Health and Wellness

“Spring breathes new life into the world around us.” Seeing the last remnants of snow melt away, and the first green of spring flowers poking up through the earth puts a little extra zip in everyone’s step. We’re a little more jovial, a little more upbeat. We find a reason to linger outside just a little longer, to catch another minute or two of sunshine.

With warmer weather comes more reasons and more opportunities for us to be outside. And for many of us, that means more opportunities to be moving. Whether that involves cleaning up the yard, walking the dog, or playing catch with the kids, there’s plenty of activities that help us to get moving. And isn’t this a great time of year to move more?

We may have plenty of reasons to move more at home.  But what about here at work? We all spend a lot of time here. Think of the benefits – both mentally and physically – if we found ways to move more while we’re here at work. We’d likely be less stressed, leaner, healthier, and happier.

So give it a try! Here are some ideas to help you get moving more at work:

• Got a meeting in another building? Maybe you could leave 5-10 minutes early and take a quick stroll before that meeting.  Or you could spend a few extra minutes and take the long way back to your office after the meeting.
• Better yet — could you turn it into a walking meeting, and bring the entire team outside? That additional activity and change of scenery often helps us “think outside the box” and may result in a more productive session.
• We all spend a lot of time sitting throughout the day. Think about planning a 10-15 minute walk with your co-workers at set times, like 10 am and 2 pm.
• Form a walking group with a few co-workers, and meet once or twice a week to get 30 minutes of walking (or running) in at the end of your workday.  For many of us, we’re less likely to find an excuse to miss that activity, if we’ve committed to doing it with someone else.

For any questions or concerns, please contact:

Laurie Ehlers, RN, CDE

RN Educator

Room 102, Memorial Hall

Phone: 920-832-7498

Laurie.ehlers@lawrence.edu

Move More, Sit Less and Thrive with the Lawrence On the Move Challenge!

Join us for a 12-week challenge that will allow us to compete in real-time to be one of the Top 100 most active companies in the country.  As part of the challenge you will get interactive resources to help you move more during the day. Enjoy company challenges and boost each other to show support.

To Join your Lawrence in the challenge go to: www.onthemovechallenge.welcoa.org  Company Code:  LUontheMove

Lawrence University is excited to offer a Weight Management Group for all staff, faculty, and spouses/domestic partners.  This program is part of the initiatives we are starting on campus to help you with the things you wanted to learn more about, per the PHA surveys.  The group will be hosted by Laurie Ehlers, ThedaCare RN Educator.

The initial meeting will be held at Warch Campus Center – Kraemer Conference Room on Tuesday, March 28^th at noon.

A typical meeting will be 30 minutes in length and consist of learning topics, optional sharing of successes and/or opportunities you have had in your weight management journey, optional weigh-ins, and much more.

Everyone is welcome and there is no requirement to participate in a specific diet program. We hope to see you there!

WELLU Massage Sign-Up

One hour massages for $20?!?  You read the right!  Reserve your spot for a one hour massage at the YMCA for only $20.  Massage appointments can be made for any date during the spring term.  There is a limit of one massage per person per term.  Contact Erin Buenzli beginning March 27, 2017 to  schedule your appointment.

Healthy Living Series – Building Bone Basics

Presented by Kate Harrell on March 24^th from noon – 1:00 PM at the Warch Campus Center – Kraemer Room.  Also offered, are you interested in individual help from a dietician? Kate is available to meet with individual with employees and students for 30 minute dietician sessions on March 24^th between 1:00 – 3:00 PM. Please email Erin Buenzli to sign up.

Free Personal Training

Interested in free personal training? Kylie Fischer, Healthy Viking Intern, is accepting new clients for spring term. Email her at Kylie.r.fischer@lawrence.edu.

Stress: We all experience it.

Stress comes from a variety of sources—work commitments, family obligations, personal expectations. It may be the culmination of several events or commitments occurring at the same time that heightens our stress level. Even events that bring great joy to our lives—the birth of a child, a wedding, a job promotion—can bring about a significant increase in the stress we experience.

For some of us, stress can be a motivator. It revs us up and helps us set priorities. For others it’s exhausting and can be incredibly overwhelming.

Stress can make things feel “out of our control.” Stress is often what keeps us awake at night, makes it difficult to concentrate and has been shown to impact both our memory and mental functioning. Long-term exposure to high levels of stress can negatively impact our health in dramatic ways.

In order to optimize wellness, we need to find ways to manage stress effectively in our daily lives. Fortunately, here at Lawrence we have a number of stress relieving options available:

• Exercise has long been touted as a great stress reliever. Whether you work up a sweat on your lunch hour at the Buchanan Kiewit Wellness Center or take a more leisurely walk around campus grounds, both form of exercise will help to relax you and reduce stress levels.
• The Mind Spa at the Buchanan Kiewit Wellness Center. Take time to make use of this great service, which offers guided meditation, light therapy and biofeedback.
• The Center for Spiritual and Religious Life is located in Sabin House and offers the opportunity for both quiet personal reflection and engaging conversation. Open daily from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. and then accessible by your ID until midnight, they welcome drop-in usage for rocking chair sitting, tea sipping, poetry or silence. Also, consider joining the weekly meditation session (Fridays 3:30–4 p.m.), or stopping in for “4^th Friday Soup and Salad,” a monthly lunch and discussion for LU employees. A library of resources is available for your personal use as well.
• Consider using the Employee Assistance Program. This free benefit allows you to receive professional, confidential counseling to help manage stress or address other issues that may be impacting your health and wellness.

Lastly, feel free to contact me directly at laurie.ehlers@lawrence.edu to set up a personal appointment if you’d like to discuss stress or any health-related issue you may be experiencing.

—Laurie Ehlers, RN educator

WELLU’s Healthy Living Series continues Friday, Jan. 13 with Weight Loss and You—Exercise and Nutrition from noon to 1 p.m. in the Warch Campus Center’s Kraemer Room.

This presentation will discuss successfully setting weight-loss goals and achieving them. We will also discuss what is new in the weight-loss world and learn more about the research coming from the National Weight Loss Control Registry.