Health Tips

Movement and Recovery

Planning movement and recovery into your daily life will help you improve and increase your energy and regain mental focus and stay positive emotionally. Try incorporating these tips into your day:

Do a small movement every 30 minutes. Small movements can be done right at your desk. Deep breathing, breath in deeply and exhale slowly three times. Sit with the small of your back against your chair while sitting and bring up one knee, pull it slowly to your chest and slowly put your foot back on the ground. Lift your opposite knee and repeat. Flexing each foot, simply straightening your back and reaching forward and even a few arm circles while seated will increase mental focus.

Imagine holding your usual morning meeting with the team while walking around the block, or taking your classroom twice around the perimeter of the room in giant steps. A large movement performed every 90 minutes is simply getting up out of your chair and moving.

Sleep
Sleep promotes alertness, memory and performance and is vital to all ages. Sleep can be considered a period of planned non-movement, which allows the body to recover energy, to grow and repair. To improve your sleep here are a few tips:

• Aim to get 7 to 8 hours of sleep each night
• Try deep breathing exercises to relax
• Go to bed and get up at the same times each day-even on weekends
• Create a bedtime ritual such as brushing your teeth, dimming the lights or reading a book chapter to send a signal to the brain it is time for sleep.

Children also benefit from good sleeping habits. Typical bedtime routines or children include:

• Having a light snack
• Taking a bath
• Putting on pajamas
• Brushing teeth
• Reading a story

Snacks

Let’s Talk Snacks: Nutrition plays a key role in managing energy, performance, health, and engagement. With FET you can learn about balanced eating; balance what you need and what you want and still manage your energy, improve your health, and deepen your engagement.

What do you like to snack on between meals? A snack is meant to cover your hunger until the next meal. FET recommended snacks include the following:

• 100-150 calories
• 5 grams of protein

Learning to read labels is important for your health and your energy level. Too much carbohydrate and not enough protein may cause you to be cranky, tired, and hungry again in less than 2 hours.

Here are a few ideas for snacks - moderate to low glycemic and 100-150 calories:

Peanut M&Ms – nine pieces  
Nature Valley Trail Mix bar – one half bar with 1 teaspoon of peanut butter
Peanuts – twenty peanuts
Low fat yogurt – four ounces            
Banana with 1 teaspoon of peanut butter
Apple – half with a cheese stick       
Oatmeal with half cup milk   
Lowfat cottage cheese – half cup                 
Crackers (high fiber) with a cheese stick
Carrots with 5 tbs of hummus
Half cup edemme with seven walnuts
One hard boiled egg with half an orange
Ten chips with endless salsa
Cucumbers dipped in lowfat ficotta cheese
One ounce beef jerky with half cup cherry tomatoes