Campus Well-Being is now offering fitness and lifestyle consultations to staff and students.

Looking for some expert fitness advice? Not sure where to start on your journey to better overall health? Book a free, virtual session with one of our certified fitness professionals.

What to expect from a consultation

Your consultation will will take 30 to 40 minutes and can be done over the phone or via MS Teams. Your coach will ask you some questions about your current health, fitness, and lifestyle before collaborating with you on a plan to take concrete, actionable steps to better your health.

You are welcome to book up to two additional check-ins with your coach to talk about your progress and any obstacles you’ve faced.

How to book a session

To book a consultation, please contact a coach directly to set up a mutually agreeable time.

Your coaches

Mario De Negri

Mario De Negri is the Fitness Coordinator for Red River College Polytechnic. He’s been training in fitness and wellness for over 20 years and has a number of certifications in personal training, yoga and massage. He’s traveled abroad to study different forms of training in health and wellness and has completed a couple 10-day non-speaking meditations. His personal goal is to live to be 100 years old. He believes that being healthy isn’t just about picking up weights, but involves working on one’s inner and outer aspects in order to naturally feel more comfortable in one’s own body.

Mario is available Mondays and Wednesdays from 1-6pm. Book a consultation by contacting him at mdenegri@rrc.ca.

Evelyn Carriere

The reason Evelyn trains is to keep up with her Grandma. Evelyn has always admired her energy and adventurous lifestyle! By 90 years of age, she was still doing handstands against the wall in her condo. Evelyn wants to follow in Grandma’s footsteps while encouraging others to lead an active, healthy lifestyle. It’s never too late to be a boss.

Certifications

• CPT (Certified Personal Trainer), American Council on Exercise
• Senior Fitness Specialist
• Emergency First Aid & CPR/AED Level C, Canadian Red Cross

Experience

• 2 + Years in Fitness Industry (Small group + team training, 1-on-1 coaching, Crossfit Masterclass 55+)
• 13 + Years Coaching Volleyball (Canada and Europe)
• 3 Years as a Professional Athlete (Indoor Volleyball)

Evelyn is available to Tuesdays and Thursdays from 8-11am. Book a consultation by contacting her at emcarriere@rrc.ca.

Limitations

Fitness and lifestyle consultations are not a substitute for professional medical advice. Staff and students should consult a medical professional if they are seeking medical advice, diagnoses, or treatment.

Join RRC alumni, Amanda Le Rougetel for a night of Vision Board fun!

What is a Vision Board?

Also known as dream boards, a vision board is a visualization tool which refers to a board of any sort used to build a collage of words and pictures that represent your goals and dreams. These inspirational collages serve as your image of the future – a tangible example, idea or representation of where you are going. By putting a vision board somewhere you can see it every day, you will prompt yourself to visualize your ideal life on a regular basis.

What supplies do you need?

All you need is: a pair of scissors, glue, stock paper/poster board, and magazines!

Don’t have any magazines, but still want to participate? Register below, and check ‘yes‘ to needing supplies.

Magazines must be picked up at the Notre Dame or Exchange District campus. Pick-up times will be directly e-mailed to you.

Don’t forget – you can also participate virtually with absolutely no supplies with the help of Canva!

REGISTER HERE

Have you ever tried to build a new wellness habit? Perhaps you’ve tried to drink more water, or get outside more often. Many of us know the kinds of things we need to do in order to be healthy, yet without support and other effective strategies, we often struggle to make these habits stick.

In this 6-week wellness workshop series, you won’t just listen to someone talk about good habits, you’ll create personally meaningful, realistic plans to make gradual changes over time— changes that will improve your personal wellness and your ability to complete a challenging program and succeed in your career. You’ll also interact with others who are building healthy habits, giving and receiving support and encouragement.

All RRC students and staff are welcome to attend.

Topics covered include:

• Creating daily routines;
• Setting goals;
• Using checklists;
• Keeping track; and
• More!

Your Facilitator

All sessions will be facilitated by Dan Saltel. Dan is an instructor in RRC’s Business Technology Management program and is passionate about both the importance of wellness and the value of habit building strategies. Dan has a Bachelor of Science degree in computer science as well as a Bachelor of Science in psychology and a Master of Science in community health sciences.

The Details

Date: Six Tuesdays from October 5 – November 9

Time: 7-8pm

Platform: MS Teams

For questions or to register, please email Breanna Sawatzky.

