Making
Strides in Physical Activity and Nutrition
1. Eat
Better: Take a look at your eating
habits and select areas that could use improvement.
Eat a variety of whole-grain foods and plenty
of fruits and vegetables. These foods fill
you up, provide healthful nutrients, and
are much lower in calories than foods heavy
in oils or fats. Also remember that because
of the cultural and social ties we have with
food, we often eat when we aren’t even
hungry, and we often ignore our body’s
signals to stop eating. Listen closely to
your body, and try to eat only when you are
truly hungry.
2. Increase
Physical Activity: Adopt a lifestyle
of daily physical activity. Cut back on activities
that use very little energy (like watching
television) and spend more time simply moving
around. Being physically active does not
mean you have to spend hours at the gym.
You can accomplish the recommended levels
by doing a variety of activities, including:
pushing a stroller, gardening, stair climbing,
walking, dancing, and bicycling, to name
a few. Not only do these activities easily
fit into your lifestyle, they even provide
extra opportunities to spend time with people
you care about. The Centers for Disease Control
offers tips and ideas on how to incorporate
activity into your daily routine. It might
surprise you how easy and simple it is to
be active.
A
Healthy School is a Healthy Workplace
Staff
wellness programs and healthy workplace environments
are essential for adopting and maintaining
healthy lifestyles. Just as we want our students
to have the very best environments for learning
and health, school employees deserve conditions
that enable them to work hard and to achieve
the best health possible. Think about it: even
if you stay on track with your behaviors at
home, those 8-10 hours spent at work every
day could easily throw off your efforts, especially
if your school does not offer many healthy
options.
What does a healthy workplace look like? It’s one that offers a supportive
social and physical environment. A school doesn’t need to be completely
revamped in order to become healthier. Small changes can impact both your school’s
physical environment and, just as importantly, the school’s norms and culture
around healthy behaviors.
Tips
for Creating a Healthy Work Environment in
Your School
• Ask
your school health staff (nurses, health educators,
and administrators) about offering annual health
screenings and awareness activities for employees.
• Form a walking club! This is so easy to do… all it takes is a couple
co-workers to lend each other support and motivation. You can do it before work,
at lunch time, or after school. If you are able to obtain pedometers, they often
provide additional motivation and raise interest.
•Organize a fun-run on school property… it can be a fund-raising and
an awareness-raising event.
•Spread your energy and excitement about health and fitness with a school-wide
or department-wide competition. See who can log the most miles, eat 5 fruits
and veggies a day for the most consecutive days, or even host a healthy-weight
loss competition. You can use the school’s PA system or visible tracking
posters to get the whole school aware of and excited about your efforts.
•Does your school have an Employee Assistance Program (EAP) already in
place? If so, this counseling and referral program may be a good place to introduce
some simple health promotion and awareness campaigns.
•Work with your school board, PTA, and local health departments to lobby
for healthier vending and cafeteria options.
•Invite local hospitals, public health departments, or even national organizations
with local branches, such as the American Heart Association or American Diabetes
Association, to exhibit at a health fair for school staff. Or, send away for
free brochures to display in your teacher’s lounge… suggestions include:
American Cancer Society, American Diabetes Association, American Heart Association,
and National Mental Health Association.
•Down the road, assessing your school’s health needs, forming a
staff wellness committee, devising new policies, and evaluating your progress
are steps you can take to help transform your school’s environment into
a vibrant, encouraging, and healthy one.
Resources
and Links
Harvard School of
Public Health Nutrition Source
National Mental Health Association