Category — Worksite Wellness

Individual Benefits of Fitness

Do you want to get fit, lose excess fat, or have more energy?  Most individuals  would answer “yes” to this question.  It is hard to imagine why whoever would not want to achieve fitness for become a healthier individuals.  

When you’re overweight or obese, have a family history of heart disease or diabetes, have high cholesterol or blood pressure, or simply feel that you might be a healthier you, then you can benefit  from a fitness program.  

Regular exercise is an easy way to help prevent many diseases by eliminating the major risk factors like obesity and lack of movement.  A combination of aerobic activity and strength training is the best way to achieve your fitness goals while bettering your health.  

When picking  a fitness program, the most challenging aspect could  be finding an activity or exercise that is fun as opposed to one that doesn’t motivate you.  

Person are excited in different ways which is why there are so many fitness programs out there.  If you try something that you don’t like, you can always move on and try something different until you discover a certain activity that appeals to you.  

A lot of times, person create their own plans for exercise but lose interest in the program and hence find themselves steering away from their good intentions.  This is why a health coach could  be exactly what a personal needs for keep them on the right track to achieve fitness for life.

How a Health Coach can make it Possible

Health coaches are trained professionals that assist clients in achieving fitness for life in a variety of ways.  a personal can hire a personal trainer to work with them at the fitness club and help them with their fitness goals; notwithstanding, a health coach does a great deal more to help their clients reach success.  

A health coach uses a health risk (assessment|appraisal} to determine the individual needs of the patron and uses this information to develop a while action for their fitness plan.  Because everybody has unique fitness goals, each fitness program is customized to fit the needs of the patron.  

A health coach not only excites you to achieve your fitness goals but also teaches you to motivate yourself.  

Health coaches understand that individuals  have busy lives and require convenient ways to exercise.  That is why a health coach develops customized programs that’ll work with an individual’s busy schedule.  

They are also available 24 hours a day through online communication and hold sessions as often or as little as the client needs.  Health coaches may assist their clients by telephone, e-mail and instant messaging, or face-to-face meetings.  

Although health coaches focus on other aspects of a person’s wellness like nutrition, stress management, and sleep management, it’s important to understand that each of these aspects of a wellness program intertwine to assist a individuals in becoming the healthiest individuals they can be.

Before you call it quits and decide to give up on having a healthier lifestyle, you might want to consider what a health coach can do for you. Many individuals  get so frustrated working out on their own that they give up before they really have a chance to succeed.

Luckily, by hiring a health coach you are able to avoid this issue, and end up with the body that you have been dreaming of. But before you jump forward too far, you need to know what a health coach is as well as what one can do for you.

Ordinarily speaking, a health coach is a fitness trainer, dietician, and much more all rolled into one. While this might sound like an impossible job on the surface, the fact of the matter is that health coaches are very good at what they do.

These specialists have many years of experience in the health industry, and have a knack for communicating what they know to others on a very personal level.

The primary goal of any health coach is to work with you so that you are able to reach the objectives that you have set forth for yourself. and guess what?

When you don’t know what you want to accomplish your health coach can help in that area as well. Simply put, they’re there to make sure that you’re on the right path to success.

Health coaches come from a variety of different backgrounds. Although most individuals  do not go through schooling thinking that they want to be a health coach, over time they start to transform into this career.

For  instance, many health coaches have backgrounds in fitness training, bodybuilding, health and nutrition, exercise science, and much more.

Once you hire a health coach, he or she will be at your disposal day in and day out. A lot of people  rely on coaches to help them on an individual basis. and although this is a good idea for some, web-based health coaches are becoming more and more well-liked due to busy schedules.

So before you think that you don’t have time to work with a health coach, you should really reconsider. They will be willing to work with you in the capacity that best suits your lifestyle.

While working with a health coach you will be able to get expert advice on reaching your goals. When you want to lose weight, you will be supplied with a workout program that will get you moving in the right direction. the same thing holds true for those people  who want to eat healthier, get in better shape, etc.

As you can see, a health coach is more than just your average Joe. They’re trained in multiple disciplines, and work with customers in order to help them reach their objectives.

Wellness incorporates many facets of our daily lives. From the amount of sleep to the water we drink, to the food that we eat and the activity that we maintain, our health is dependent upon many factors of our lifestyle.

Working to improve our wellness could be challenging to achieve on our own. That is why we can utilize the assistance of a health coach.

