• 16Sep

    Eat Well while Walking for the Cure

    Earlier this week, I had the pleasure of providing education for a group of amazing women who are training for the Susan G. Komen 3 Day for the Cure. The talk took place at the New Balance store in East Cobb. Did you know that this event includes walking a total of 60 miles over 3 days? That’s like walking the distance between Atlanta and Athens! Knowing how to eat for the duration of this event is very important for the participants to understand. We talked about how eating properly for exercise (especially prolonged exercise) helps to enhance stamina, endurance, strength and most importantly enjoyment.

    The 3 topics that we focused on were (click on each hyperlink below to learn more):

    1) What to eat BEFORE exercise – Eating before training and before walking on each day of the event will help to give the participants the energy they need to perform at their best and ensure that they enjoy themselves! The pre-exercise snack/mini meal works by preventing low blood sugar, settling your stomach by absorbing gastric juices, decreasing hunger and fueling muscles.

    2) What to eat DURING exercise- Eating while walking 20 miles each day will be very important for many reasons. Participants should focus on balancing enough fluid and enough carbohydrate during the walk to keep well hydrated and provide energy to maintain a normal blood sugar level.

    3) What to eat AFTER exercise- At the end of each day of walking participants will need to eat properly to help their bodies refuel for the next day of walking. The recovery meal will help to minimize stiffness, muscle soreness and fatigue. Hydrating properly after walking will help participants to restore the fluids and electrolytes lost in their sweat.

    I feel confident that these women are now well on their way to a successful and fun walking experience!

    Have you walked the Susan G. Komen 3 Day for the Cure before? Share your stories with us!

    Would you like one of our registered dietitians to provide group education? We are available to speak on a wide variety of health and wellness topics. Let us know!

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  • 16Nov

    Fit for Fall!

    As the Georgia weather becomes more and more tolerable into the autumn days, I find myself wanting to spend every moment I can outdoors. As a wellness professional, I am constantly looking for ways to stay fit and have fun, utilizing the resources we have right here in our community. This last weekend, myself and GMM Culinary Dietitian Ashley Ritchie decided that we were in need of some physical activity and fresh air, so we decided to turn our fitness focus to Stone Mountain Park.

    There are so many ways to be active at the park, from hiking up the mountain(a 1.3 mile trek to the top!), completing the sky ropes course(for the adventurous visitor) to biking, running the 5 mile loop around the mountain, or going on a pedal boat ride through the lake. There are even 15 miles of hiking trails throughout the park! That being said, Ashley and I decided that we’d take a scenic trail to the base of the mountain and then make the hike straight up, which starts out at a pretty gradual slope and manages to become incredibly steep near the top! Check out the pics from the hike up!

    On the way back down, we were discussing how amazing it was to see so many active folks climbing up and running around the park. Being in the wellness industry, we were both impressed and excited to see all the activity around us and decided we should make a habit of hiking around the park with friends and family. No sooner than this fleeting thought left our conversation, did we stumble upon two of our favorite coworkers and their wives, making their trek up the massive hill! Great fun seeing friends out being active!

    Fitness fanatics from GMM and Open Hand!

    At the end of the hike we had taken over 9000 steps (thanks to the trusty pedometer I wore to track our trek!) and thoroughly enjoyed the great outdoors! We even stopped at the Farmer’s Market on the way home to scout out some ideas for the next GMM menu cycle! What a great way to spend a Sunday afternoon embracing health and wellness!

    Almost a days worth!

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  • 20Jul

    Get Active Atlanta!

    Get Your Co-workers Active!

    It’s that time of year again!  Get your co-workers active and be a part of the “MOVE”ment!  The KP Corporate Run/Walk exists to promote health, wellness and fitness among Metro Atlanta companies and their employees.  If you don’t have a job, don’t worry!  You can sign up as an individual or with a group of friends!  The event takes place on September 16th, but the best part of signing up is the information and training that are provided to help you achieve your goals.  It’s a 5k event, so whether you walk or run with your friends and coworkers, you will have a blast seeing the city streets filled with the “movers” and shakers!