Each session will include a door prize draw for a $25 gift card. In addition, each person who registers and attends the first session will receive a brand new notebook to help them on their success journey.

The RRC Students’ Association and RRC Healthy Minds Health College would like to invite staff and students to participate in a virtual Vision Board workshop as part of our Thrive series. This event is suitable for all skill levels.

Find your way into 2021 by creating a Vision Board that illustrates your hopes and plans for this New Year. Let’s leave 2020 well behind us by looking ahead and having some fun with images.

Join us Wednesday, January 13 from 7PM – 9PM for this fun session of creative collage.

SUPPLIES NEEDED:

• Old magazines
• Card stock or cardboard
• Scissors
• Glue

Register here.

Guest post by RRC student, Stuart Maddocks

The COVID-19 pandemic was one of the hardest experiences I have faced as a student. It disrupted my routine of having to leave my home to sit in a classroom with my friends and classmates. Additionally, being at home made me more distracted than I would be in the classroom. To overcome these challenges, I had a few strategies to help me get through the rest of my program. Here are some highlights of the methods I used to complete my final year as a Red River College Library and Information Technology student.

RRC Student, Stuart Maddocks

Work on Mental Fitness

For my first strategy, I used the Headspace meditation app. This application is a subscription-based service that provides meditation and yoga exercises for overcoming negative feelings. Exercises on Headspace range from simple guided meditations to “Everyday Exercises” with a different theme each day. As a student, I love Headspace’s student support section which covers topics from presentation stress to job interview anxiety. These exercises helped me get a good night’s sleep after a stressful day of online learning.

Current and future students can visit Headspace at: https://www.headspace.com/ or download the Headspace app on Apple Store or Google Play.

Get Moving

In addition to Headspace, I exercised at least 30 minutes each day. I would go for walks around my neighbourhood and through parks. It helped me get some fresh air after an intense study session. Walking outside provided me a change in scenery away from my usual surroundings at home. These daily exercises also helped me stretched my legs after sitting at my desk for a few hours. Lastly, walking helped me be more active with the gym being unavailable during the pandemic.

Reward Yourself

As a Red River College Alumnus, I cannot stress enough the importance of awarding yourself. In my case, I would watch movies after I complete assignments. Additionally, watching movies allowed me to escape my day to day life from the stresses of the pandemic and college life. I usually watch escapist movies from the Star Wars or James Bond franchises. The locations and settings transported me to another world for a much-needed distraction.

I hope these strategies will be useful for you when you are studying or starting your careers.

If you are an RRC student, staff or alumnus who would like to write a guest post, please contact Breanna Sawatzky.

On February 5th, Jordin Tootoo visited RRC to share his story of hope, hockey and mental health. Many staff and students were moved by Jordin’s authentic presentation. Jordin spoke about his journey from Rankin Inlet to the NHL and then, in retirement, to suicide prevention work.

Jordin spoke candidly of being a suicide loss survivor, recovery from alcohol addiction, love of family and finding his sense of belonging.

Thankfully, you can:

• Read all about why we invited him and the message he shared.
• View the event photo gallery.
• Watch the recorded presentation.

Jordin also took time to connect with many attendees, signing books and memorabilia. It’s clear that his life experience resonates with so many.

If you are curious about mental health supports for staff and students, please visit rrc.ca/wellness/supports or contact Breanna Sawatzky, Mental Health Coordinator.

We’re excited to welcome Karina Walker, founder of Rising Strong, to facilitate two vision board workshops for RRC staff and students.

Vision boards are visual representations of your hopes, goals and desires. They help you visually experience what you want to do, where you want to go, who you want to be and how you want to feel. With busy schedules and distractions, having a board representing everything you want in life can help reinforce daily affirmations, clarify your goals and help set intentions.

This is sure to be an empowering evening of crafting and setting goals! Check out Karina’s Instagram to get a sense of her work.

Both workshops will feature free tea and dainties as well as a door prize draw.  Karina supplies everything you need to make your vision board, so just bring yourself (and perhaps a friend).

Notre Dame Campus
Tuesday, January 14; 4-7pm in the Prairie Lights Meeting Room

Exchange District Campus
Thursday, January 16; 4-7pm in P107, The Roblin Centre

All students and staff are welcome and can register by emailing Breanna Sawatzky.

Save the date! Former NHL forward Jordin Tootoo is the keynote speaker at our annual mental health awareness event.