What’s a health coach?

A health coach is a highly educated professional who’s trained in behavioral change. They hold degrees in Exercise Science, Health Education, Exercise Physiology, Counseling and Education.

A health coach assists individuals in recognizing current health concerns in addition to preventing future health related issues. These specialists work with clients in a selection of ways including; face-to-face, telephone, instant messaging and / or via email.

The latter of those is also referred to as electronic coaching and is the most efficient and cost effective method of working with a health coach.

No matter what method is used for communication a health coach provides a personalized program in particular designed to address the needs and concerns of each individual client.

How can a health coach help me?

A lot of individuals maintain a few healthful habits in their lives. One individuals may  be a fitness enthusiast; another may abstain from alcohol and tobacco; while another might maintain a healthful daily diet.

Nevertheless, overall wellness is much like a puzzle, and a high level of health is only achieved when each piece of this puzzle is in place. A health coach will assist a personal in correcting his or her missing piece of the puzzle.

An web-based health coach may address the needs of sleep deprivation, stress management, diet, or any number of health related issues. the health coach will motivate, guide, and provide valuable resources to provide customers with the necessary tools to make life changes.

How is a health coach unique?

A health coach serves a distinctly different purpose than a personal trainer, a counselor, or a supportive family member or friend. First, a health coach is an specialist in his or her specific field.

When a client determines the need for a health coach he or she’ll complete a health risk (assessment|appraisal}. Based on this assessment the client will be assigned a health coach in particular selected to address his or her individual needs.

Next, a health coach is available electronically 24 hours per day. Through web-based communication clients have the opportunity to contact a health coach as much or as little as he could like.

Communication with a health coach may range from daily to weekly, and can occur by e-mail, journal or a combination of both. In conclusion, a health coach is trained to assist in changing the way that the client thinks and the way that they view themselves.

A health coach maintains the purpose of assisting the patron to work towards achieving a higher quality in life. This happens by addressing the cause of a certain problem rather than simply addressing the effects of a problem.

A health coach will help person recognize their needs, determine objectives, and take the necessary steps towards achieving these objectives.

While wellness are growing concerns in our daily lives, it may seem challenging to make the time to educate oneself and address the needs or our well being.

Working with the assistance of a health coach empowers us to focus on our specific needs and make progress towards changing.

Do you find it difficult to stay excited when trying to make changes to your health? Are you aware that changes should be made in your daily life but you don’t know where to begin? When so then wellness coaching might just be the solution you’ve been seeking.

Wellness coaching is a service provided by trained experts who work with you individually to help you reach your wellness objectives. Wellness coaching motivates, guides, and supports individual’s to reach sustainable behavioral changes by offering creative solutions to their problems.

Wellness coaching provides individually designed programs to meet your unique needs by focusing on physical, mental, and emotional health. They help you become proactive in your life by eliminating unhealthy behaviors and making wellness a priority.

Benefits of Wellness Coaching for Your Employees

Staff Members can benefit  from wellness coaching in a variety of ways. Wellness coaching can help individuals decrease major health risks in their lives by changing high risk behaviors.

Some of the many reasons why workers work with wellness coaches are to get in shape, lose weight, reduce stress, quit use of tobacco, and create balance in their lives. Wellness coaches assist individuals with current health problems as well as preventing future health issues.

Because each program that a wellness coach creates is unique to suit the needs of the client, they can make certain that it’ll be a program that is right for them. A lot of busy employees mistakenly believe that they do not have the time for wellness coaching.

Fortunately wellness coaching experts are able to provide their services in a selection of convenient ways. While electronic coaching through the use of e-mails and instant messaging has become a popular method due to its convenience, telephone and face-to-face interactions might also be used.

Employees have the ability to achieve their goals and improve their lives through the assistance of wellness coaching.

Advantages of Wellness Coaching for the Company

The overall benefits of wellness coaching for a company are remarkable. Staff Member high risk behaviors like smoking and obesity cost companies millions of dollars every year.

These high risk behaviors often cause avoidable disease and keep staff members from coming to work. Wellness coaching guides, supports, hold clients accountable, and ensures that they receive continued motivation to help them achieve their wellness objectives and eliminate unhealthy behaviors in their lives.

By implementing wellness programs and using wellness coaching in their organizations, corporations reduce the risk of preventable disease in their organizations.

This improves the overall health of staff members, reduces health care and insurance costs, reduces absenteeism, and ultimately enhances performance and productivity.

