Before I started gardening, I thought it was a nice pastime for sedentary folks.   Was I wrong !!!   8 years ago I moved into a new home & decided that on the May Long weekend I wanted to create a flower garden in a corner patch of my yard.   I’d never embarked on this type of activity before, so basically I winged it.   In a matter of 3 days, I dug up the space & charted out my flower patch; I hauled bricks from the store to the car to create the flower bed; shoveled a truck load of dirt into the garden. I was exhausted and elated at the same time!   My first DIY project was underway.       Then it was onto research of best plants to grow in that area – do I want annual or perennials? Or a combination … hmm, so many choices!   I especially enjoyed digging in the dirt, carefully planting my chosen gems

During the course of that summer, I proudly watched the flowers and plants grow & prosper, I felt a sense of accomplishment and happiness, which continues today as I’ve expanded into vegetables and herb gardens. I like the physical aspects of gardening as well as the stillness that I feel as I prune and pluck the weeds, at one with the earth.   I experienced the other side of the emotional spectrum as well – cursing the weather; disappointment when a prized perennial doesn’t return the next season; seeing my lilies get consumed by bugs seemingly overnight!

Check out this great article that captures all the fantastic health and wellness aspects of gardening – The Dirt on Gardening!

Nancy Cumbers

RRC Slow Pitch is back again on June 9^th at John Bloomberg. The annual event has become a fan favorite of things to do to participate in the college community. It has grown and morphed into a place where you can stretch out your legs, get some sun on the face again and reconnect to some familiar faces.

Many people have many different reasons to come out and I’ve noticed they all seem to fit so well together. Some people come who of have played before, or haven’t played in years, who have never played or just want to be a part of the team. It seems to work so well. A single team could be over 20 plus participants with only needing about half that to play.

When I get asked to talk about active living benefits my mind automatically goes to how “I should do more sit ups” or “I should put down this cake.” I feel a lot of our ideas about things we want to change or improve on are seen from the negative. Who is this voice? I know some people did not sign up for slow pitch in the past because they thought they couldn’t play, not good enough or didn’t know how to play. After enough time of still wanting to participate, they come and see the environment and they find themselves trying a new sport, playing in some of the games or just bringing in a chair and cheering on their team. I find for myself active living is becoming less about the harsh judgments of how I think I see myself and if I belong, and more about the acceptance of who I am and where I’m at. If I’ve come away with anything from this event, it is not because I feel the need to have to step up to the plate with a bat but to step up to myself to realize I am the only limiting factor to my experience. That when I accept myself as I am, then others also tend to accept me. This event has shown me people don’t care how far I can hit a ball but that I am perfect just as I am and I can be as I wish to be when I just let myself show up.

Yes, of course doing a few arm throws or jog around the bases are good. You don’t have to worry about the cake because we won’t serve any, but what about active living as an inside job first? Find the doubter, remove all doubt. Working on finding yourself and seeing that you belong anywhere you want to belong. That you just being you, is the role on the team we are waiting to fill and you might find yourself perhaps doing far more then you could’ve imagined.

Click here for the registration form; http://blogs.rrc.ca/rebels/intramural-special-events/

Registration and payment is being taken at the cashier’s office and you can register as a team or as a single person. Registration deadline is June 3^rd at noon and is only $15.00 per person. This will book the facility as well as provide you with a lunch. Any registrations after June 3rd will be $20.00 per person. So come on out and give it a try anyway you want to.

Mario De Negri

Most people understand the negative effects that improper sleep quantity can have on their daily activities. We’ve all heard a fellow employee say how they just need their five or six hours per night to function well the next day. As adults are recommended by the National Sleep Foundation to get anywhere between seven and nine hours of sleep per night, it’s already evident we don’t get enough on a regular basis. What most don’t understand is that proper sleep quality is just as important as quantity and can be just as troublesome if not satisfied.

