There may be a link between sleep and obesity

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The Daily Herald ran this informative article on August12, 2013:

According to a new study, a major weapon in the battle against obesity might be as simple as getting a good night’s sleep, says USA Today.

A study by researchers at UC Berkeley revealed why just one sleepless night can make us crave calorie-dense junk food like hamburgers, potato chips and sweets. While previous studies have linked unhealthy foods and sleep deprivation, the UC Berkeley study may reveal the source of the connection.

Researchers used functional magnetic resonance imaging to study the brains of 23 healthy young adults after a normal night’s sleep, and again after a sleepless night.

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Healthy Lesson Plan for Going Back To School

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sickvhild2DuPage County children will soon be heading back to school and the DuPage County Health Department wants to offers some tips that will make this school year healthy and happy for all children.

According to the Health Department, the following guidelines can help parents prevent the spread of illnesses in classrooms:

  • Make sure your children are up to date on their immunizations and sports physicals, and receive an annual flu shot.
  • Make sure your children have plenty of rest and a nutritious diet to help them fight germs.
  • Make sure your children are dressed properly if they are involved in outdoor activities at recess or gym.
  • Notify the school if your child has been diagnosed with an infectious condition such as strep throat, chickenpox, scarlet fever, or pertussis.
  • Teach your children the proper way to wash their hands. Make sure they use soap and water, rub their hands for at least 20 seconds, and thoroughly rinse and dry their hands.
  • Teach children the importance of covering their coughs and sneezes.
  • Keep your child home if he or she is ill. One sick child can spread germs to all his or her classmates.
  • Keep your child home if he or she has a fever of 100.4 degrees or higher, has nausea or vomiting, has a sore throat with fever, has a persistent cough (dry or productive), has diarrhea (three or more episodes in 24 hours), has a rash, or has symptoms that prevent him or her from participating in school such as fatigue or lack of appetite, headaches, body aches, earache or sore throat.

 

contest

Enter The Your Healthy Life Made Easy!™ Greater Lombard Area Weight Loss Transformation Contest

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Residents of Lombard, Villa Park, Glendale Heights, Glen Ellyn, Downers Grove and Oakbrook Terrace who are 18 years or older now have a great opportunity to change their lives by getting healthy and losing weight with the Your Healthy Life Made Easy!™ Greater Lombard Area Weight Loss Transformation Contest.

The Grand Prize Winner will be coached personally by Lombard neighbor and Healthy Lombard Partner Wellcoaches® and ACE® Certified Health and Wellness Coach and Weight Loss Coach Melanie Jordan for six months for FREE!

And EVERYONE who enters the Your Healthy Life Made Easy!™ Greater Lombard Area Weight Loss Transformation Contest will receive 1 free month in the Your Healthy Life Made Easy!™ Do It Yourself Healthy Weight Loss Program at the Deluxe Level (which includes email coaching)–so everyone is going to be a winner and get some help with healthy weight loss!

Entries are being accepted by Coach Melanie from August 15th to September 15th, 2013 at http://www.yourhealthylifemadeeasy.com/weightlosscontest.html where full contest details and rules are listed, and the winner will be announced on the Healthy Lombard site and at Melanie’s blog at YourHealthyLifeMadeEasy.com on September 22nd, 2013.

This contest is Coach Melanie’s way of giving back to the community and helping others who have struggled with their weight like she did in the past before she lost and kept off 48 pounds and went from a size 14 to 6.  So get your entry in and please share this post with someone in the area whose life you’d like to help change.

ProActive Kids – Fall Session Starts Sept 16

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The next session of ProActive Kids will take place September 16 – November 8.

Enroll your child today!

PAK will be offered at the following locations:

  • Downers Grove at Advocate Good Samaritan Health and Wellness Center funded by Advocate Good Samaritan Hospital.
  • Niles/Park Ridge (New!) at Gemini Jr High funded By Advocate Children’s Hospital
  • Oak Lawn at Advocate Christ Hospital funded by Advocate Chidlren’s Hospital (site is full for fall)
  • St Charles at St. Charles Park District funded by Cadence Health
  • Woodridge/Naperville – Edward Health and Fitness funded by Edward Hospital

ProActiveKids Program At A Glance

What it is:
Designed in collaboration with physicians, psychologists, nutritionists, personal trainers, coaches and educational leaders, the ProActive Kids is a FREE comprehensive 8 week program that will introduce children ages 8 -14, and their families, to healthier lifestyle options. Children must be in the 85th percentile and above in BMI to qualify for the program. The program offers a fun and rewarding experience that consists of:

  • Physical Fitness education and Workouts – 3 workouts a week! Read more →

Pre & Post Exercise Eating Tips

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Greg Shealey, a health educator and president and founder of Bio-Fit and Wellness, says that scheduling exercise into a busy lifestyle can be a challenge, and planning meals and snacks around the exercise is another. Eating too much food, or the wrong food before exercise, can hamper your performance or cause indigestion, sluggishness, nausea and vomiting. On the other hand, if you haven’t eaten in six hours and try to work out, you may feel weak and unmotivated. The type and time of meal is important. A large breakfast may be troublesome if you are going for a morning run, but it is fine for a jog before lunch.

