by kelsey | Jun 2, 2016 | Etc.
Just a reminder that the trail walking club starts TOMORROW, June 3rd at McKinley Park!! Get out and enjoy the trail!
Each Friday morning in the summer starting June 3rd.
Free of charge 9:00 a.m. for around an hour each week.
We will walk at a comfortable pace, so come and join the social aspect of being outside with friends and getting some exercise.
June 3 McKinley Park (by the picnic shelter)
June 10 Stokes-Thomas City Park (by the Veterans Memorial)
June 17 Mt. Hope Cemetary (by the front entrance)
June 24 Redlin Art Center (by the front entrance)
July 1 No Walk Scheduled because of the Fourth of July weekend
July 8 Joy Ranch (in parking lot near SE side of Main St.)
July 15 Jackson Park (in the parking lot across from Cattail Crossing)
July 22 Bramble Park Zoo (by the picnic shelter)
July 29 Eastwoods Park (by the playground)
August 5 Slumberland Disc Golf Course (in the parking lot)
August 12 Stokes-Thomas City Park (by the Veterans Memorial)
August 19 No walk scheduled because of the Local Senior Games
August 26 Senior Activities Center (in the park area out front)
For more information call Jeremy at the Park and Rec @ 882-6260
by kelsey | Jun 1, 2016 | Cooking Tips, Diet, Food, Weight Management, Wellness/Health
Chickpeas, also known as garbanzo beans, are an exceptional food. They can be used in a variety of dishes and are packed with nutrients. They are a great source of fiber, helping with digestive health and have antioxidants (powerhouse nutrients) that help prevent chronic disease like diabetes and heart disease. In addition, they are a good source of protein, aiding in satiety. Hear are some easy ways to include chickpeas into your diet!
¨ Add to salads to change up the texture.
¨ Put in the blender and make into hummus, a tasty treat that can be used as a dip or a spread. Add in your favorite spices or veggies and eat with whole wheat crackers.
¨ Can be used in a main dish or in a stew or soup.
¨ Experiment! Add in to your favorite dishes and snack foods!
-Kelsey
by kelsey | May 31, 2016 | Cooking Tips, Diet, Food, Weight Management, Wellness/Health
Summer has officially started now that school is out! Summer is always a fun and busy time with activities, picnics, gatherings, etc. Active children burn through their energy stores very quickly and need to replenish them often. Snacking is an important part of keeping your kids energized for their play-filled summer days.
Snacks should be a combination of fiber and protein so that they are filling and satisfying. Pistachios are a good snack as they contain both fiber and protein. You can also pick out two foods that will meet the fiber and protein combination needs. Some ideas are:
- An apple and a teaspoon of peanut butter
- String cheese and a few whole wheat crackers
- Baby carrots and hummus
- Low-fat yogurt and almonds
- Mixed nuts and raisins
- Celery sticks filled with peanut or almond butter
Just be sure to keep in mind that snacks are just to get by until the next mealtime, so snacks should not be a significant source of calories. Kids have small stomachs so keep the portion sizes small as well. This is a good time to instill healthy habits in your child so try to avoid having the TV or video games going during snack time in order to discourage mindless munching. Any fruit, vegetable, low-fat dairy product, or whole wheat grain product makes a good snack so find out what your child likes and get creative with the combinations!
-Kelsey
by Dan | May 29, 2016 | Exercise, Family, Goals, Motivation, Wellness/Health
This is the final installment of my success in life series. How better way to end this series than to talk about inspiration. We all want to be inspired when it comes to getting motivated to exercise, or even in general, motivated in life. But, it is actually more important, and rewarding, to be an inspiration to somebody else.
Here I am last weekend in Fargo…running the 5k with my daughter Molly. I was running to help get her through, but she was my motivation for the day. There is nothing like coming across the finish with your arms raised in the air with one of your kids! The highlight of my weekend!
We all have those things that inspire us in our lives, but for me, nothing more than my own family!
Here was my son Nick after finishing the half marathon! He was pumped! He had never run a half before, and he totally took charge…and had fun doing it!
Nothing brings more joy to me than seeing how my kids get along, and how all of them help to take care of themselves and exercise. This picture of me with my twins when they saw each other for the first time after spending their first semester of college apart from each other…a first ever! They had tears in their eyes they were so happy to see each other…
…This of course put tears in my eyes! Nothing makes me as a Dad more proud then to see my kids get along with each other! I owe a lot of that help to my wife Sarah! Of course, our kids see how we get along, and care for each other, that this starts to rub off on them!
This is one of the views Sarah and I had when we were in Hawaii celebrating our 25th Anniversary! The view takes your breath away. Sometimes we all need to do that as well…stop and take a look at the big picture…figure out what is important in our lives, and then continue to work at it. That is what is inspiring! But you have to keep working at those things in your life! Nothing comes easy. The old saying anything worth having is worth fighting for…nowhere more important than here.
So, life, just like in a race or walk that you may enter, needs to have a start point!
Don’t limit your challenges! The sky is the limit. We are limited more by our own minds than our bodies!
Just remember to keep looking ahead, and focusing on where we are going, not where we have been!
Keep moving everybody! Be an inspiration to somebody else, and you will be surprised at how inspiring that can be for you! That is truly success in life! Now I am challenged to come up with some other ideas that maybe will be an inspiration to somebody else as well, and maybe help motivate them into taking better care of themselves, and work on their exercise and health. That will be my continuing ongoing challenge…and if it may help somebody else, that is what inspires me!
Dr. Dan
Consecutive Exercise Day #: 3166
by kelsey | May 26, 2016 | Cooking Tips, Diet, Food, Wellness/Health
Memorial Day is just a few days away and I am guessing many of you have picnics and outdoor cooking/eating plans! Practicing proper food safety is essential with summer outdoor cooking. Here are some easy tips to make sure that you and your family have the safest and best picnics possible this summer:
- Safe food handling
- Wash your hands before preparing your food and when dealing with meats and fresh produce. Try to limit cross-contamination by cleaning prep surfaces often. If you don’t have running water where you are, be sure to bring anti-bacterial wipes with.
- When putting your beautifully prepared food in a basket make sure that you have utensils for raw food and cooked foods. If you have uncooked meats like hamburger, chicken, etc., make sure that they are packed in secure containers that won’t leak. Pack them together and at the bottom of the cooler in case juice from the food leaks.
- One recommendation for properly cooked food would be a food thermometer. Make sure that your grilled foods reach a temperature of 145 degrees Fahrenheit for steaks, roasts, and chops, 160 degrees for ground meat and 15 degrees for poultry.
- Chilling picnic foods
- Keep food at or below 40 degrees F
- Pack in insulated cooler with ice or ice packs
- A filled cooler keeps cooler longer than a partially full cooler
- Have meat thawed in the refrigerator before your put in the cooler
- Wait until the last moment to put perishable food items in the cooler
- If bringing food and drinks, try to keep drinks in separate cooler
- This will allow for less cool air to escape when getting beverages from cooler
- Keep cooler in the shade
- If perishable food left out for more than two hours throw away. If it is especially warm (greater than 90 degrees F) throw away in one hour
- Keep cooked food above 140 degrees
Most of all enjoy the fun times spent with family and friends!
-Kelsey