When deprived of the rejuvenating effects of sleep, the brain’s ability to process new information is compromised along with creativity, logic and judgement – not a set of skills anyone would like to go a full workday without! In addition to the impact on the brain, the rest of body takes a hit without sufficient sleep on a regular basis. The immune system is typically one of the first in the body to shut down when we feel stressed; people often lose sleep over stress as well so the connection between sleep and the immune system is a natural conclusion. Migraines and headaches are more commonly linked to people getting a lower quality of sleep, and those conditions greatly affect our productivity throughout the day as well. Poor nutritional choices are also more likely to occur when insufficient sleep is achieved which can lead to higher risk for heart disease and Diabetes.

Our bodies love to sleep, and why wouldn’t they? Throughout the stages of sleep our bodies get to relax every muscle and repair some damage done throughout the day, lower our blood pressure and restore energy to recharge our systems for another extended period of being awake. Without this time to recharge, our systems continue to deplete until there is eventually a complete and total shut-down. A couple of extra hours each night dedicated to maintaining proper physical and mental health through sleeping may allow us less free time during each day but will most certainly benefit us in the long run.

There are certain practical steps we can take to ensure our mind and body are ready for a solid night’s sleep:

• Create a sleep routine – go to bed and wake up at close to or the same time each day (even weekends, there’s no need to “catch up” if we consistently get enough).
• Make physical activity a consistent part of each day, but not within 3 hours of going to bed.
• Limit intake of caffeine, alcohol and nicotine in general but especially during the evening hours as these stimulants will work against our brain’s desire to fall – and stay – asleep.
• Make the bedroom a haven for the weary. Darkness, quiet, comfortable temperature and sleeping area are all essential to creating an environment for a great sleep.
• Turn away from the light – all light. Luminescent clocks, plugin nightlights and personal technology like phones, tablets and computers all contribute to keeping the mind in a state of constant awareness.

Find ways to help achieve the sleep quality and quantity you need to be your most productive self. If you can’t think of anything right now that’s fine, go sleep on it.

Facing off at a recent game

I come from a hockey family. We lived in Rankin Inlet, Nunavut for part of my childhood, where one of the only organized activities for kids was the local hockey program. Women’s hockey hadn’t taken off yet, but that didn’t stop my parents. They signed my sister and me up to play as soon as we were old enough.

A typical street in Nunavut

Our family lived on one edge of town and the hockey arena was on the other. I remember walking across the frozen lake to hockey games and practices several times a week during those years, our hockey bags piled up on the sled.

As a kid, I don’t really remember saying I wanted to play hockey or having much of a choice. It was just what kids in our family did. When I got older, and we’d moved back to Thunder Bay, I got interested in other activities and sports. I liked going to hockey, but I didn’t love it the way my sister or three brothers did.

At twelve, I was too old for our friendly neighbourhood hockey league (called the NHL for Northwood Hockey League) where I had been playing on the same team as my two younger brothers. So my parents signed me up for the house league team that many of my fellow 12-year-old NHL teammates were graduating to. Not only were we moving to changing on the fly but we were also now eligible for body contact.

Like most 12-year-old girls, I was starting to feel a little awkward and out of place in most situations, let alone being the only girl in the hockey dressing room. I finished out that year, but decided to try my luck with downhill ski racing the next winter instead of playing hockey.

I sat out of hockey for a couple of seasons and joined my first women’s hockey team a few years later. That first game back felt like going home.

Today, hockey is an important outlet for me. After moving to Winnipeg about five years ago, I joined the women’s hockey team my sister had been playing on in the Adult Safe Hockey League. It’s been a great way to get exercise, blow off some steam, and get to know some great women.

As we head into playoff season, I’m thankful to my parents for signing me up and getting me to the rink for so many years, even if it didn’t always seem like I loved the game. Today, there is no doubt I do.

When I think about the wellness wheel, hockey swirls through quite a few of the spokes. The game and my teammates are a great way to take care of my physical, social, and mental health. For me, there’s nothing like a good sweat to put things in perspective. When I’m on the ice, other stresses melt away and my biggest problem is trying to get that puck in the net.