In terms of food, your goal should be to have fuel in your body from nutritious food that is no longer present in your stomach at the time of your workout. The pre-exercise food prevents hunger during exercise. Carbohydrates are easily digested, but foods high in protein and fat may linger in the stomach for some time, depending on how much you ate. Large meals can take up to six hours to empty from the stomach.

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What is the importance of recovery?

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In the August issue of HealthTrack Sports and Wellness newsletter, Annie Flint, HTSW Certified Personal Trainer N.A.S.M., shared that one of the most important physical activities for recovery is plenty of stretching. If your body doesn’t recover properly, than you won’t see any further progress and it might be very harmful for your overall wellbeing. What happens to our muscles after a very high intensity workout is that they become stiff and sore as a result of micro tears. If you slack on your cool down and stretching, your muscles can experience blood pooling which means the blood that carried oxygen and nutrients to the muscles won’t return back to the heart and the waste product called lactic acid stays in the muscles. This is why we experience swelling and pain, sometimes even for a few days, after an intense workout. When experiencing delayed onset muscle soreness try to keep moving and stay active. Read more →

Flat Apple Shares How Screen Time Can Be Healthy

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Although limiting screen time is often thought of as an unhealthy activity, a Healthy Lombard partner is offering a great way to change that outlook!  Certified Health and Wellness Coach and Lombard resident Melanie Jordan is offering for free a brand new E-Course called 5 Essential Keys to Healthy Weight Loss Success at http://www.YourHealthyLifeMadeEasy.com.

Each lesson, packed with valuable tips and strategies, is conveniently and privately delivered via email over a 5-day period.

Among the topics included in 5 Essential Keys to Healthy Weight Loss Success:

  1. Four keys to the successful kick-off of your healthy weight loss journey
  2. The thing people find most challenging about healthy weight loss and what to do about it
  3. A little known secret about healthy weight loss
  4. The biggest reason most people fail at achieving healthy weight loss
  5. A healthy weight loss success essential you’re missing from your efforts

“I’ve seen first-hand in my own family the tragic health impacts of a sedentary lifestyle, poor diet and obesity, and it is this desire to see no one unnecessarily live a life of disease and disability that’s easily preventable, that drives me as a Certified Health and Wellness Coach and fitness professional.  So one of the ways I’m delivering on that mission is with the free 5 Essential Keys to Healthy Weight Loss Success E-Course,” said Jordan.

Read more →

DuPage Among America's 50 Healthirst Counties for Kids

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The DuPage County Health Department is proud to announce that DuPage County is ranked among “America’s 50 Healthiest Counties for Kids,” as reported by U.S. News and World Report.

DuPage County is the only Illinois county on the list, which highlights communities that are safe and child-friendly. DuPage County is No. 20 on the list with a score of 87.2 out of a possible 100 points.

“America’s 50 Healthiest Counties for Kids” is a new set of rankings by U.S. News that identifies counties that feature, among other child-friendly data, fewer infant deaths, fewer low-birth-rate babies, fewer deaths from injuries, fewer teen births and fewer children in poverty.

“This ranking is a result of the Health Department’s commitment to the healthcare needs of all DuPage County children and families,” said Linda Kurzawa, President of the DuPage County Board of Health. Read more →

*NEW* AQUA ZUMBA CLASSES Butterfield Park District & Lombard Park District

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Known as the Zumba® “pool party,” the Aqua Zumba program gives new meaning to the idea of an invigorating workout.  Splashing, stretching, twisting, even shouting, laughing, hooting and hollering are often heard during an Aqua Zumba class.  Integrating the Zumba formula and philosophy with traditional aqua fitness disciplines, the Aqua Zumba class blends it all together into a safe, challenging, water-based workout that’s cardio-conditioning, body-toning, and most of all, exhilarating beyond belief.  This class is appropriate for all fitness levels and requires no swimming or dancing skills. Join the party without the impact!

June 10—July 29  Monday Session I       June 10—July 29   Friday Session II 

(no class July 1)      (no class July 5)

10:45—11:30 am        10:45—11:30 am

Ages 13 & up
$46  per session
$8 per class drop in  fee

 Butterfield Pool & Aquatic Center  – 21w730 Butterfield Rd, Lombard 630/858-2229 www.ButterfieldPD.com

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Friday, June 14th – August 9th 

9:30-10:15 a.m. 

Ages 13 & up

$45/$60 R/NR 

Paradise Bay Water Park – Lombard Park District   437 E. St. Charles Road 

 (630) 627-6127    www.LombardParks.com

For More Info: Please contact Lisa McDaniel, Licensed ZUMBA Fitness Instructor

630/660-8298 or LisasZumba@Gmail.com