When workers experience the advantages of higher levels wellness in their lives it causes an betterment in job attitude, energy, and morale.

Corporations that utilize wellness coaching for their employees experience the advantages of higher productivity.

In today’s fast paced world our busy lives leave little time, energy, or motivation for individuals  to focus on their own needs.

Those that do seek to improve their wellness traditionally turn to friends, family, professionals and published materials for support and information. All too often those support structures fail to make a lasting difference.

This happens for a number of reasons. Friends and family may not be capable of helping. Working with experts is time consuming and costly and very few of us are effective at taking published, generic information and applying it to our own lives.

Gold’s Fitness Center Winston-Salem has created a new internet based program that expands the range of support available to those wishing to make healthy lifestyle changes.

The program, Gold’s Fitness Center Health Coach, focuses on the daily challenges of making positive lifestyle changes and has the advantages of being more personalized and efficient than generic, published information and less intense and expensive than expert face-to-face counseling.

Utilizing a collaborative problem-solving model the goal is not to give advice, but rather to help person think through the issues and come to their own conclusions.

The coach offers ideas for consideration, assists the individual generate ideas of their own, assists the individual consider the various ideas, choose a direction, and then supports them in the implementation of their decision.

Difficult the conventional wisdom that relationship formation requires in-person interaction; Gold’s Health Club has found that members and coaches are able to build meaningful relationships via internet based communication.

Utilizing industry leading technology a Gold’s Fitness Center Health Coach can offer members a secure, user-friendly personal website where they can access their coach in a real-time or via email with responses delivered in less than 24 hours.

The site authorizes coaches to hand select relevant articles that are written on a consumer level and that are targeted to the issue at hand and add them to a member’s online personal library.

The site also contains various programs and tools which are designed to assist the coach and member to set, implement and track specific goals.

The collaborative relationship formed between member and coach enhances the quality ice and efficiency of service. the familiarity that a coach develops with a member’s circumstances and significant relationships allows them over time to more quickly offer useful ideas and assistance.

With traditional call-in assistance lines, the time intensive exercise of getting background and contextual information is repeated each time. IN that scenario efficiency is lost.

Further, Gold’s Gym Health Coach has developed a protocol based on key principals from the field of psychotherapy and behavior modification.

The protocol is embedded within a proprietary problem-solving that is based on the theory that individuals  often act without a good understanding of a problem. Their responses then complicate matters and often make matters worse.

Gold’s Health Club Health Coach offers the opportunity to step back, take a second look at what has going on, and rapidly asses the factors influencing the situation. But, having an idea of “what” to do is very different than actually “doing” something about it.

Individuals  need help with the follow-through. Also, after figuring out “what” to do, Gold’s Fitness Center Health Coach focuses on implementation.

Here Gold’s Fitness Center Health Coach builds on sound research and experience from the field of behavior modification that has to do with goal-establishing and with implementation support.

The result is a highly customized, effective, user-friendly way of bettering the wellness of an individual. the efficient nature of the internet based relationship allows Gold’s Health Club Health Coach to keep the price point within reach of virtually anyone.

Information to evaluate your program comes from routinely accumulated screening and follow-up data of your program that look at process and outcomes of your program.

The Employee Health Program has available a computerized case-management system which includes queries that allow easy assessment of process and outcome results at any point in time.

Process Analysis

Process investigation looks at the program’s impact as seen at various points in time.

Information that is accumulated from the various forms that wellness employees fill out ought to supply you with the following –

• How many staff members were screened?

• How many staff members who were referred to a doctor went?

• How many staff members who expressed interest in health betterment programs went?

• How many staff members who were referred to health improvement programs went?

• How many workers who went to health improvement programs completed them?

• How many employees are in follow-up caseload?

You can use this kind of process investigation to evaluate and learn about the health of your program.

Wellness Program Outcome Investigation

A central objective of the program is to improve the health of employees. Information on how to judge how well your program is meeting this objective is called “outcome investigation” because you’re investigating  the results or outcome of your program.

In wellness programs, goals are measured by specific (outcomes) behavior changes and reductions in health risk levels. Have staff members lowered their blood pressure? Have they lost weight? Are they exercising more? is alcohol consumption at a safe level?

For  instance these are the kinds of questions you are able to ask to find out when you are reaching your goals –  

• for staff members with high blood pressure (BP) (140 / 90 or higher or on medication) at screening, what percentage have it under control (below 140 / 90) a year later?

