Saturday, April 21, 2012

Adair Employees Give Thumbs Up To

“10 Years Younger in 60 Days” Program


We know you’ve all been anxious to hear how successful we’ve been with our “10 Years Younger in 60 Days” program. As you recall, Innkeeper Ilja challenged the employees at the Adair Country Inn & Restaurant to a two-month program of better health and fitness. 
  
Each Tuesday evening during the two-month program, we met as a group to weigh ourselves, have our blood pressure taken, and discuss our progress in meeting the goals we had set. Each week we also enjoyed a program given by a guest speaker that was inspiring and educational, everything from the benefits of following the Weight Watchers program and the importance of good dental health to decreasing stress in our lives, mindful eating, massage and meditation.

So, how did we do? Several of us lost varying amounts of weight, but nowhere near the person who lost 22-23 pounds, halfway toward his final goal. “I have certainly gained better eating habits,” he said, “though at times it has been a challenge. I know more now about how hard -- but also how easy -- it is to get into better shape. Hopefully, once I get to where I want to be, I will also have the knowledge, skills and motivation to stay at that weight and/or to quickly lose any unwanted weight gain. I met some goals, not all. Hopefully, as the warm weather comes along, the outside activities/exercises will increase.”

  
Most everyone noted that the program helped them make better food decisions, whether that was by watching calories or becoming more aware of the foods they were eating and watching portion sizes. “My diet is so much better,” one woman said. “I’m eating better food, watching calories, watching how much I eat at one time. I did good with working out for awhile.” 

Another woman in our group had set a goal of climbing Mt. Washington this summer. Here’s how she summed up what the program had meant to her: “I’m exercising daily, and still planning to climb Mt. Washington this summer! And I really liked the notebook (where we could record our progress each week). I used it to start a personal journal unrelated to 10/60.”

Other comments included:

“It made me aware of many different things I could be doing that would be better for my mind, spirit and body. Just by getting out and doing things you can lift your spirits, which in turn eases your mind and gives your body exercise.”
 “I do exercise more regularly, and feel more energized and I am more focused on what I eat. It has been a great experience with the team. I learned about different ‘tools’ to improve my being.”

“The program helped me make better food decisions. I made the time to exercise more.I didn’t lose 10 pounds – I lost four -- but I feel better all over.”
  
“I’m more educated on health and wellness now.”
 “I became very mindful of what I eat – the quantity and intervals/times. I have always known what to eat, as in good food, but I always ate too much and not often enough. I became more aware of exactly how exercise affects me. In my younger days I used to meditate often and even studied it a bit. This event made me aware again of how important meditation is.”

On our final evaluation forms, everyone answered, “Yes” to the question “Did the 10 Years Younger in 60 Days program change your body and/or your life,” but not everyone felt they had met their goals. There were a couple of definite “Yesses,” one definite “No” and several “kinda” and “somewhat ” to the question, “Did you meet the goals you set?” One person sustained an injury while the program was in progress and wasn’t able to participate as fully as she would have liked. 

Based on everyone’s feedback, Innkeeper Ilja and the Adair employees gave a thumbs up to the “10 Years Younger in 60 Days” program primarily because it helped us to increase our awareness of how the foods we eat, the exercise we get, and the ways in which we take care of ourselves affect our overall well-being.

“One of the objectives of the program,” said Innkeeper Ilja, “was healthy and fit employees who are better able to serve the Inn’s customers because they are rested, exercise regularly, eat nutritious food, and get regular medical and dental check-ups. This program helped all of us pinpoint the areas in our lives where we need to make changes, and we were able to do it in a fun way, so I think it was a great success. I hope the program has inspired our employees to continue working toward their goals, and I hope we’ve inspired some of you out there reading this blog to take up the challenge for yourselves to get healthy and fit.”

Kathleen White

Pete Thompson

Innkeeper Ilja


Lynn Driscoll

Chef Orlo Coots


Tinah Whitcomb


 
Innkeeper Brad