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Keep up your healthy eating habits by growing your own garden.

Fall is just around the corner and a perfect time to indulge in some banana muffins.

You may hate to sweat, but it’s the body’s built-in air conditioner and it has many benefits.

Meet Ivan, an HMC employee whose life was changed forever because he talked to a coach.

SEPT

2016

H MSMARTERHEALTHCARE DECISIONS

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Alzheimer’s is the most common form of dementia. Dementia is a term for loss of memory and other mental abilities that affect daily life. Alzheimer’s disease makes up 60 to 80 percent of dementia cases. Every 3 seconds someone in the world develops dementia.Reduce Your Risk of DementiaLook After Your Heart Smoking, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes and obesity increase the risk of developing dementia later in life. You can prevent these problems by making healthy lifestyle choices.Be Physically ActiveEvidence suggests physical activity and exercise can reduce the risk of developing dementia. Getting active is also proven to make us feel good. Follow A Healthy DietFood is fuel for both your brain

and body. It is best to avoid foods that are high in saturated fat, sugar and/or salt. It is important to eat a healthy, balanced diet.Challenge Your BrainTry new activities to help build new brain cells. New activities help strengthen the connection between brain cells. Enjoy Social ActivitiesMake time for friends and family to benefit your brain. Combine physical activity and mental exercises while visiting with people you love to really keep your brain active.Warning Signs for DementiaMemory LossForgetting recently learned information is one of the most common signs of Alzheimer’s. This can include forgetting important dates or events and asking for the same information over and over. It

could also require needing memory aids such as reminder notes.Misplacing ThingsPutting things in unusual places is another sign of Alzheimer’s disease. Losing things and being unable to retrace their steps to find them and accusing people of stealing their things are also common signs.Changes In Mood & PersonalityBeing confused, depressed, fearful or anxious are also apart of dementia. Getting easily upset at home, work, or in places where they are out of their comfort zone.Challenges in Planning Following a familiar recipe or keeping track of monthly bills can become difficult. Those with Alzheimer’s may have trouble concentrating and it can take longer to do everyday things.

WORLD ALZHEIMER’S MONTH

1A healthy garden grows best in good soil and with the correct amount of sun and water. Be sure to position your garden beds to receive optimum sunlight.

FITNESSCORNERDid you know sweating is the body’s built-in air conditioner? Check out the benefits of sweating:KEEPING YOU COOLWhen your body temperature rises above the normal range (97.2° - 98.6° F), the body cools itself down by sweating.KEEPING YOU CLEANYou may not feel squeaky clean when you’re sweating, but it is helping you keep your body clean. Sweat is released through the skin and pushes through the pores to eliminate dirt.KEEPING YOU HEALTHYA study showed that sweat could help protect you from getting sick. In fact, it has a natural antibiotic that can help fight germs and bacteria that cause you to get sick.KEEPING YOU LIMBERWhen you sweat, your body’s muscles are warmed by the heat of sweating. This helps release the stress of muscle tension and fatigue.

PEANUT BUTTER, BANANA & HONEY MUFFINS

Ingredients - Serves 152 cups white whole wheat flour1 tsp. baking powder1 tsp. baking soda1/2 tsp. salt1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon4 large ripe bananas1/4 cup packed light brown sugar1/4 cup honey1 tbsp. coconut oil, melted1 large egg1 tsp. vanilla extract1/4 cup creamy peanut butter1/2 cup almond milk Directions• Preheat the oven to 350° F. Line a muffin pan with paper liners and set aside.• In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder,

baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. Set aside.• Peel the bananas and mash with a fork until smooth. Place the mashed bananas in the bowl of a stand mixer. • Add the brown sugar, honey, coconut oil, egg, vanilla and beat until combined.• Add in the peanut butter and beat until smooth. Add the flour mixture and milk alternately, starting and ending with the flour. Mix until just combined. Don’t over mix.• Fill muffin liners three-quarters full. Bake until toothpick inserted into center comes out clean, about 20-22 minutes. Transfer to wire rack to cool.

Recipe and photo courtesy of: Two Peas & Their Podhttp://www.twopeasandtheirpod.com/peanut-butter-banana-and-honey-muffins/

WINTER GARDEN5 tips on how to

start a garden this fall for vegetables all winter.

START WITH THE BASICS

2 3 4 5Vegetables that love the cold include: leafy salad greens, kale and broccoli. Choosing plants that can endure cold weather is a key step in growing a winter garden.

An insulated cold frame with a lid will protect your vegetables during the winter months. Place the frame where it will get at least 6 hours of direct sun per day.

Be sure to have your snow boots handy! Open the cold frames when it’s dry and the temperatures are above freezing. It will let in fresh air and sunlight.

MY WELLNESS JOURNEY

SELECT THE RIGHT PLANTS PLANT EARLY GET

PROTECTIONROUTINE MAINTENANCE

Get your garden ready before the first frost. Planting your winter veggie crop in late August/early September is very important.

Written by: Ivan Bruno-Gaston

Several years ago, I began working for HMC HealthWorks as a temporary associate. Having worked in another industry my entire life, I knew nothing of wellness and how it applied to healthcare as a whole. However, as I began to work for the firm and learned more about what they do and how they help others, I became very intrigued. Finally after a few months, I called an associate from the coaching department and asked if they would coach me. THAT DECISION CHANGED MY LIFE...FOREVER. My coach accepted my request and began by requesting that I do a physical checkup which was something I haven’t done in years. My results were shocking to me. I was obese . . . very obese in fact with a Body Mass Index (BMI) at 43.1. I also discovered that I had high blood

pressure. I was only in my early 30’s and was on a path to poor health in middle age. Though the experience was shocking, the awareness it created was the primary motivator for me to change. My coach helped me to design my dietary goals as well as my physical activity plan based on what I felt comfortable doing. However, the most important concept she helped me to understand is that wellness is a journey, not a destination. Wellness is a way of life and not a series of activities that you do until you reach a certain goal . . . and then stop. Wellness is a constant and continuous investment into your personal wellbeing which won’t be realized if you spend your life looking for the finish line. Once I adopted this philosophy, my journey began.Beginning the process of change was difficult, as expected, and I found times of discouragement frequently throughout the process. My coach taught me how to change with change and apply new techniques where others weren’t getting results. I am now proud to say that, through my journey in wellness, I have now lost over 100 lbs and gained a new outlook to life. This is a process I would not have achieved without HMC

HealthWorks and I am forever grateful for this experience. I believe that there are three keys to the effectiveness of HMC’s wellness coaching process that helped me achieve change:Awareness: Awareness in my opinion is so critical to change because, without awareness, most individuals do not see a need to change. I had to come to a personal realization that I needed urgently to make changes in my life and my self care.Journey vs Destination: All too often, we focus on healthy activities purely to reach a goal such as a weight goal or a cholesterol goal. I refer to this as “Destination thinking”. The problem with this thought process is that the healthy behaviors cease once a goal is achieved. To create lasting change, wellness has to become a way of life. Wellness must become a part of your identity and personalityChange with Change: I learned, from my coach, to change strategies frequently as needed to keep pace with my journey. She taught me that setbacks open new opportunities to explore new possibilities. These keys are what continue to drive my wellness journey and I have HMC HealthWorks to thank for that.

VISIT https://ironworkerslocal1.hmchealthworksco.comCALL 877.739.9950

FOR MORE INFORMATION OR TIPS ON EVERYDAY HEALTH