Shasta County Employee Worksite Wellness Challenge
Welcome to the Healthy 4 Life Challenge. This Challenge is designed for Shasta County Employees to engage in healthy behaviors and provide resources in making the healthy choice the easy choice. The challenge is individual based (no teams). Join us and earn points each day for tracking healthy habits in various categories.Results
H4L Challenge Results
The Healthy For Life Challenge has come to an end and we have the results!
133 Shasta County Employees completed at least one activity during the 6-week challenge.
Participants logged 116,568 minutes of Physical Activity with an impressive total weight loss of 240 pounds during the challenge!
Participants scored the most points in the Breakfast category followed by Drinking Water and Mental Health Breaks.
The Fruit and Veggies category followed by After Dinner Snacking were the most challenging categories for participants to earn points.
Participants were eligible to be entered into a prize drawing in each category based on points. The PRIZE WINNERS are as following:
Top Overall Participant: Debbie Murphy (HHSA- Adult Services)- Fit Bit Charge 3
Physical Activity: Jessica Carlson (Social Services- Children’s Services)– YMCA Personal Trainer 1-hour Session
Breakfast: Kristin Gulling-Smith (County Administrative Office-Clerk of the Board Division)- Red Bicycle Catering to Family Dinner
Fruits and Veggies: Stacey Finkle (Public Health- Regional Services WIC)- Churn Creek Meadow Organic Farm Gift Card
Drinking Water: Joshua Stoudt (HHSA Public Health-Children Services)- Hydro Flask
After Dinner Snacking: Shannon Anderson (Social Services- Children Services)- Churn Creek Meadow Organic Farm Gift Card
Mental Health Breaks: Abigail MaClean (HHSA Regional Services- Director’s Office)- Balance Yoga Center Class Passes
Weight Loss: Trisha Boss (County Administrative Office- Clerk of the Board Division)- Headwaters Adventure Kayak Rental
We want to thank everyone for participating in the 2019 Healthy For Life Challenge. We would like to encourage you to continue your healthy habits and make them become part of your daily routine. If you have questions, comments or suggestions, please send them to clievense@co.shasta.ca.us
Feel Your Best Every Day!
Old habits die hard. Changing your habits can be a difficult process that involves several stages. It can take time before changes become new habits and most of us will face roadblocks along the way.
Adopting new, healthier habits can prevent serious health problems. Starting new habits, like healthy eating and regular physical activity, may boost energy and self-efficacy. As time passes, if you stick with these changes, they can become part of your daily routine.
Tracking Results
Points will be tracked in Target Solutions on a weekly basis for 6 weeks. The Challenge begins Monday, February 4th and ends March 17th. Participants will “self-assign” the appropriate “H4L Activity” each week, then enter their results. There is no sign-up process for the Challenge.
After entering results in Target Solutions make sure to click the GREEN “Submit as Complete” button at the bottom of the web-page. Participants do not need to log into Target Solutions every day. Use the H4L Daily Tracking Sheet and submit weekly results the following week (e.g. submit Week 1 results following Week 2). Participants can choose to submit/complete their weekly totals anytime before the deadline. All results must be entered on Target Solutions by March 24th.
- Log-in to your TargetSolutions account after the challenge week begins.
- Choose your personal Home tab (Target Solutions defaults to this page when you log-in)
- Select Self-Assign along the left
- Type H4L in the search field
- Click on the activity you want – ie, Wellness Challenge-H4L Week 1. For weekly bonus points, complete H4L BONUS POINTS each week. (total of six H4L Weekly Activities & six H4L Bonus Activities)
- Save Changes until you’re ready to submit – gray button located at the bottom of the Activity screen, or
- Submit as Complete – green button located bottom of the activity screen
For a full description of Target Solutions Instructions, Click Here.
Breakfast
Eat Breakfast within two hours of waking up and earn FIVE points for that day (if you skip Breakfast you don’t earn points). Participants are encouraged to include at least one fruit or veggie serving in order to make progress towards the goal of 5 or more servings every day.
A well balanced Breakfast consist of whole grain, fruit, and/or vegetable and a source of protein.
Putting the fast in breakfast- 3 quick and easy solutions.
Re-Think Your Drink
Water, water, and more water! Drinking water is the only way to earn points in this category. Drinking FIVE- 8 oz glasses of plain water in one day give participants FIVE points for the day (anything less will not earn points).
