committee for Responsible Medicine: http://www.pcrm.org/health/recipes/
Or try the Vegetarian Resource Group’s recipe site: http://www.vrg.org/recipes/index.htm
Helpful Websites
http://sparkpeople.com/ - Many members of the Health and Wellness Challenge already use this site and suggested we list it. It is a good online site for those looking for assistance with their diet. Check it out.
http://www.pcrm.org/health/ - This is the Physician’s Committee for Responsible Medicine’s health and diet section. Explore nutrition’s role in fighting such illnesses as arthritis, cancer, diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure, and more. Good information on the benefits of a vegetarian diet including recipes. Also in Spanish.
http://www.hungry-girl.com/meet/index.php - Tips and tricks for hungry chicks! Not professional, but pretty – written by a “hungry girl” just like most of us (sorry, guys!) who are dealing with the same issues. Good for moral support and fun!
http://www.menshealth.com/eatthis/index.php - Here is one for the guys. Be aware, it is a very commercial site and there is a wide variety of info here.
http://www.vrg.org/ - The Vegetarian Resource Group is a non-profit organization dedicated to educating the public on vegetarianism and the interrelated issues of health, nutrition, ecology, ethics, and world hunger. Easy recipes, menus for diabetics, kids and more.
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
Let's Get Started!
To all Health & Wellness challenge Participants:
Round One of the Health & Wellness Challenge begins Thursday February 19th. The focus will be on Conscious Eating. In the meantime, all participants should be thinking about and setting long term goals.
Because the Challenge will run for forty weeks, you need to think about where you want to be at the end. That seems like a lifetime away, but you know what they say: “A journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step. –Lao-tzu”
Take a few minutes and visualize yourself, 10 months from now. What will you look like? How will you have changed, inside and out? Write a few things down. You can post them in plain view, or file them away for safe keeping. The important thing is that you take the time to think ahead. Then, let your Team Leader know that you made your goals. You can decide whether or not you want to share all of them. We suggest that you do share some of them, so others may help you reach them.
Good luck!
Round One of the Health & Wellness Challenge begins Thursday February 19th. The focus will be on Conscious Eating. In the meantime, all participants should be thinking about and setting long term goals.
Because the Challenge will run for forty weeks, you need to think about where you want to be at the end. That seems like a lifetime away, but you know what they say: “A journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step. –Lao-tzu”
Take a few minutes and visualize yourself, 10 months from now. What will you look like? How will you have changed, inside and out? Write a few things down. You can post them in plain view, or file them away for safe keeping. The important thing is that you take the time to think ahead. Then, let your Team Leader know that you made your goals. You can decide whether or not you want to share all of them. We suggest that you do share some of them, so others may help you reach them.
Good luck!
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
Join the Challenge!
INTRODUCING THE OCEAN COUNTY LIBRARY’S 2009 HEALTH & WELLNESS CHALLENGE!
Remember the movie "Groundhog Day"? Bill Murray kept living the same day over and over, no matter what he tried to do to change his fate.
Do your attempts to exercise more, lose weight, and feel better end up with the same results no matter what you do?
Maybe it is time for a new approach.
Maybe it is time to look at these issues in a different way, a positive way, a way that emphasizes what you CAN do over what you can't do.
Maybe it is time for you to sign up for the OCL Health & Wellness Challenge.
What is it?
The Health & Wellness Challenge (H&WC for short) is a yearlong series of bi-weekly activities that you can do to improve the health of your body, mind and spirit. You will set your own goals and record your progress. Activities will reflect different aspects of wellness: conscious eating, exercise, stress management, fun activities, and service/spirituality. At the end of the year, we will celebrate our successes.
How will it work?
Any staff member can sign up for the Health & Wellness Challenge. Each branch has one Team Leader. Your Team Leader will help to share information and inspiration. Committee members will recommend some activities for you, and you will also choose your own. You can record your progress privately or publicly.Anyone who participated in the Webthings Challenge can re-use or create a new blog to record their progress. Email will also be an acceptable way to document your progress toward your goals. Activities will be posted on a bi-weekly basis. Some will be general, like "set a fitness goal for yourself and stick with it for a week". Others might be more specific, like "watch the movie "Supersize Me". As you complete a Challenge, you may record your efforts and thoughts on your blog, in an email message, or by using a Tracking Sheet created by Committee members.
How will I find out about the activities?
