We Wear What We Eat!

This was on the SilverSneakers site.  It's funny because it's too true!!

Holiday Sweator Contest

 My SilverSneakers group always has a Holiday Party/Potluck in December.  I usually provide the ham or sometimes a class member wants to help by bringing a cooked ham.  Then all everybody else has to bring is the sides or desserts - Pretty easy! 

We usually play a gift exchange game called Dirty Santa (See Dec. 8, 2011 blog for full details).
 This year we added a Holiday Sweater Contest.  I gave a prize for the Most Beautiful Sweater and for the Most Outrageous Sweater!  We had some really fun entries!  Of course, I mentioned that it could be a decorated t-shirt and didn't have to be Christmas!

The party gets bigger every year!  Some of the participants tell me that it is the highlight of their holidays! 

Note:  This brings me to something I wanted to mention.  I try to hold as many of our classes as possible, even during the holidays.  Our classes help to get participants out of the house and around friends.  This can sometimes be a lonely time of year for those who have lost spouses or don't live close to loved ones.  Having something to do helps them to cope with the depression they may be fighting.

Remember When?

Let class participants share holiday memories.  Here are a few questions to get them started:

     What is your first Christmas memory?
     Do you remember a favorite gift or your biggest surprise?
     Do you have a tradition you would like to share?
     How did you decorate your tree?
     What did you want your children to remember about the holidays?
     Do you have a holiday treat you like to make each year?

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

Grandma, Is Santa Claus Real?

Here is one of my favorite Christmas stories to share:

Grandma, Is Santa Claus Real?

I remember my first Christmas adventure with Grandma.  I was just a kid.  I remember tearing across town on my bike to visit her on the day my big sister dropped the bomb:  "There is no Santa Claus," she jeered.  "Even dummies know that!"

My Grandma was not the gushy kind, never had been.  I fled to her that day because I knew she would be straight with me.  I knew Grandma always told the truth, and I knew that the truth always went down a whole lot easier when swallowed with one of her world-famous cinnamon buns.  I knew they were world-famous because Grandma said so.  It had to be true.

Grandma was home, and the buns were still warm.  Between bites, I told her everything.  She was ready for me.  "No Santa Claus!" she snorted.  "Ridiculous!  Don't believe it.  That rumor has been going around for years, and it makes me mad, plain mad.  Now put on your coat, and let's go."

"Go?  Go where, Grandma?" I asked.  I hadn't even finished my second, world-famous cinnamon bun.  "Where" turned out to be Kerby's General Store, the one store in town that had a little bit of just about everything.  As we walked through its doors, Grandma handed me ten dollars.  That was a bundle in those days.  "Take this money," she said,"  and buy something for someone who needs it.  I'll wait for you in the car."  Then she turned and walked out of Kerby's.

I was only eight years old.  I'd often gone shopping with my mother, but never had I shopped for anything all by myself.  The store seemed big and crowded, full of people scrambling to finish their Christmas shopping.  For a few moments I just stood there, confused, clutching that ten-dollar bill, wondering what to buy, and who on earth to buy it for.

I thought of everybody I knew: my family, my friends, my neighbors, the kids at school, the people who went to my church.  I was just about thought out, when i suddenly thought of Bobby Decker.  He was a skinny kid with messy hair and he sat right behind me in Mrs. Pollock's grade-two class.

Bobby Decker didn't have a coat.  I knew that because he never went out for recess during the winter.  His mother always wrote a note, telling the teacher that he had a cough, but all we kids knew that Bobby Decker didn't have a cough, and he didn't have a coat.  I fingered the ten-dollar bill with growing excitement.  I would buy Bobby Decker a coat!

I settled on a red corduroy one that had a hood to it.  It looked real warm, and he would like that.  "Is this a Christmas present for someone?" the lady behind the counter asked kindly, as I laid my ten dollars down.  "Yes," I replied shyly.  "It's....for Bobby.  He doesn't have a coat."  The nice lady smiled at me.  I didn't get any change, but she put the coat in a bag and wished me a Merry Christmas.

That evening, Grandma helped me wrap the coat in Christmas paper and ribbons (a little tag fell out of the coat, and Grandma tucked it in her Bible) and wrote on the package, "To Bobby, From Santa Claus"--Grandma said that Santa always insisted on secrecy.  Then she drove me over to Bobby Decker's house, explaining as we went that I was now and forever officially one of Santa's helpers.

Grandma parked down the street from Bobby's house, and she and I crept noiselessly and hid in the bushes by his front walk.  The Grandma have me a nudge.  "All right, Santa Claus," she whispered, "get going."

I took a deep breath,  dashed for his front door, threw the present down on his step, pounded his doorbell and flew back to the safety of the bushes and Grandma.  Together we waited breathlessly in the darkness for the front door to open.  Finally it did, and there stood Bobby.

