Monday, December 7, 2015

Wellness Challenges

Last week, I described a wellness program I am participating in at work and how it is motivating me. As part of the program, we can challenge our friends to do something that will contribute to overall well being. Sometimes the challenge lasts a month and sometimes only a week. They don't always last long enough to establish a habit, but they do keep things interesting and bring certain behaviors (or lack thereof) to the forefront. Here are the present challenges, I'm working on if you want to play along.

Smile at least once a day. Extra points if you make someone laugh.
This one is pretty easy, because I hope most of us smile at least once a day. However, I can't mark this one off yet this morning because mornings for me are just not a smile time. I'll smile extra after I get awake.

Use reusable shopping bags.
This one is pretty much a habit for me, but being in the challenge got me to go back out in the cold to the car one day where we had forgotten the bags. Seeing as how I don't like cold, I'm not sure I would have done that without the challenge.

Do ten minutes of stretching and strengthening exercises a day. 
This challenge was from me because I have gotten very lax in this area. Even though, it's only for ten minutes, I'm still having a problem doing this. I need to work this into part of my routine and just not when I remember to do them.

Pay someone a genuine compliment every day.
Fortunately, this is one I don't have to work on.

Stay away from the candy jar at work.
So far, so good. But it's hard because it sits on my desk. I'm the one who originated the candy jar--mostly to have a peppermint for a dry throat or a little sugar pick me up until I could eat. Overtime, everyone has become part of it and as of late, has been bringing in good candy--meaning chocolate. One more day to go on this one and I think I can do it.

For dinner (supper), don't go out or bring in take out.
As you can guess, this is a difficult one for me because we are not a family who likes to spend time in the kitchen.  But I've been working hard on it and we are doing well so far. As everyone knows, the key to this is planning. And except for fresh salad fixings, our meals have all come from ingredients in the freezer, so I do plan sometimes. It's the follow through that's the problem.


Challenges are coming and going all of the time, and I'm going to update them for you time to time if you want to play along.

10 comments:

  1. Good challenges! I'm just going to stick with using my gym membership at least 3 times a week ....

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    1. It sounds like joining the gym was a good thing for you to do. Is going to it part of your routine now, or is it a struggle to get there sometimes?

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    2. I've been a 5-day-a-week exerciser for several years now, so it isn't really a struggle. I was finding that I was taking the lazy way out when exercising on my own--joining a gym has forced me to try some different things and challenge myself. The gym seems to be a good mix of older and younger people, fit and not-so-fit people, and I like that. Previous workplaces have had gyms where I could go for free, but I never wanted to--it was heavy on the beautiful-people-socializing-and-critiquing end of things and that was a turn-off for me.

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    3. I am very impressed that you have been a 5-day a week exerciser for YEARS. My husband has done that also at the gym where he works. He takes whatever class they offer at lunchtime and they keep him quite challenged. It's not free, but worth the price if it keeps him moving.

      The longest I've ever exercised regularly is for a year and they may have been because both my husband and I stopped at a gym together on our way home from work.

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  2. Replies
    1. They are good suggestions and are keeping things interesting. We went around work today trying to make each other smile and laugh. Much better than the gossiping that sometimes goes on in the work place.

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  3. I love these! I used to struggle with the candy jar at work too... then finally I wised up and replaced it with a nut jar. I wasn't much better at resisting, but at least it wasn't quite so terrible for me!

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    1. Since it is a community jar, I always tried to put wrapped things in it and others have followed suit. So, mixed nuts don't work so well. Sometimes, I put out peanuts in the shell occasionally, but they make a mess. I am still trying to figure out a good snack alternative to wrapped candy.

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    2. I think I'd be inclined to keep it filled with black licorice or other stuff that I don't like, because I just have NO willpower with that sort of thing! :-)

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    3. Black licorice would be a good option for me because I don't like it. However, it would be very tempting for others who are trying to cut back. Some people are bringing in candy from home so they won't be tempted there, but they are still tempted while they are at work.
      I'm not sure that a candy jar deserves as much attention as this one is getting.

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What do you think?