Activities will be posted on the Committee blog http://oclwellness.blogspot.com and on Open C's.If you have a comment about an activity, or a suggestion for a new activity, you can send an email to the Committee, or post a comment on the blog or Open C's.
What will I get?
At the halfway point, participants who have consistently completed activities toward their goal will get a modest prize. We will share success stories at the Holiday Breakfast and Challenge completers will be entered in a raffle for a Grand Prize. Individual branches may also have prizes solicited from their community.
How can I learn more about health and wellness?
The Health & Wellness Challenge will schedule training workshops throughout the year related to wellness. Keep an eye out for upcoming trainings. There will also be Health & Wellness information at Staff Development Day.
How can I sign up?
Find out at your branch about a Health & Wellness Challenge Kickoff event. You can attend this event to find out more. Or, on or after February 2nd (that’s Groundhog Day, by the way!) just send an email to oclwellness@gmail.com and say "Yes! I want to improve my health!" Please include your name, branch, email address, and blog URL (if you have one). The registration period will last from February 2 to February 16. Round One of the Challenge, which will focus on Conscious Eating, begins on February 19th. Rounds will coincide with pay periods.
SPECIAL PRIZE: All registrants will be entered in a raffle to win a 6 week membership to Toms River Fitness.
DISCLAIMER:Before you embark on any program involving your health, you should check with your physician first. Members of the Health & Wellness Challenge Committee claim no expertise in the field of health, fitness, nutrition or wellness.
Remember the movie "Groundhog Day"? Bill Murray kept living the same day over and over, no matter what he tried to do to change his fate.
Do your attempts to exercise more, lose weight, and feel better end up with the same results no matter what you do?
Maybe it is time for a new approach.
Maybe it is time to look at these issues in a different way, a positive way, a way that emphasizes what you CAN do over what you can't do.
Maybe it is time for you to sign up for the OCL Health & Wellness Challenge.
What is it?
The Health & Wellness Challenge (H&WC for short) is a yearlong series of bi-weekly activities that you can do to improve the health of your body, mind and spirit. You will set your own goals and record your progress. Activities will reflect different aspects of wellness: conscious eating, exercise, stress management, fun activities, and service/spirituality. At the end of the year, we will celebrate our successes.
How will it work?
Any staff member can sign up for the Health & Wellness Challenge. Each branch has one Team Leader. Your Team Leader will help to share information and inspiration. Committee members will recommend some activities for you, and you will also choose your own. You can record your progress privately or publicly.Anyone who participated in the Webthings Challenge can re-use or create a new blog to record their progress. Email will also be an acceptable way to document your progress toward your goals. Activities will be posted on a bi-weekly basis. Some will be general, like "set a fitness goal for yourself and stick with it for a week". Others might be more specific, like "watch the movie "Supersize Me". As you complete a Challenge, you may record your efforts and thoughts on your blog, in an email message, or by using a Tracking Sheet created by Committee members.
How will I find out about the activities?
Activities will be posted on the Committee blog http://oclwellness.blogspot.com and on Open C's.If you have a comment about an activity, or a suggestion for a new activity, you can send an email to the Committee, or post a comment on the blog or Open C's.
What will I get?
At the halfway point, participants who have consistently completed activities toward their goal will get a modest prize. We will share success stories at the Holiday Breakfast and Challenge completers will be entered in a raffle for a Grand Prize. Individual branches may also have prizes solicited from their community.
How can I learn more about health and wellness?
The Health & Wellness Challenge will schedule training workshops throughout the year related to wellness. Keep an eye out for upcoming trainings. There will also be Health & Wellness information at Staff Development Day.
How can I sign up?
Find out at your branch about a Health & Wellness Challenge Kickoff event. You can attend this event to find out more. Or, on or after February 2nd (that’s Groundhog Day, by the way!) just send an email to oclwellness@gmail.com and say "Yes! I want to improve my health!" Please include your name, branch, email address, and blog URL (if you have one). The registration period will last from February 2 to February 16. Round One of the Challenge, which will focus on Conscious Eating, begins on February 19th. Rounds will coincide with pay periods.
SPECIAL PRIZE: All registrants will be entered in a raffle to win a 6 week membership to Toms River Fitness.
DISCLAIMER:Before you embark on any program involving your health, you should check with your physician first. Members of the Health & Wellness Challenge Committee claim no expertise in the field of health, fitness, nutrition or wellness.
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