What sports or activities help you stay well, without feeling like work? Let us know in the comments.

Red River College Athletics and Recreation Services offers Group Fitness Programs suited to all interests and fitness levels. Our highly trained and enthusiastic instructors will lead you through a fun and challenging workout suited to you.

Registered Programs for 2016 Spring Term

Classes scheduled for spring term.

Spring Fling with Jesse and Lesley. Tuesdays from 12:05pm to 12:50pm. A quick 3 class session to be used as your wellness bridge from Winter to Spring Terms!

Yoga with Amanda on Mondays from 4:15pm to 5:15pm

Boot Camps with Jesse on Tuesdays from 12:05pm to 12:50pm

Dynamic Core with Lesley on Thursdays from 12:05pm to 12:50pm

Fitness Classes Now Free for Students!!!

Starting in 2016, all Fitness Classes are free to use for RRC Students. Students can fill out Fitness Class registration form, minus payment, and drop it off at GM20 in the North Gym or email to Recreation Coordinator Cole Skinner @ coskinner@rrc.ca. Students are also welcome to drop in the fitness classes as well, provided space is available.

Info

Spring Classes will start April 5th and run until June 27th.

Drop in cards for 5 or 10 classes per term can also be purchased.

Register

To register for a class download the 2016 Spring Fitness Classes Registration Form, if your staff, alumni or community user fill it out and take it to the Student Service Centre to make a payment.  If you are a student, please complete form and drop off at front desk in the North Gym.

Written by EDC Student Support Services staff

There was no mystery as to why Student Support Services staff in P210 chose to walk…and walk, and walk and walk some more. Mere moments after the gauntlet had been dropped from the Wellness Committee’s Get Movin’ Challenge, a much bigger gauntlet was thrown down by the self-appointed wellness subcommittee at EDC…

The EDC P210 side challenge: Choose a goal to smash – not meet, smash – which must exceed 7,000 steps to be eligible for the College challenge, as well as the P210 challenge.  Armed with electronic-step-tracking arm candy, eight participants competed for this winner-takes-all side challenge.

Our leaderboard

The participants had their own reasons and benefits why they took on this challenge. But the office leaderboard, which strikingly resembled the mountain climber from The Price is Right (see pictures), provided added motivation.

Apropos for someone in an applied post-secondary environment, the subcommittee converted the participants’ ongoing progress to something we could relate to in our day-to-day lives.

The climber from The Price is Right

Here’s a snapshot of an application shout-out:

“So far, we have clocked over 2.5 million steps collectively – we could be high fiving with the polar bears in Churchill by now! We totally crushed the 7,000 step requirement to qualify for the Get Movin’ Challenge.”

On Feb 29^th, 3.5 million collective steps later, the stepper with the highest percentage of their goal exceeded (coupled with the largest calves) was announced winner.

The P210 crew can’t glory in this moment though – they’ve been handed their next wellness assignment. Stakes are high – the winner will walk away with a score of items which could include:

• A winner and not “please play again” coffee rim
• An unopened One Direction CD
• A PaintNite painting

The step challenge can definitely take on another form which resonates with your department; here was an example from the Exchange District Campus.

We so look forward to reading yours!

Photo By Chantel Reles

Essential oils have become an essential part of my life. Their applications are diverse and have a wide variety of benefits. Considering a greater demand on industry for less harsh chemicals and synthetics in personal care products, society is looking at taking a more natural approach.

What is an essential oil? “A natural oil typically obtained by distillation and having the characteristic fragrance of the plant or other source from which it is extracted”, as said directly from Oxford English Dictionary (online, American English ed.). To expand, it is a hydrophobic liquid (repels from water). Whoa science! It is called essential not because it is necessary but because it is from the essence of the plant source. Read More →

The Wellness Committee would like to thank all of those who participated in the challenge. We are thrilled with the results and can’t wait to run this fantastic program next year. We would also like to thank the various departments around the College and Student Association who generously donated prizes.

