New Year, Healthier You Program

January is a great time of year to evaluate your health and well-being and visualize where you want to be in a year. You may want to lose weight, improve your blood pressure, improve your mobility, or just feel better. Chronic diseases are the leading causes of disability in the United States.  Many are caused by a short list of behaviors: physical inactivity, poor nutrition, etc.  Our Adaptive Lifestyle Program is designed to meet you where you are and help you improve whatever challenges you may be facing.  We will supplement what you and your doctor are already working on.  The program includes recommendations for appropriate lifestyle adaptations including healthy eating and adaptive exercises and help you meet your goals and improve your overall health and feel better.

The Bio Ability Adaptive Lifestyle Program is a 3-month program that is tailored to your personal needs and goals.  It includes six in person or telephonic coaching sessions. The first one or two sessions will complete a fitness assessment and determine where you are physically and go over your personal goals and nutrition plan.  From there you will be enrolled in an Adaptive Fitness or Functional Fitness class to attend weekly.  You will also receive a personalized exercise program that you can do at home.  The remaining coaching sessions may be by telephone or in person after class to check in and answer any questions you may have and address any challenges you are experiencing. Take advantage of this personalized program to help you achieve your health and wellness goals this year.

Goal Setting for your Overall Wellness

While goals can vary from big to small, setting goals to improve overall wellness is vital. When setting goals, it’s important to do so in a way that makes it easier to transition into lifestyle changes. It’s also important to remember that it takes practice and can take up to 60 days to create and maintain new habits. Here are some ways to get started.

Developing regular routines can be invaluable.  The beginning of each day matters. When setting goals for your overall health, start with developing a morning routine. It will help you ease into the day and can be done with carving out just 15 minutes. This time can be spent on something that is meaningful to you like stretching, meditating, having a cup of herbal tea, or simply organizing the day ahead. Along with a morning routine, an evening routine is just as important and critical for success. An evening routine can consist of reading, exercising, or anything that promotes peace, relaxation, and/or serenity before bed. To make a health goal into a habit, set aside or schedule the time.

When considering setting goals for overall health, including healthy foods in your diet is important. Including a rainbow of colors on your plate and throughout the day will provide an array of different nutrients for your body. You might start with including a fruit or vegetable with each meal and for snacks throughout the day and not repeating the color each day.  Including intentional movement into each day provides an array of physical, emotional, cognitive, and other health benefits.  This can be as easy as tracking your steps and adding more steps into your day or intentionally not sitting down after dinner and either doing household chores or going for a walk or bike ride.

Remember that small steps add up over time to big improvements. Turning even the smallest health goals into habits will transform your well-being and create lasting lifestyle changes. If you have other specific health related goals in mind, consider enrolling in Bio Ability’s Adaptive Lifestyle program and working with a certified health coach to help you reach your goals.

What’s happening?

Monthly Events this Year

Open Gym will occur the 2^nd Friday of each month at 6-8PM.  This is an opportunity for children, family and friends to come and play together.  One adult is required with each family and can participate for free.  While there try out different class formats to decide what class you may want to sign up for.  If you sign up for a class at the event you get a 10% discount for the first 3 months.

Caregiver Night Out will occur the 4^th Friday of the month from 6-8 PM. This allows much needed time to run errands, enjoy friends or just plain old relax.  Spots are limited each month so sigh up early.

It is always best to find availability for current events and classes at BIO Ability Classes .

New Year, Stronger You – January Class Schedule

MTW               4:30 pm           Adaptive Ninja

MTW               5:30 pm           Adaptive Gymnastics

MW                  5:30 pm           Adaptive Fitness (Teen/Adult)

Tu                    5:30 pm           Adaptive Gymnastics

TTH                  11:00 am         Sensory Gymnastics Class

Sat                   1:00 pm           Adaptive Fitness (Teen/Adult)

Sat                   2:00 pm           Functional Fitness for Adults/Older Adults

Classes are for school aged children unless otherwise specified.

Exercise of the Month:  Functional Exercise

Functional fitness means training your body for everyday activities, and to make daily motion easier and safer. Below are some examples of functional fitness exercises for older adults and some activities they are helpful for:

• Dumbbell Step Ups mimic climbing stairs.
• Lunges also mimic climbing stairs or walking up hills.
• Standing Squat mimics getting up from a chair.
• Dumbbell Squat with overhead press mimics picking up children or grandchildren.
• Standing Row mimics pulling things toward you like the vacuum or opening heavy doors.

If interested in functional fitness, contact Bio Ability or sign up for class.  Before you begin class an assessment of needs and discussion of goals will be scheduled and for a short time this initial assessment is free.

Recipe of the Month:  Lentil Vegetable Soup with Parmesan (eatingwell.com)

Ingredients

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 3 cups fresh or frozen chopped onion, carrot and celery mix
• 4 cloves garlic, chopped
• 4 cups low-sodium vegetable or chicken broth
• 1 ½ cups green or brown lentils
• 1 (15-ounce) can unsalted diced tomatoes, undrained
• 2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh thyme
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon ground pepper
• ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper
• ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
• Parmesan rind (optional)
• 3 cups packed roughly chopped lacinato kale
• 1 ½ tablespoons red-wine vinegar
• Chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley for garnish

Directions

1. Heat oil in a Dutch oven or large pot over medium heat. Add onion, carrot and celery mix; cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, 6 to 10 minutes. Add garlic; cook, stirring often, until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
2. Stir in broth, lentils, tomatoes, thyme, salt, pepper, crushed red pepper and Parmesan rind, if using. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low; cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until the lentils are almost tender, 15 to 25 minutes, adding water as needed to thin to desired consistency.
3. Stir in kale. Cook, covered, until the kale is tender, 5 to 10 minutes. Remove and discard the Parmesan rind, if using. Stir in vinegar. Divide the soup among 6 bowls; sprinkle with Parmesan. Garnish with parsley, if desired.

Nutrition Information (12 servings)

Calories: 306; Total Fat: 7g; Saturated Fat: 2g; Cholesterol: 5mg; Sodium: 446mg; Total Carbohydrate: 45g; Dietary Fiber: 9g; Protein: 17g.