Each month our WellStyles™ team brings you highlights of our 7 pillars of wellness and tips on how to improve yourself from head to toe, inside and out and on building a better YOU! This month is centered around building a better you. In the new year, we tend to set resolutions for ourselves and as such your wellness team … Read More
How to Balance Your Health Goals During the Holidays
Common Belief: Our health goals should be put on the back burner during the holidays. New Perspective: Finding a balance between joy and health during the holidays is key! For consistency’s sake, it was important to me to provide you with a Myth-Buster Monday this month, but I didn’t want to hit you with a heavy topic right before the holidays. Instead, I … Read More
Maintaining a Healthy Mind and Body Through the Holidays
You can’t reverse the calendar in maintaining healthy attitudes, but the Valley Schools Wellness team is here to remind you of some strategies for maintaining your sanity during this most pressured time of year. Reframe Your Thinking Recognize that the people in your life are who they are. It is not new information who will be the Scrooge, who will … Read More
Truth or Myth: It’s the Tryptophan That Makes You Tired
Myth: Tryptophan in turkey is to blame for the Thanksgiving food coma. Truth: Excessive eating and carbohydrate intake are more likely the cause. Truth or Myth it’s the Tryptophan? With Thanksgiving approaching, we felt compelled to dispel a common myth surrounding this well-loved holiday and encourage healthier eating practices at the same time. If you have a tendency to indulge … Read More
Cultivate Gratitude This Holiday
Our fast-paced, consumer-driven world of the twenty-first century can often distract us from celebrating the true essence of the humble November holiday; Thanksgiving. Many of us will take some time to acknowledge what we are grateful for, but how many of us will simultaneously be distracted by “28 shopping days until Christmas”, Black Friday plans, or a big Cyber Monday … Read More
The Self-Care Season
The holidays are right around the corner and people are busy making plans with family and shopping for dinner, along with keeping the household running and trying their best to stay healthy. While many believe the holidays are a time of happiness and joy, the pressures of all the planning that goes into them can put a strain on even … Read More
Truth or Myth: Everyone Should Take Daily Probiotics
Myth: Everyone should take a probiotic supplement daily. Truth: Probiotic supplementation may not be necessary for everyone. A probiotic is defined as a microorganism that maintains or restores beneficial bacteria to the digestive tract when consumed (from food or a dietary supplement). 35,000 species of probiotic bacteria have been identified and each strain has a unique effect on the human … Read More
Leveraging Technology to Help Employees Understand Their Benefits
Is your district making the best out of your insurance benefits? Do your employees understand which healthcare benefits are needed for their family? Leveraging technology during open enrollment can connect the dots for employees in learning what benefits their employer offers and what the advantages of each can mean for them. With so much to look over, it may be … Read More
Meet Your Circadian Rhythm
The rotation of the earth results in a 24-hour light and dark cycle. All life on this planet has adapted and/or evolved with the exposure to daylight and darkness for hundreds of millions of years. Many of us know the circadian rhythm is responsible for our diurnal habits (sleeping at night, and wakefulness during the day). But the effect the … Read More
The Evolutionary Context of the Ketogenic Diet
The ketogenic diet has gained significant traction in the news, on social media, and even documentary production. With its rising popularity, it’s hard not to wonder if this might be the answer we have all been waiting for to settle the never-ending diet war. The truth is, “dieting” is not an eating behavior that is natural to human evolution and … Read More