Congratulations to all the winners of the Get Movin’ Challenge!

Bronze Level Winners: Serene Desmond, Tamara Schaab-Johnson, Don Gould, Allison Richard, Avery Sluce, Jason McMaster, Jaren Press, Luke Sadler, Kim Elphick, Krystal Boyce-Gaudreau, Kenneth Malczewski, Lisa Wolfe, Nernie Mandrick, Fae Arabnit

Silver Level Winners: Ashish Kumar, Desiree Guay, Dave Thomas, Faye Bychuck, Andrea Kozlowski, Tien Trieu Tran, Angelica Calvedores, Don Gould, Arleigh Mackenzie

Gold Level Winners: 250$ Sport Chek gift card: Kylie Clark / Thermea Spa Gift Package: Tien Trieu Tran / Fitbit HR Charge 1: Marie Delorme / Fibtit HR Charge 2: Mary Northover-Ramey / 100$ Lug bag: Megan Havens

To claim your prize, please contact Cole Skinner by email at coskinner@rrc.ca, by phone at 204-632-2397 or in person at GM20 – NDC.

Thank you everyone for participating and for sharing how this challenge has motivated you to be more active in February and beyond.

Send us your story to wellness@rrc.ca and visit blogs.rrc.ca/wellness to find out how the Get Movin’ Challenge has affected those around you – who knows it may be you!!

Keep moving, Your Staff and Student Wellness Committee

I have become a dog person – which is surprising to some of my family members – but now I cannot imagine my life without a dog or two around.

My first dog came into my life in 1999; a three year old Bichon Frisé named Rufus. He was the perfect dog to start a journey of dog ownership. My husband and I had moved to a northern BC community and I began the process of finding employment. Rufus saved my sanity during my hunt for employment. Rufus needed to be walked, so this forced me to get outside instead of staying in the house all day. Fresh air and a good walk kept me mentally healthy. There was nothing like walking a cute, fluffy white dog to start a neighbourly conversation.

Rufus came on all our adventures with us: Cross country skiing, mountain biking, hiking and camping. He was known to sit in a backpack while we were biking around town. He visited numerous job sites with my husband. The contractors in town all knew him. He travelled with us each time we moved to another province adjusting to each move easier than I. Rufus provided us with so much joy and he lived to be 14. An old dog in dog years.

Our house was empty without a dog around, so I was on the hunt for another dog to enrich our lives.

We went from small dog to large dog. We decided on a Golden Retriever. We picked Sheena up in July 2011. This was our first time as puppy owners. Sheena made puppy ownership a breeze. She was so easy to train. But we didn’t realize that a big head and big paws meant a big dog!! Sheena is a 75 pound female golden retriever.   We discovered very early that she does not enjoy Winnipeg summers. She is a cold weather dog; -35⁰C and Sheena is curled up outside in the snow. She loves chasing the deer and rabbits. She loves to exercise and also loves to chill while at home.

Puppyhood with Sheena was such a breeze that we decided to get another Golden Retriever. Sierra DID NOT make puppyhood a breeze. I kept asking the vet what was wrong and she gently told me that there was nothing wrong and that Sierra was a very healthy, normal puppy! Our two Goldens have the same mother but you would not guess it. Sierra is the exact opposite of Sheena in every way!!! I spent the first 18 months alternating between threatening to give her up and maybe keeping her. Today, Sierra is three years old and I wouldn’t trade her for the world. She is such a wonderful dog. Although she is full of energy and doesn’t stop from the minute she wakes up until she goes to bed, she is the cuddliest dog I have ever met.

SIERRA (on the left) Sheena (on the right)

At first, Sheena was not impressed with the new addition to the family but enjoys Sierra’s company now. Sierra absolutely LOVES her big sister. She spends hours trying to get Sheena to play with her and if that doesn’t work, she finds something to take from the garage, through the doggie door into the back yard. Sierra does not enjoy being separated from her sister. She walks around looking for Sheena and won’t settle down until Sheena is around. We couldn’t even run with them separately; once, my husband was running with Sheena and I was lagging behind with Sierra and, well, forget that – that wasn’t going to fly. Sheena sat down and no amount of pulling was going to get her moving – my husband had to run with both dogs.

