The Wellness Word
July/August 2017
Summer Steps to Healthy Living
1. Load Up on Berries - Blueberries, blackberries, strawberries... you name it! Berries are perfect in the summer and are loaded with antioxidants to help prevent tissue damage and reduce the risk of age-related illnesses.
2. Dirt Therapy - Lower your stress and get dirty by planting a small garden, flower box, or grow herbs indoors! This is a great stress reliever, and an easy way to start eating healthy!
3. Start Flossing - We tell kids to do it, but we neglect to do it ourselves! By reducing the bacteria in your mouth, you are allowing your body to send resources to fight bacteria elsewhere.
4. Get Outside and Exercise - Pick an outdoor exercise activity to participate in a few times a week. The change of scenery, fresh air, and change of pace will do wonders! You can enjoy a game of tag with children, bike, roller blade, swim, or go on a hike!
5. Be Good to Your Eyes - Protect your eyes from the strong summer sun by wearing sunglasses that block at least 99% of ultraviolet rays. This will help prevent cataracts and wrinkles around your eyes.
6. Vacation - Everyone loves a good vacation! Even if a trip to the coast or out of country isn't in the future, take a weekend trip to unwind. You can improve your mental health, prevent burnout, and lower blood pressure and heart rate!
7. Sleep well - Resist the urge to stay up late during the long summer days and nap during the daytime. Limit your exposure to blue light in phones and TV's to improve your sleep!
Homemade Summer Treats
Even adults love a cold Popsicle on a hot summer day! But you don't need to buy the grocery store Popsicle's that are just sugary syrup. Instead, try making your own! Dollar Tree has Popsicle molds if you don't already have some. These require few ingredients, and only take a few minutes to make! It's a great way to get in your fruits and veggies for the day. To add some protein, add in some Greek yogurt! Here's a few combinations that you can try.
"Pina colada. Blend 1 cup coconut milk with 1 cup pineapple and about a quarter cup of shredded coconut for an absolutely delicious pina colada popsicle! Add a bit of maple syrup if you like.
Strawberry creamsicle. Same idea as above, but using 1 cup of strawberries instead of the pineapple and skip the shredded coconut.
Berry popsicles. Blend 1 cup of milk with 1 cup of peaches. After pouring into molds, add blueberries and sliced strawberries, along with any other chunks of fruit you like.
Frozen banana strawberry pops. Blend 1 pound of strawberries with 1 nice ripe banana, 1/2 cup of whatever milk you like, and 1/2 cup of vanilla or plain yogurt.
Greek popsicles. Blend 1 cup of Greek yogurt with 2 cups of fruit. (Strawberries or mango would be delicious.) If you like it sweeter, add a little honey or maple syrup.
Green tea popsicles. Green tea is fabulous in a popsicle! Dissolve a couple of spoons of maple syrup or honey into 1 cup of hot green tea. Add the sweetened tea to the blender and add in a pound of peeled/pitted fruit (peach or mango would be lovely). I would add a bit of fresh grated ginger to this as well. Yummy antioxidants!
Avocado popsicles. Mash an avocado well and whisk in 1 cup of water sweetened with 1/4 cup of maple syrup or other sweetener, a good squirt of lemon or lime juice, and a pinch of vanilla. Whisk until smooth."
http://savingdinner.com/8-great-and-healthy-homemade-popsicles/
Yoga for All!
These yoga poses pictured are broken down in ways that children will understand. You can also let kids make up yoga poses! Have them come up with a movie theme and they need to come up with stretches based around the theme. Examples may include the "Spongebob Movie". You might cast your jellyfish net like SpongeBob does, so the stretch would be putting your arm across your chest.
There are also many YouTube videos like this one that are short and sweet, and can be played during class!
The Staff Spotlight for July is Greg Ratliff from EHS!
"When I was younger, I always enjoyed competition that came with exercise and fitness. It shaped who I am. I decided my career in life because when I was 18, I didn't think there would be anything better than teaching Physical Education every day. I actually envisioned myself just playing games every day and competing against the students. Health became so much more to me than competition as I got older. There are times I act stressed at home, and my wife Kate says "you need to go run" because she knows it just clears my mind and gets me in a better place. As I get older, I keep learning that health is even more than just exercise; it's a lifelong commitment to thinking of health in every decision and its effect. My eating isn't perfect, but I do think about it each time. I'm currently training for my 12th marathon because I was feeling a little complacent in my exercise and needed to challenge myself again."
Thank you for sharing your story, Greg!
CHAMPPS Team Spotlight - Family & Community Involvement and School Facilities & Transportation
CHAMPPS stands for Coordinated Health Advisory Members Providing Positive Solutions. CHAMPPS meets four times during the school year, and the first meeting for this year is September 12th at the high school from 3-3:45 in C115A.