• What is the change in typical blood pressure levels among all employees with high blood pressure 1 year after screening? Two years later?

• for workers with high blood cholesterol levels (above 240) at screening, what percentage has reduced their cholesterol to borderline-high levels (200-239)?

• for workers with borderline-high blood cholesterol levels, what percentages have decreased their cholesterol to the desirable range (below 200)?

• What’s the change in typical cholesterol levels among all workers with high and borderline-high blood cholesterol levels 1 year after screening? Two years later?

• for employees who were overweight at screening, what percentage have lost 20 pounds or more a year later? Ten pounds or more? What’s the average weight loss?

• for workers who were smokers at screening, what percentages have quit tobacco use? for at least a year?

• for employees whose level of alcohol consumption put them at-risk at screening, what percentage have quit drinking alcohol? Are consuming alcohol at levels considered safe by CDC guidelines? Have reduced their drinking, but are still at-risk?

• for workers, what percentages are exercising at least three times a week for at least 20 minutes?

• If levels of fitness were measured, what percentages have improved fitness?

Be certain to set a regular time like every 6 months to look at which workers your program is reaching and how effective it’s at helping them reduce their health risks. Use this information to make new decisions about how to direct your program efforts. Then make the change you need to improve your program.

Some might feel that analysis is a frill; it is not. Analysis is a necessary part of a wellness program. You’ll need to know what is working and what is not.

Decision-makers who fund the program need to be updated on the performance of the program. Analysis will provide you with necessary data to maintain and expand the program and convince management to continue to support the program.

The keys to a successful wellness program are persistent one-on-one outreach and follow-up counseling to encourage health improvement, adherence to treatment programs, changes in lifestyle behaviors, and to prevent relapse.

Periodic outreach and follow-up procedures provide workers with a safety net which keeps them involved in the program and avoids treatment dropout and relapse.

Counselors should follow up on employees at least every 6 months throughout the career of the worker at the worksite. the goals of follow-up are to –  

• Involve staff members who have health risks in treatment and risk reduction programs.

• Involve all employees in health betterment programs and worksite-wide wellness activities.

• Support employees in carrying out the risk reduction or health betterment activities they have chosen.

• Make sure to help workers follow their treatment programs.

• Prevent relapse.

• Avoid employees from dropping out.

• Make sure to help staff members maintain behavior changes.

Follow-up can be conducted in person, by phone, mail, and via computer when the technology is available. Most preferable is an in-person contact.

Computer programs which could do case load management are available to help counselors track information and perform follow-up.

Priorities for Follow-Up

Individuals  with multiple health risks must be at the top of the list. Individuals  in key positions like union leaders or department heads with health risks should also be contacted early so that they learn what the program is about and can share the information with others.

People  who need a medical examination for high blood pressure (BP) or cholesterol should also be targeted early. Many staff members will have seen their physicians thus of the screening, but some will need more encouragement to do so. Those with no health risks can be followed up each year.

A follow-up counseling session can take 20 to 45 minutes. at minimum, follow-up must include those who were told to seek medical analysis for high blood pressure readings, high cholesterol readings, or borderline high blood cholesterol readings with 2 or more other risk factors.

It may include those who were identified as at-risk for one or more of the other major risk factors –  at-risk levels of alcohol consumption, being overweight, and having low HDL.

Follow-Up With Physicians

A letter (see forms) must be sent to the doctor or clinic of each worker who has high blood pressure, high cholesterol, or is under a doctor’s care.

The letter ought to explain the program and ought to include the employee’s relevant, current health measurements.

Along with the letter, send a self-addressed return envelope. Follow-up with the physician ought to be repeated every 6 months until it is determined that the staff member is under satisfactory control.

Contacting the physician is important for three reasons –

• the physicians receive employees’ health measurements taken at the worksite.

• You receive the blood pressure and cholesterol readings the physician takes and information on the treatment the physician prescribes.

A lot of times the worker doesn’t have this information or doesn’t remember it. the information could be used when counseling the worker.

• Follow-up encourages physicians to pay closer attention to heart disease risk factors among their patients.

The menu approach offers staff members a range of choices to support lifestyle changes. It authorizes individuals  to choose the kind of help that suits their schedules and preferences.

