wellness – Risk Management 365

Walking: Trim Your Waistline, Improve Your Health

Can you really walk your way to fitness? You bet! Get started today.

Physical activity doesn’t need to be complicated. Something as simple as a daily brisk walk can help you live a healthier life.

For example, regular brisk walking can help you:

Maintain a healthy weight
Prevent or manage various conditions, including heart disease, high blood pressure and type 2 diabetes
Strengthen your bones
Lift your mood
Improve your balance and coordination

The faster, farther and more frequently you walk, the greater the benefits.

Turning your normal walk into a fitness stride requires good posture and purposeful movements. Ideally, here’s how you’ll look when you’re walking:

Your head is up. You’re looking forward, not at the ground.
Your neck, shoulders and back are relaxed, not stiffly upright.
You’re swinging your arms freely with a slight bend in your elbows. A little pumping with your arms is OK.
Your stomach muscles are slightly tightened and your back is straight, not arched forward or backward.
You’re walking smoothly, rolling your foot from heel to toe.

As you start your walking routine, remember to:

Get the right gear. Choose shoes with proper arch support, a firm heel and thick flexible soles to cushion your feet and absorb shock. If you walk outdoors when it’s dark, wear bright colors or reflective tape for visibility.
Choose your course carefully. If you’ll be walking outdoors, avoid paths with cracked sidewalks, potholes, low-hanging limbs or uneven turf.
Warm up. Walk slowly for five to 10 minutes to warm up your muscles and prepare your body for exercise.
Cool down. At the end of your walk, walk slowly for five to 10 minutes to help your muscles cool down.
Stretch. After you cool down, gently stretch your muscles. If you’d rather stretch before you walk, remember to warm up first.

For most healthy adults, the Department of Health and Human Services recommends at least two hours and 30 minutes a week of moderate aerobic activity or one hour and 15 minutes a week of vigorous aerobic activity — preferably spread throughout the week — and strength training exercises at least twice a week.

As a general goal, aim for at least 30 minutes of physical activity a day. If you can’t set aside that much time, try two 15-minute sessions or three 10-minute sessions throughout the day.

Remember, though, it’s OK to start slowly — especially if you haven’t been exercising regularly. You might start with five minutes a day the first week, and then increase your time by five minutes each week until you reach at least 30 minutes.

Keeping a record of how many steps you take, the distance you walk and how long it takes can help you see where you started from and serve as a source of inspiration. Just think how good you’ll feel when you see how many miles you’ve walked each week, month or year.

Record these numbers in a walking journal or log them in a spreadsheet or a physical activity app. Another option is to use an electronic device — such as a pedometer — to calculate steps and distance.

Starting a walking program takes initiative. Sticking with it takes commitment. To stay motivated:

Set yourself up for success. Start with a simple goal, such as, “I’ll take a 10-minute walk during my lunch break.” When your 10-minute walk becomes a habit, set a new goal, such as, “I’ll walk for 20 minutes after work.” Soon you could be reaching for goals that once seemed impossible.
Make walking enjoyable. If you don’t enjoy solitary walks, ask a friend or neighbor to join you. If you’re invigorated by groups, join a health club.
Vary your routine. If you walk outdoors, plan several different routes for variety. If you’re walking alone, be sure to tell someone which route you’re taking.
Take missed days in stride. If you find yourself skipping your daily walks, don’t give up. Remind yourself how good you feel when you include physical activity in your daily routine — and then get back on track.

Once you take that first step, you’re on the way to an important destination — better health.

via Walking: Trim your waistline, improve your health – Mayo Clinic.

Take time to unwind…Stress Awareness

It’s healthy to relax, renew, and rejuvenate

Stress happens. Sometimes it’s unavoidable, at times it’s unbearable. That’s why taking time for yourself is a necessity.

Stress does not merely afflict your mind; it can also affect you on a cellular level. In fact, long-term stress can lead to a wide range of illnesses – from headaches to stomach disorders to depression – and can even increase the risk of serious conditions like stroke and heart disease. Understanding the mind/stress/health connection can help you better manage stress and improve your health and well-being.

via Stress Awareness.

How to Eat Healthy

At the heart of good health is good nutrition. Make smart, healthy choices to reduce your risk of heart disease and stroke.