The group has completed many of its goals in the past 3 years, but is working hard to maintain them and take them to the next level. Some of these goals have been to communicate to families on a monthly basis about any upcoming community/school event that promotes a healthy lifestyle (local 5K's, Health Fairs, etc.), highlighting Healthy School's in the Parent to Parent Newsletter, advertising and utilizing Food Services for after-school events hosted by PTO or PIE teams keeping the 50/50 rule (at least 50% healthy foods offered), advertising snack trays that are available, and continuing to make community connections to better improve the lifestyles' of RBB students and families.
A very important community connection has been with the local police force. Mr. Durnil has been able to meet with the CHAMPPS group, and provide better insight to complete goals Characteristic #5. Other goals for #5 include making sure that all buildings and surrounding environments on all campus property (including buses) are safe, secure, and maintained well. Although these goals are already being met, and are often common sense, having the goals and meetings make the group take it to the next step of doing a better job of informing the staff, students, families, and community about them. For instance, it was completing one of these goals that the team got the bus maintenance records posted to the website.
This year, the team will work on fine-tuning all goals, completing goals that have not been recorded, and doing a better job of communicating all the fine work RBBCSC does for the students, families, and community.
If you are interested in helping out with these initiatives, or would like more information, please contact Carlee LaRue at chearld@rbbschools.net. Our current members serving on this team are
Mustang Stampede 7k
Date/Time: 07/29/2017, 8:00 am
Location: Edgewood Intermediate School
Is this a Mag 7 Race Event? Yes
Is this course USATF Certified? No
This event is raising funds for:
Edgewood Boys/Girls Tennis teams
Race Director: Doug Uhls
Email: douguhls@hotmail.com
The Mustang Stampede is a 7K Run/Walk on county roads.
The start/finish line is at Edgewood Intermediate School (EIS) located at: 7600 Reeves Rd.
The course is a square with each “side” approximately 1 mile in length.
All proceeds from this race will go toward the Edgewood Boys/Girls Tennis teams.
Saturday, Jul 29, 2017, 08:00 AM
Edgewood Intermediate School, West Reeves Road, Bloomington, IN, United States
Free Workout Weekend
Saturday, Jul 29, 2017, 06:00 AM
Twin Lakes Recreation Center, West Bloomfield Road, Bloomington, IN, United States
Salsa Contest
Saturday, Aug 5, 2017, 10:00 AM
Bloomington Community Farmers' Market, Bloomington, IN, United States
Cycle & Row 2017
Riddle Point Rowing Association, Bloomington Bicycle Club and Bloomington Body Bar have teamed up to make this weekend event a great success!
Won't you help them by supporting your favorite rower or cyclist? Want to row or cycle yourself, and raise donations? Sign up today!
Cycle & Row is a fitness challenge that asks participants to raise money for Healthy Lifestyles programming for kids at the Clubs. These programs, aimed at helping kids make better decisions, include karate club, soccer, Club Riders cycling program, fencing club, Passport to Manhood, SMART Girls and more! Register at https://fundly.com/cycleandrow2017 to create your very own fundraising page! This can be shared with family and friends. Set a mileage goal and fundraise away! Participants are asked to raise a minimum of $100. Register today at: https://fundly.com/cycleandrow2017The event takes place wherever you choose, on Saturday or Sunday! Row or cycle at your own gym, or join one of our partners for the day. Tell them you are with the Cycle & Row weekend event for the Club and you can use their rowing machines (Bloomington Body Bar) and/or bikes that day.
Need help? Contact Amy Swain at aswain@bgcbloomington.org or Leslie Abshier at labshier@bgcbloomington.org. You can also call the Club at 812-332-5311 and ask for Amy or Leslie.
More Info about the Weekend Event
Want to ride on the road or row in the water? That's great! Go ahead and plan your own road ride (alone or with a group) or rowing time on Saturday, August 19 (Bloomington Bicycle Club), or Sunday, August 20 (at the Bloomington Body Bar), and just set up your page on Fundly to donate!
Saturday, Aug 19, 2017, 08:00 AM
1543 S Piazza Dr, Bloomington, IN 47401-5578, United States
2017 BARA Half Marathon and 5K
Race day registration only, starting at 6:00 a.m. Please arrive and register by 6:45 so we can get started at 7:00. BARA members get FREE entry! Non-members are welcome to run as well for only $10. We will provide 3 aid stations, bib numbers, "timing", and post-race refreshments.
Roads will NOT be closed for this event. Please take care when crossing intersections. We will have directions and maps for you to take on the day of.
After the race, stick around at Olcott Park for a cookout, where we will hold our annual BARA members meeting, announce your new BARA executive committee for 2017-2018 and discuss any concerns, ideas, or other items of interest.