It’s back to school for many of our MUS locations this week, so we just wanted to say welcome back, and share some wellness related reminders to keep on your radar as you get back into the routine of an exciting new semester.
Fitness
The beginning of school in the fall is often like a “second New Year’s Day” as far as fitness goes. Gym memberships and attendance see big spikes, and many people leverage their new routines to intentionally include fitness. This is a perfect time to check out what your school or local gym is offering in the way of new programs, classes, and specials. Both UM and MSU are running free group fitness classes this week, so if you’re on those campuses, check out some new classes! At MSU, Neal will be teaching a Kettlebell class Mondays from 12:10 to 12:40, and he’d love for you to join in the fun! Check these links for more info:
Nutrition
The start of school is also a great time to establish or reinforce healthy eating habits. One of the keys to maintaining good nutrition when life gets busy is to plan ahead. Planning ahead doesn’t have to be an elaborate process; taking even a few minutes on the weekend to consider what your weeknight dinner meals will be can make a huge difference. Look for the Montana Meals challenge on Limeade coming in September to gather some quick, healthy dinner ideas from your MUS coworkers. If you do happen to have a little more time on the weekend, cleaning and chopping veggies for meals, salads, and snacks throughout the week is a great strategy for increasing your veggie intake. To get some tips on how to do this, watch our Veggie Prep video. Finally, if better nutrition is one of your goals for the new school year, look for the next round of the 30-Day Nutrition Upgrade for MUS to start Friday, October 11th! This is a great program to improve your eating habits in a simple, realistic way.
Sleep & Stress
During times when we get busy, stress levels rise and sleep is easily disrupted. In turn, when sleep is disrupted, stress is less manageable, creating a negative feedback loop. Again, new routines are a great chance to leverage healthy habits, like going to bed and waking up at consistent times. Ditch the device at least 30 minutes before bedtime and develop a relaxing, pre-bed routine for optimal sleep quality. And don’t forget that our Wellness program has an awesome new tool, Whil, that can help you build stress resilience through mindfulness and meditation practices. We’ll be having a webinar on stress resilience, hosted by Whil, coming up in September. Stay tuned for more information!
Finally, fall also means another opportunity to visit a Wellcheck on your campus! Check out our 2019 Fall Wellcheck schedule to get that date on your calendar in advance!
Best wishes for a healthy, happy semester from MUS Wellness!
Montana Moves 