INCLUDE

Fruits and vegetables
Whole grains
Beans and legumes
Nuts and seeds
Fish (preferably oily fish high in omega-3 fatty acids), skinless poultry, and plant-based alternatives
Fat-free and low-fat dairy products
Healthier fats and non-tropical oils

LIMIT

Sodium and salt
Saturated fat
Sweets and added sugars, including sugar-sweetened beverages
Red meats – if you choose to eat red meat, select lean cuts

AVOID

Trans fat and partially hydrogenated oils

via How to Eat Healthy.

NASA Workforce Maintenance Program

National Aeronautical Space Agency (NASA), an executive Federal Agency dedicated to Space flight, highly values exploration. The Agency’s exploration success depends on employees’ detailed attention to the safety and health of the astronauts and their fellow Earth-bound employees. For decades NASA’s occupational health programs have maximized the opportunities of national health initiatives as well as internal resources. And, they have led the way to improve internal programs for the maintenance of a workforce that operates at its highest level of physical and mental well-being.

via CDC – NIOSH – Total Worker Health™ in Action – February 2014.

Understanding the Importance of Physical Exams

According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), all adults — even seemingly healthy ones — should undergo regular physical examinations at their healthcare provider’s recommended frequency. The purposes of these exams are to:

Screen for diseases
Assess the risk of future medical problems
Encourage a healthy lifestyle
Update vaccinations
Maintain a relationship with a doctor in case of illness

Today, preventive services are customized, taking into account an individual’s health status, risk factors and personal and family health history.

via Resources – Newsletters – Understanding the Importance of Physical Exams.

Connecting Psychosocial Environment and Employee Health

Psychosocial environment refers to the culture and climate of the workplace. Examples of the psychosocial environment of a workplace include respect for work-life balance, mechanisms to recognize and reward good performance, valuing employee wellness, encourage employee feedback about organizational practices, zero tolerance for harassment, bullying and discrimination, ensuring employee psychological safety and health.

via Psychosocial Environment.

Risk Factors to Health

Health and wellbeing are affected by many factors, and those that are associated with ill health, disability, disease or death are known as risk factors. Risk factors are presented here individually, however in practice they do not operate in isolation. They often coexist and interact with one another.

Behavioural risk factors that can be eliminated or reduced through lifestyle or behavioral changes include:

tobacco smoking
excessive alcohol consumption
poor diet and nutrition
physical inactivity
excessive sun exposure
insufficient vaccination
unprotected sexual activity.

Biomedical risk factors may be influenced by a combination of genetic, lifestyle and other broad factors. Biomedical risk factors include:

overweight and obesity
high blood pressure
high blood cholesterol
impaired glucose tolerance

via Risk factors to health (AIHW).

How will a healthy work environment benefit my bottom line?

Research shows that healthy people working in a healthy environment are key to business success. That’s because a healthy workplace improves productivity and reduces employers’ costs.

A healthy workplace will:

Improve employee health outcomes
Make it easier to attract and retain qualified employees
Lower absenteeism
Reduce health benefit costs
Enhance morale
Reduce risk of injury
Improve job performance

via What Makes a Healthy Work Environment? – Healthy Environments.

Recommendations for Physical Activity in Adults

Being physically active is important to prevent heart disease and stroke, the nation’s No. 1 and No. 5 killers. To improve overall cardiovascular health, we suggest at least 150 minutes per week of moderate exercise or 75 minutes per week of vigorous exercise (or a combination of moderate and vigorous activity). Thirty minutes a day, five times a week is an easy goal to remember. You will also experience benefits even if you divide your time into two or three segments of 10 to 15 minutes per day.

For people who would benefit from lowering their blood pressure or cholesterol, we recommend 40 minutes of aerobic exercise of moderate to vigorous intensity three to four times a week to lower the risk for heart attack and stroke.

via American Heart Association Recommendations for Physical Activity in Adults.

What’s at-risk or heavy drinking?

For healthy adults in general, drinking more than these single-day or weekly limits is considered “at-risk” or “heavy” drinking:

• Men: More than 4 drinks on any day or 14 per week

• Women: More than 3 drinks on any day or 7 per week

About 1 in 4 people who exceed these limits already has alcoholism or alcohol abuse, and the rest are at greater risk for developing these and other problems. Again, individual risks vary. People can have problems drinking less than these amounts, particularly if they drink too quickly.

via What’s at-risk or heavy drinking? – Rethinking Drinking – NIAAA.