In Jordin’s talk, Aiming at Wellness Together, he shares his personal experiences in order to open up important conversations around addiction recovery, mental health, and suicide prevention, all while sharing a hopeful message of resilience and understanding.

Join us for a free pizza lunch and meet Jordin.

Date: Wednesday, February 5th

Time: 11:30am – 1:30pm

11:30am – lunch

noon – program begins

1:15 pm – meet and greet with Jordin

Location: South Gym, Notre Dame Campus*

*The program will be recorded and live streamed thanks to the eTV studio. You can catch the live stream at live.etvlabs.com

RRC’s Healthy Minds Healthy College Initiative and the Students’ Association are pleased to welcome Jordin.

For questions or accessibility needs, please contact Breanna Sawatzky.

Richard LeSage, Course Developer

In May and June dozens of staff and faculty members participated in a  30 Day Mindfulness Challenge. Upon completion, those who engaged reported the following outcomes:

• 95% noticed improved mental health.
• 90% were better able to focus.
• 95% found they were managing their stress better.

And because everyone loves prizes, all who completed the challenge were entered onto a draw for one of two passes to Float.Calm or a “Take 5” prize pack. We’re pleased to announce the winners, as determined by a random number generator.

Winners!

Lisa Case, Instructor, Applied Computer Education

Float Calm Gift Certificate #1 – Richard LeSage

Float Calm Gift Certificate #2 – Lisa Case

Take 5 prize pack #1 – Debbie Donato

Take 5 prize pack #2 – CindyLou Benoit

Take 5 prize pack #3 – Lyle Dunlop

Take 5 prize pack #4 – Damien Goodridge

Take 5 prize pack #5 – Bridget Budney

Congratulations to all the prize winners. If you have not yet claimed your prize, please contact Breanna.

Congratulations as well to all those who invested the time needed to complete the challenge. In our busy schedules it can be difficult to make time to learn and practice wellbeing strategies like mindfulness. Cheers to your improved focus, sense of calm and ability to manage stress.

Debbie Donato, Employment Advisor

The 30 Day Mindfulness Challenge is available to all RRC staff, students, and faculty members. It takes 5 to 10 minutes a day and can begin any Tuesday that works for you.

You’re invited to attend a lunch and talk featuring Waneek Horn-Miller – Mohawk woman, activist, and Olympian. She’ll be speaking about turning trauma into motivation and reclaiming well-being. All students, staff and faculty are invited to attend.

Date: March 26

Time: Noon – 1:30pm

Location: South Gym

Come early for a free pizza lunch. If you have accessibility needs, please contact Breanna.

ASL interpretation will be provided. If you can’t make it in person, catch the livestream at rrc.ca/streaming.

Throughout her life, Waneek Horn-Miller has always stood up for what was right—as a mother, an activist, an athlete, and an entrepreneur. This has entailed hard choices, pain, and sacrifice. But this commitment has also made her one of Canada’s most inspiring figures.

Horn-Miller’s public life began in 1990 at the age of 14. During the Oka Crisis, she protested the planned development of condos and a golf course on traditional Kanien’kehá:ka (Mohawk) lands and burial grounds near Montreal. After nearly 80 days of stand-off with the RCMP and armed forces, she was stabbed in the chest by a Canadian soldier wielding a bayonet.

This near-death experience marked a turning point in her life. Instead of succumbing to very real traumas, including PTSD, she found the strength to pursue, and achieve, incredible things. “I come from people who have gone through horrific things in history,” she says. “War, death, famine, genocide. How many times did my ancestors want to give up, lay down, and die? But they didn’t. They fought to continue. You have to keep going forward.”

One of Horn-Miller’s greatest achievements has been in athletics. “Sport in the Native world is more than just something to be physically active,” she says. “It’s a suicide preventer. It’s a self-esteem creator. It’s a leadership developer.” She was the first woman to be named Carleton University’s Athlete of the Year, which she won four years in a row. After winning gold with her water polo team at the Pan Am Games in 1999, she became the first Mohawk woman from this country to ever compete in the Olympic games, co-captaining Team Canada in Sydney in 2000. That same year, she appeared on the cover of TIME magazine.

As one of Canada’s few Aboriginal Olympians, Waneek has used her passion and experiences in sport to influence Aboriginal and non-aboriginal leadership towards making Sport and Wellness a community building priority.

RRC’s Healthy Minds Healthy College Initiative, along with the Students’ Association and School of Indigenous Education are so pleased to welcome Waneek.