Wellness for Life Newsletter

Transcription

1 March/April Volume 1, Issue 6 Wellness for Life Newsletter Special Interest Articles: Dance for Heart Jog for Joints Spring Clean Your Eating Habits Fit and Festive Challenge St. Mary Wellness Center 1201 Langhorne-Newtown Rd. Langhorne, PA DANCE FOR HEART Thanks for those who participated in our DANCE FOR HEART to raise money for WomenHeart on THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 7 TH 7:30-8:30PM & SATURDAY, MARCH 9 TH 8-9:15 AM We raised over $380 between this and our Eat for Your Heart 2013 cookbook this winter. Individual Highlights: Staff Profile Recipe of the Month Exercise of the Month SAVE THE DATE! Saturday, April 20 th. More information will be coming soon.

2 RECIPE OF THE MONTH Try a Florentine Frittata this spring By Kim Wolf, RD Ingredients 2 tablespoons water 1/2 teaspoon dried basil 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 1/4 teaspoon salt 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano 1 (16-ounce) carton egg substitute 1 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed, drained, and squeezed dry 2 teaspoons butter 2 cups thinly sliced Vidalia or other sweet onion 2 cups frozen shredded hash brown potatoes 1 (7-ounce) bottle roasted red bell peppers, drained and sliced 3/4 cup (3 ounces) crumbled feta cheese Preparation Combine the first 7 ingredients in a medium bowl; set aside. Melt butter in a 10-inch cast-iron or nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add onion; sauté 5 minutes. Add potatoes; cook 9 minutes or until lightly browned, stirring occasionally. Pour egg mixture over onion mixture. Arrange bell pepper slices on top of frittata. Cook 7 minutes or until set. Sprinkle with cheese. Wrap handle of pan with foil. Preheat broiler. Broil 5 minutes or until cheese is lightly browned. Cut into 4 wedges. Source: Cooking Light

3 Spring-Clean Your Eating Habits By Victoria Johnson, RD, LDN While you re spring-cleaning the rest of your house, don t forget the kitchen, cupboard and fridge. The best way to get healthy is to have plenty of good food available! If you don t throw out all your junk food, that s okay because everyone needs a little treat now and again, but get the advantage you need when it comes to eating right. Follow these three simple steps, and you ll be ready to go! Step 1: Stock up on spring super-fruits and vegetables Superfoods are all the rage and many of the veggies we all know and love are just as super as acai. Buying seasonal vegetables has the bonus of making sure they re at their peak, when they re packing the most nutrients they can. Also, try buying them from the farmers' market so you know exactly how they re grown (or more importantly, how they re not grown with crazy chemicals in unnatural circumstances). On your next shopping trip, pick up these spring powerhouses: Vegetables: Lettuce (anything but Green peas iceberg) Artichokes Arugula Asparagus Radishes Fava beans Green onions Spring squash Fruits: Strawberries Sweet cherries Apricots Berries Spinach *While just about any seasonal fruit is better for you than cake or cookies, research before you buy to stick with those that have a lower sugar content.* Step 2: Eat leaner meats Cut down to red meat once a week (and keep your portions in control a serving size is about the size of a deck of cards). Look for fish and chicken instead of red meats. If you re just craving beef, choose cuts with the least amount of visible marbling (fat). Leanest cuts of beef are: top sirloin steak, top and bottom roast or steak, eye of round roast or steak, and sirloin tip side steak. Step 3: Eliminate over processed breads White bread, even enriched white bread, is only made with one of the three nutritious parts of the wheat berry, the endosperm. The whole wheat brands comprise a lot of the nutrient heavyweights, like fiber, vitamins B6 and E, zinc, chromium, folic acid and magnesium are stripped out. Don t just grab for any wheat bread on the shelf. You re looking for bread made with 100 percent whole grains (whole grain or stone-ground, not enriched wheat flour).

4 Fit and Festive Challenge by Lorraine Goodwin Our yearly holiday incentive program, FIT N' FESTIVE has ended and was a big success! Congratulations to our winning team, the MAGYARS. Each member of the team received a free month at the Wellness Center. ALL competition participants received a tee shirt and, thanks to the generosity of one of our members, a free car wash at Sparkles as well! ADDED BONUS: Week 3 asked participants to submit an easy, healthy recipe. We have compiled these recipes into a cookbook and have them at the front desk. We are asking for a $5 donation per cookbook that will go to WomenHeart, the national coalition for women with heart disease. Here are some statistics from the competition: 63 Wellness Center members signed up 76% of the 63 participated Total number of visits was 2,350 Some comments from the participants: "Thank you so much for this competition. Totally enjoyed it and made me start some great new habits." "My wife and I are continuing the competition ourselves. We are doing every weeks challenge, every day." "I must say I was a little leery with the holidays approaching. I thought I wouldn't have time to do this, but I made the time and it was fun." "It was really motivating - keeps me on a regular routine of gym visits when not here - was able to keep working out even on vacation!" One member even ed her numbers to me! Look to the bulletin board to the left of the front desk for details about our next incentive program: SPRING INTO FITNESS! Go over, go under, go around, or go through - but never give up. Anonymous

5 STAFF PROFILE: Tracy Corbett Tracy has been married for 16 years and resides in Bensalem with her two beautiful daughters Abigail and Danielle. Abigail is a freshman and Danielle is in 7 th grade. Tracy stays active with her children in sports and is currently training with her daughters for the Broad Street Run this May. Recently she completed her first half marathon in Philadelphia on November 18, 2012 with the help of her colleagues. Her sister is the supervisor in our cafeteria at St. Mary Medical Center. Tracy s hobbies outside of work include bowling every Tuesday in a Women s Bowling League. In addition she enjoys reading and boating with her family and friends. EXERCISE OF THE MONTH: Side Iso Abs ( Side Plank) This core stabilization exercise involves little motion through the spine and pelvis. It is designed to improve the functional capacity of the stabilization system. You can start by holding this contraction 6-20 seconds. Target muscles: Abs, Butt and Hips Starting position: lie on your right side with your legs straight out. Your left leg should be stacked directly on top of your right leg. Bend your right arm and place your elbow under your right shoulder. Align your head with your spine and keep your hips and right knee in contact with the exercise mat. Upward phase: exhale as your raise up and keep your abs engaged to protect your spine. Lift your hips and knees off the mat. Lowering phase: inhale as your return to the mat. You can repeat this for a prescribed number of reps or hold the upward phase for 6-20 seconds. Repeat on the other side.