Fifty years haven't dimmed the thrill of those moments spent shivering, beside my Grandma, in Bobby Decker's bushes.  That night, I realized that those awful rumors about Santa Claus were just what Grandma said they were: ridiculous!  Santa was alive and will, and we were on his team.

I still have the Bible, with the tag tucked inside:$19.
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And he puzzled three hours, 'till his puzzler was sore.
Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn't before!  "Maybe Christmas," he thought, "doesn't come from a store.  Maybe Christmas, perhaps means a little bit more!" `Dr. Seuss

Today's Decisions Affect You Tomorrow?

I saw this bit of information in the September 2012 issue of All You magazine: 

Fat Settles in Sooner Than you Think

A person's muffin top can materialize quickly.  Researchers at the University of Oxford in England found that, on average, people can add up to 3 teaspoons of belly fat within 4 hours after eating a high-fat meal.  The fatty tissue makes a temporary home around the waist before being stored elsewhere.  Exercise to keep the fat from settling in.   Source:  Fredrik Karpe, PhD

That fact makes the following quote even more motivating!

"I'm careful about what I eat because I know my body will wear it tomorrow!"

Rut Blocker  

Adding something as simple as using "opposites" to you class is a great way to work on fall prevention and agility!  Here's some ideas:

1.  When marching, raise the opposite arm.

2.  Step R leg out, L leg out, R leg in, L leg in (cue: out, out, in, in).  Add the opposite arm so that when the R leg steps out the L arm goes out and when the L leg steps out the R arm goes out.  When the R leg steps in, the L arm comes in, etc.

3  Do heel taps with the same arm reaching out and them toe taps with the opposite arm reaching out.

Look for even more ways to add "brain exercises" to your workout!  Note:  Practice your moves with the same arm and leg.  If that is a challenge for your group, you may want to have them sit to do some of the more challenging "opposites" work like the out, out, in, in move. 



Getting to Know You

My class size has doubled this year due to some changes with our insurance partners.  It's been great but there have been some challenges!  Since we outgrew our room, we tried using the gym.  They hated it!!  It was hard to hear and not as cozy.  We went back to our room and added more classes.

Many in the group have been coming for years now and we know each other and are like family.  We have not gotten to know all the new ones, yet.  To help us get to know each other better, I made up cards with questions on them.  I had each person fill out a card with their name and asked them to cross off any questions on the card that they didn't want me to ask.  Before class, I ask someone if I can interview them.
During the relaxation segment of class, after they are sitting back in their chairs, I bring the person up and ask them the questions on the card.  It's amazing to find out about the people we have been sitting in the same room with for months!

When they come up, I have them say their name and age, if they want.  Then I ask any of these questions that they have not crossed off their card:

1.  Tell us something about your family.

2.  Is there a job that you have done that you feel proud of?

3.  Do you have any hobbies or sports that you enjoy?

4.  Have you ever played a sport?

5.  What are your goals for coming to this class?

6.  Do you have any words of wisdom for us?

Of course you can ask any questions you'd like, these are just ideas!!

I'd love to hear about how this works for your group and any other ideas to help people get to know each other!

Teaching Seniors is a Gift!

I recently received an e-mail from an instructor who was not going to be teaching her SilverSneakers class anymore.  It reminds us of why we continue to put our time into designing a fun and effective class!  Here is her e-mail:

Hi~

Hope your summer is going well, too!

In May, I graduated from the Occupational Therapy program and accepted a full-time job at Riverside in Hampton, VA!  My last SilverSneakers class was in June and was really difficult to teach.  There were new faces in the crowd, but it was the relationships from over the years that tugged at my heart.  Fortunately, I continue to keep in touch with some of my SS buddies and will always cherish their friendships.  If participants of the SS program benefited or received only a portion of what they gave to me- then we all won!

Thank you for the opportunity to be a part of such an outstanding program.  It was the SS program that started my pursuit of Occupational Therapy!

Debra Barry
There is no greater human gift that kindness.

Things My Father Said

I could use some help.  Do any of you have a great Father's Day Poem?  I have not been able to find a good poem about Dads.

Bunny Hop

It's time to add the Bunny Hop to your choreography!  We have fun doing a simple version of this dance.  Here's how we do it:  Standing, we do two R heel taps to the music and then two left heel taps, step forward, step back and hop, hop, hop (heel taps if they don't want to hop!)  If the stepping forward and back is too hard for your group, just do:  2 R heel taps, 2 L heel taps, 2 R heel taps and hop, hop, hop  Then 2 L heel taps, 2 R heel taps, 2 L heel taps and hop, hop, hop.  Continue alternating until the song is over!

Note for SilverSneakers Instructors

SS has recently clarified it's position on using Grapevines in their classes.  Grapevines are not a contraindicated exercise but are considered HIGH RISK.  If you have an advanced group that can do a grapevine correctly and not have to look down and up every time (hard with bifocals) the Benefit may outweigh the Risk.  You must assess your class every day and decide if this is a good choice for your whole group on that day.  Remember:  When in doubt - Don't do it!