The four basic types of programs include –

• Classes

• Minigroups

• Guided self help

• Individual counseling

Classes

Courses (8 or more) can be an effective means of providing education and social support for behavior change. the length of a class can vary depending on topic requirements. It is not sufficient to offer only classes at a worksite.

Many staff members are under time constraints with after work commitments and although they could be interested they simply cannot participate because of their schedules.

Employees might  be very eager to start a program but because of lack of participants to meet class quotas, the program is canceled.

Many national organizations such as the American Heart Association, American Cancer Society, Weight Watchers, etc. offer classes; you should’ve little trouble in identifying a provider for class type programs.

You could want to contact your local hospital, health department, or YMCA for possible choices. for selecting  a vendor to provide a program you could want to review the section on program structure.

Minigroups

When there is not enough interest to create a class, those who are interested in a given health topic could be formed into a minigroup (2 to 7).

The minigroup can cover the same content as a class but do so in a less formal manner. Presentation of information and discussion is the major format of the minigroup.

Guided Self-Help

Most workers do not want formal help in making health changes; they prefer to do it on their own. In guided self-help, the wellness counselors provide support, materials, and encouragement.

Meeting times could be arranged and contact could be made either in person, by phone, or computer. Materials could be made available at the worksite, or mailed to the individual. Some worksites now make information available via intranets or the Internet.

Individual Counseling

Among the most successful ways to help person change and improve their health status is counseling (or coaching) on a one-on-one basis.

In published studies, wellness programs which incorporated individual counseling as part of the program process achieved significantly higher participation rates and achieved greater risk reduction/risk elimination than standard group programs. Studies have demonstrated that individual counseling is both cost effective and cost beneficial.

A wellness counselor should be trained in screening techniques, for in certain situations, they might be required to both screen person and counsel them. They should know how to do the following –  

• Review employee health risks

• Contact workers who have health risks.

• Counsel workers on a one-on-one basis, helping them set objectives, solve problems, and get expert help when they need it.

• Be sure to help staff members follow their treatment recommendations and make lifestyle and health behavior changes.

• Recruit employees into health betterment programs, like weight loss and use of tobacco cessation.

• Be sure to work with employees on a one-on-one basis using guided self-help.

• Conduct courses and minigroups when necessary.

• Be sure to work with wellness committee members to plan and conduct worksite-wide wellness activities.

Wellness counselors are health generalists; they must’ve basic knowledge about a wide range of health topics and health risks.

Counselors should be able to talk with staff members about their health problems and the treatments prescribed by their doctors.

They should have a good overview of nutrition, exercise physiology, pathophysiology of illness, pharmacology, psychology, and behavior change skills.

The educational program ought to include approaches to stress awareness/reduction at the environmental level and at the individual level.

Social, physical, and organizational stressors should be explained and methods to ease or elevate stressors should be presented.

At the individual level how changes in attitudes and behaviors help one to cope with stressors; learning techniques to minimize stress response, such as meditation, relaxation response, and exercise.

Content of the program ought to provide the following –

• Identifying sources of stress

• Relationship of stress to health

• How the individual experiences stress, personal, family, work

• Solutions for coping and managing stress

• Techniques for decreasing stress

• Value of stress, both negative and positive

• Practical steps of incorporating stress reduction into lifestyle

Personnel conducting stress management programs should have training in psychology, behavioral sciences, or related disciplines like mental health professionals, counselors, health educators, psychologists, and psychiatrists.

Training in a reputable program on how to teach the stress management course including group process skills is a must.

A nutrition education program ought to include a nutritional needs assessment, education counseling, and referral as necessary.

Educational sessions and materials ought to include the following information –

• the relationship of nutrition and chronic diseases

• Improving consuming patterns

• Relationship of nutrition and proper weight maintenance

• Exercise

• Stress

• Blood pressure (BP)

• Cholesterol

• Diabetes and other chronic diseases.

• Nutritionally exact information regarding the relationship of health to diet, including cholesterol, fats, fiber, alcohol, carbohydrates, salt, sugar, and vitamin/mineral supplementation.

Methods for identifying healthier foods and incorporating low-calorie, high nutrient foods into consuming habits. Guidelines for bettering consuming habits must be based on or in line with national recommendations like the Food Guide Pyramid.

Instructor should be a registered dietitian, registered nurse, or have a baccalaureate degree or higher in health education with training in nutrition.

When an allied health expert instructs the program, a consultation and review of the program design by a registered dietitian is advised.