The dogs absolutely love the swimming pool/lake/river. We had to put a gate around the pool to keep Sierra out. As a puppy, she decided to jump in while the summer cover was on the pool.

SHEENA (on the left) SIERRA (on the right)

Dog ownership enriches your life in ways I am not eloquent to express but I would be remiss if I did not mention that dog ownership is not for everyone; dog ownership is work and they cost money. But if you are ready to accept the work you will find the benefits of dog ownership far out-weigh any work. Dog ownership ties very deeply and personally to my sense of wellness and mental well-being.

Ready for dog ownership? Consider adopting a dog from many of the dog rescue organizations in the city. I have provided a link to three:

http://www.winnipeghumanesociety.ca/

http://manitobamutts.org/

http://petrescueshelter.com/

The Wellness Committee is hosting its first ever “Get Movin’ Challenge”. For the entire month of February, challenge yourself, your co-workers and fellow students to stop sitting and start moving.

Dates:
Participation- February 1-29
Prize Day- Thursday March 3

Signing Up!
Sign-up by email at wellness@rrc.ca

Counting Your Steps!
It’s easy! Use your smartphone, fitness band or a pedometer

Smart phone Apps Examples:
IPhone- Steps, Pacer, Pedometer
Android- S Health, Google Fit, Pedometer
BlackBerry- Casca/Sports Run Tracker Pro, Sports Tracker, Endomondo

Step Conversion Chart

Some activities do not allow for a pedometer to be used, or perhaps you would rather count your steps/exercise/activity without one. No problem. You can use the following Step Conversion Charts to mark your progress! Below are to separate but similar conversion charts, use whichever one that works best for you and get active!

Purdue University Activity Converter

Step Conversion Chart

Incentives/Prize Structure: Participants will gain entry into each prize category if they complete a specific minimum number of days in which they achieve 7,000 steps per day. There will be 3 prize levels:

Bronze Level-10 days completed: Prizes included- Gatorade bottles, Gatorade towels, Gatorade powder tins, yoga mats, Rebels swag, Ladderball Set, Gym Bag

Silver Level– 15 days completed: Prizes included- Manitoba Moose tickets, Free Rec Services Fitness Class, Free RRC Gym Membership, Free Massage session with Jason Mtthes @ AAA Mobile Massage Therapy, Free Athletic Therapy Session with Andrea Wazney @ Rebels Athletics, Free Athletic Therapy Session with Stephanie Smith @ Rebels Athletics

Gold Level– 20 days competed: $250 Gift Certificate from Sport Chek, Thermea Spa Package, (2) Fitbit Wristbands

Example: If Jill reaches 7,000 steps per day for 21 of the days, she is entered once in each level draw. If Joe reaches 7,000 steps per day for 17 of the days, he is entered once into the Bronze and Silver levels.

All participants will be self-reporting.

Get Movin Challenge Booklet

Get Movin Challenge-PDF Tracker

Prize Day

Will occur Thursday March 3rd 12:00-12:45pm, at the Cave on NDC. Participants will hand in their log books to the committee, which are then entered into the various prize categories. Persons who cannot attend in person can submit results beforehand by email to wellness@rrc.ca. 

The cutoff to enter results in person is 12:30pm, Thursday March 3rd. 

Cutoff to enter results via email is 3:00pm, Wednesday March 2nd. 

The draw will commence at 12:30pm, Thursday March 3rd with the winners announced.

Ways to Get Movin’!

The more days you achieve your goal, the better the prizes. Use a wide array of physical activities to reach your goal, walking, running, biking, dancing, swimming, etc. It’s all about being active! Try using the stairs instead of an elevator, have a walking meeting rather than sitting, park a little farther from grocery store. It all adds up!