    Running expert (and U.S. Olympian!) Jeff Galloway has put together an 8-week training program for both walkers and runners, as well as collected a plethora of resources on health and fitness through Kaiser and other community organizations.  You even get a free month of gym membership just to help you train!  As one of the sponsors of the event, Good Measure Meals™ has taken it a step further and put together weekly e-blasts with wellness and nutrition tips, Jeff’s Training Program and weekly wellness challenges.  If you think this might help you and your coworkers prepare for the Run/Walk email me your name, company and captain’s info at jparsons@goodmeasuremeals.com.  We provide the education and support; now all you have to do is invest in your health!

    To find out more about the event, please visit http://www.kpcorporaterunwalk.com/index.html . If you are already signed up or have done the event in the past, let me know!  I love to hear success stories!  If you have any questions about starting a Corporate Wellness Program at work, please contact me at work and I will get you started!  It’s never too late to get started!

    The best part is: The Run/Walk benefits the Braves Foundation and the Atlanta Community Food Bank!  You can get healthy while being socially responsible and supporting the health of others in our community!

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  • 04Jun

    Get Your 10,000 Steps!

    It’s the 4th day of the Challenge and I am right on track!  I have dropped one pound and seen a difference mostly in my energy level!  It is funny how making healthy changes positively influence other aspects of your life!

    So I found my pedometer this morning which sparked the idea for this blog entry.  A pedometer is the fancy term for a step counter.  It clips onto your waistband and counts the number of steps a person takes by detecting the motion of the hips.  The more pricy versions will even record the distance your walked (number of steps x step length) and measure calories burned.  There are many versions of pedometers out there and honestly, there is a difference in quality.  While any pedometer will work as a motivator, not all are accurate.  If you purchase a pedometer, do a test first and count out 100 steps and see what it records.  The best pedometers will be within ± 5% error.

    We obviously use pedometers to count our steps, but what number are we trying to achieve? The US Surgeon General recommends that a daily target of 10,000 steps, as this is the necessary amount to maintain an active and healthy lifestyle.  For an adult this is equivalent to about 5 miles, but obviously children should accrue more steps per day.

    So I will be wearing my pedometer each day and making sure that I am reaching the 10,000 step mark.  I figure if make small daily goals, they will make my big goal of 13 pounds much easier to achieve!  On the nutrition front, I am sticking with my 1200 calorie plan from Good Measure Meals(Delicious Golden Harvest Whole Grain Pineapple & Carrot Breakfast Bread this morning! mmm).  Between my planned nutritional intake and increased physical activity, I am making positive “strides” in the right direction.  My apologies, I just had to throw in the cheesy play on words!

    So grab your walking shoes, your Good Measure Meals, and a pedometer and let’s get this challenge moving!

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  • 13May

    Put on your Walking Shoes!

    We are all about health and wellness here, so Good Measure Meals and Open Hand staff took the opportunity to participate in Make a Movement Day! A Texas nonprofit created the day-long initiative encouraging the public to create and share their “Moments” of physical activity (Move), healthy eating (Fuel), and personal and environmental health (Honor) to promote healthy, ACTIVE lifestyles.

    Open Hand and Good Measure Meals™   jumped on board and participated by creating a “moment” of our very own! Last Wednesday, we all met during our lunch break for a “walk-around-the-block” and some healthy snacks provided by our staff!

    We departed from the Armour Building at 12:15pm and complete the 1 mile loop around Armour/Ottley and then all gathered to enjoy some healthy snacks in the Armour Break Room. 

    I really think that everyone saw the beneficial effects of getting outside for some fresh air and movement during the afternoon. I know I personally felt happier, more focused and productive during the late afternoon when I normally lack energy. The weather was beautiful and we all got the opportunity to enjoy the company of each other. It shouldn’t take a special day like this to get us moving, but sometimes it helps!

    For more motivation check out these great articles from The Mayo Clinic:

    As a result of Make a Movement Day our staff has committed to a “walk-around-the-block” as a group every Wednesday at 10am. How are you going to get active today? Share your stories by leaving a comment.

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