WELLNESS WEDNESDAYS...GETTING UNSTUCK

GETTING UNSTUCK

Earlier this year, I met a dear family member, Donna Jean, at Tybee Island, Georgia.  Donna Jean  escapes the cold and snow of her North Carolina home and winters on Tybee; family members know if they want to see her, they have to schedule a visit.   For several years, she and I have corresponded about meeting when my work schedule would allow me to travel north. 

Donna Jean has a degree in journalism and has been a writer all her life.   My goal was to enjoy several  “relax and recreation” days at her beach house and exploring - with her help - the pros and cons of my past year‘s Wellness Wednesdays columns and her advice for this year’s column.  The thought of talking with her about effective writing and clear communication to my target audience thrilled me.

 

I dutifully packed copies of my blog books for the trip, along with writing notebooks.  After  I arrived on the island and had unpacked fresh vegetables from my favorite hydroponic farm for the meals I would prepare for the two of us, Donna Jean told me that she would read the Wellness Wednesdays columns in the evenings.  Then, the next morning after she had tea and I had coffee, she would provide her impressions and suggestions of what she had read the night before.   I took copious notes for three days and returned to Florida.  And then the unexpected happened - I was unsure what to write! 

   

After all the little girl kind of excitement about looking forward to the weekend on Tybee Island with Donna Jean, when I returned home I found I could not write.  I was not prepared to be stuck.  I had expected the flood gates to open wide and have words tumbling out on every paper I touched after being inspired by a powerful writer. 

For the last 3 months I have not written Wellness Wednesdays.  Until  today, when  I made the decision that it was time to write again.  One of the challenges Donna Jean gave me on Tybee, intertwined in our conversation about communication theory, was “to find ways to get the stories out.”  So this year I will write about the stories from the Growing Healthy Kids movement and why we are working crazy busy hours to improve health literacy of parents and improve health outcomes of America’s children. 

I have missed you and our weekly conversations more than you can imagine.  I want to honor our conversations.  Donna Jean taught me a lot on Tybee.  She taught me that by becoming a storyteller, I will be a more powerful teacher and will touch more lives.  It is time to tell stories about Growing Healthy Kids.  

Every column may not be a story, but many will be.  As I write about health matters, food, farming, fitness, love, family and friends, tell me this: What health goal has gotten you stuck to the point where you could take no action?  Looking forward to hearing from you.

Nancy Heinrich

Founder, Growing Healthy Kids, Inc.

HEALTH MATTERS: Five Questions to Ask Yourself

HEALTH MATTERS

"Take care of your body.  It's the only place you have to live."

                                             ---Jim Rohn

Here are five questions to ask yourself:

1. Am I getting enough sleep every night?
2. Am I drinking enough water every day?
3. Am I getting enough exercise every day?
4. Am I eating too much added sugar, fat, and salt?
5. Am I eating plenty of vegetables, fruits, wild fish, beans, and legumes (like lentils)?

A fresh salad we made recently with organic
treasures from a local farmer.

These questions address the elements of health.  

If you are not getting a good night’s sleep because you (or your kids) have a bedroom full of electronics, computers and digital clocks with red and blue lights on all night, it is time to change.  

If you go all morning on coffee and soda and don’t have a glass of water until the afternoon, it is time to change. 

If you routinely say, “I’ll take a walk this weekend” and always make an excuse why you can’t, it is time to change.  

If you have high blood pressure and think nothing of stopping by McDonald’s several times a week, it is time to change. 

If you eat steak and potatoes every night, it is time to change. 

To be a good role model for children starts with a look at our own habits.  With computers running our lives, we are getting away from the basics of good health.  Some people think they can download an app and it will take care of their need for exercise and do their vegetable shopping for them.  I grew up watching a TV show about the future called The Jetsons.  Well, people, we are not The Jetsons.  

If you value your health, and care about the health and future quality of life of your children, then please review the five questions above and stay tuned as we lead a meaningful discussion about HEALTH MATTERS. 

In gratitude,

Nancy L. Heinrich, MPH

Founder of the Growing Healthy Kids movement

HEALTH MATTERS: New Year's Resolutions

HEALTH MATTERS

"To keep the body in good health is a duty...otherwise we will not be able to keep our mind strong and clear."

                                                   ---Buddha

A new year is often filled with new resolutions for better health.   If we don’t have our health, everything else becomes less important; this is why my new year’s resolution for the Growing Healthy Kids’ blog is to write about HEALTH MATTERS for adults.  We will expand our investigative journalism to bring you information that might otherwise be buried. 

Growing Healthy Kids is a movement dedicated to halting, reversing, and preventing childhood obesity.  We educate parents and children by raising awareness about facts, research, recipes, tips, and resources that help us make better choices about food, physical fitness, and ultimately, our health.  For our children to know how to get to, and stay at, a healthy weight will take a nation of educated adults.

 

On a recent tour of a new hydroponic farm in Vero Beach, Florida
with older adults as part of the Growing Healthy Kids' initiative.
That's me on the right.

Our goal is to reach adults in all 50 states this year and expand our programs and services to parts of the country where there is an unmet need to improve health literacy and health outcomes.   There is so much joy in sharing good foods, great recipes, and powerful tips that you can use every day and we are well positioned to travel where needed to educate adults and kids.  We have seen life and health miracles occur when people learn that when you know what to do, it’s easy to eat right, stay active, and get a good night’s sleep every night. 

Start this year by taking 15 minutes right now with your family to write down 3 health goals you want to achieve, either individually or as a family.  Use the SMART goal formula:  Specific-Measurable-Achievable-Realistic-Time-Specific.  Here is an example of a SMART goal:  My children and I will walk together after dinner at least 15 minutes two evenings a week. Post your health goals someplace where everyone can see them. 

Be well, dear friends!

In gratitude,

Nancy L. Heinrich, MPH

Founder of the Growing Healthy Kids movement