Most have heard the advice, “Drink eight 8 oz glasses of water a day… and that is a good recommendation. However, as with most things, this varies, depending how active the individual is, what type of climate they live in, how much they weigh, etc.
What do you drink? It makes more difference than you think.
Tips for increasing your daily H2O intake.
Fruits & Vegetables
Eat at least FIVE servings of Fruit and/or Vegetables in one day and earn FIVE points for that day. You can eat them in any combination (one Fruit plus four Vegetables, two Fruits plus three Vegetables, etc). When it comes to Fruits and Vegetables, it’s more that really matters!
What is a serving of Fruits and Vegetables?
• 1 small whole fruit
• 1 cup raw fruit or vegetables
• 1/4 cup dried fruit with no added sugar
• 1/2 cup cooked/canned fruit or vegetable
• 1/2 cup of juice (only one juice serving per day is allowable)
What does a serving size look like? *(fist size = one cup; palm full =half cup)
Eat more Fruits and Veggies: 10 tips to help you eat more!
Entertain the Fruit and Veggie Way.
Physical Activity
You can record up to 90 minutes of physical activity per day. All types of aerobic and anaerobic activities count towards your minutes.
Here are some examples of physical activities:
• Walking and/or Running (Find local Walking Guides, Trail Maps, Places to Walk, People to Walk With, and How to Start a Walking Program)
• Riding a bike (Find Trail Maps, Commuter Tips, Reasons to Ride, and more)
• Playing actively with children outside (Go Outside and Play)
*Be sure to check out the links above for more information and ideas for these activities in our community
Mental & Emotional Health & Wellness
Take at least TEN minutes a day to take care of your mental health to earn FIVE points for that day. Set a personal goal concerning your emotional and mental health and wellness focus.
In order to effectively take care of others, you must first take care of yourself. Self-care is not an emergency response plan to be activated when stress becomes overwhelming. Improving your relationship with yourself by maintaining your emotional and mental health makes you more resilient, helping you weather hard times and enjoy good ones.
Example mindfulness practices:
• Meditation and breathing techniques
• Guided Imagery
• Yoga/ Tai Chi/ Qi Gong
• Self-Expression: Writing, Drawing, Music, and Movement
Yes, you have a lot of responsibilities, but it’s important to remember that taking care of yourself is also your responsibility. For great Self-Care Tips, visit The Center for Mind-Body Medicine.
You have questions about mindfulness and meditation. Mindful has the answers.
Mental Health, let’s talk about it.
After-Dinner Eating
Don’t eat after-dinner or two hours before going to bed to earn FIVE points for that day. One problem with night time snacking: you can quickly lose control of what and how much you are eating. It is possible that you could consume another one third of your daily calorie intake by having after-dinner snacks.
Sometimes the strongest cravings for food happen when you’re at your weakest point emotionally. You may turn to food for comfort– consciously or unconsciously– when you’re facing a difficult problem, stress, loneliness, or just looking to keep yourself occupied.
Learn How to Stop Eating After Dinner
Weight Loss
Report weight loss once a week in positive whole numbers. If you gain weight enter the number of pounds as negative points. The goal is cumulative weight loss over the course of the challenge, so enter your weight change for the week. You do not have to tell anyone your weight and you do not have to track weight loss.
Bonus Points
Participants can earn FIVE bonus points each week by reading additional handouts and/or reviewing information provided on a link that will be found on Target Solutions. Be sure to look for the weekly bonus point activities.
Prizes
Shasta County Employees are eligible to be entered into the prize drawing at the end of the challenge for each category based on points. With 7 categories, participants can be entered into the prize drawing 7 times. Participants must reach the minimum point target to be entered. The participant with the most points will receive a Fit-Bit (in case of a tie, the top participant will be randomly selected)
The categories and points are as following:
Breakfast: 150 points or more
Re-Think Your Drink: 150 points or more
Fruits & Vegetables: 150 points ore more
Physical Activity: 1,250 points or more
Mental & Emotional Health & Wellness: 150 points or more
After-Dinner Eating: 150 points or more
Weight-Loss: 1 point or more
Prizes:
Fit Bit Charge 3 Fitness Activity Tracker, YMCA Personal Trainer 1-hour Session, Red Bicycle Catering Family Dinner to Go, Hydro Flask, Headwaters Adventure Kayak Rental, Churn Creek Meadow Organic Farm Gift Card, and Balance Yoga Center Class Passes.
For questions please contact: clievense@co.shasta.ca.us or 229-8456