Posts Tagged ‘Worksite Wellness’

Mexican Adventure – Part 3

Friday, July 16th, 2010

Mexican Adventure Part 3…  There were four of us ordering lunch that day.  Order # 1 “I always get the tortilla salad.”  We discussed what was on the salad and it sounded pretty good—chicken, corn, cilantro, cheese (depends how much…remember how many calories are in ½ cup?).  Her biggest concern was that the chicken tasted like it was cooked in oil.  I encouraged her to find out how it is prepared.  If it is cooked in oil there may be options the server can recommend.  However, she was hesitant to change her favorite meal…

Order #2 “I love Chimichangas”.  Well, that’s a difficult one…  Chimichangas are Chimichangas because they are fried.  Fried is almost always more calories than you expect!  So we went back to my research from Calorie King.  A Beef Chimichanga (without eating the sides) is 1310 calories with 98 g fat (31 g saturated fat) YIKES!  What about chicken?  Well it’s better:  1099 calories and 42 g fat (20 g saturated fat).  “I will never order that again!” I say, never say never… you can split it with someone or save ½ for another meal.  (For the chicken Chimichanga, this would be acceptable but still a bit high for calories and fat.)  We decide to look at a different menu option.  We decide on cheese quesadilla, depending on how it is prepared.  A cheese quesadilla is closer to 490 calories and 28 g fat, much better.

Order #3 “I like fajitas”.   In my research fajitas varied quite a bit 450 calories to 851 calories (both chicken and both without the sides).  We look to the lunch menu and decide to order from that since portions tend to be smaller.  Also, asking questions when we ordered.

My order, since I had done all this research I decided ahead of time I would stick to one of my favorites a tostada.  I actually prefer flour tortillas but I do like the corn tortilla in tostadas or hard tacos.  They actually didn’t have a tostada lunch meal so I simply ordered the chicken tostada as a side.  Even on its own a tostada is 360 calories, 21 g fat.  With my chips and salsa that is actually about a typical amount of food that I eat for lunch if I pack my own.

I’m so proud of my lunch mates!  They all asked questions (even about the chicken in the salad) and we learned that in this restaurant the chicken is not cooked in oil but grilled with the skin on.  The lunch fajitas did not come with a tortilla which was fine for us!  We saved ~100 calories there.  And my Chimichanga gal really liked the quesadilla which was not cooked in oil at all.

I think we all learned a lot and had a delicious Mexican meal, all healthier than what we normally would have ordered!       ¡¡Viva Las Margarita’s!!

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Mexican Adventure – Part 2

Wednesday, July 14th, 2010

Las Margaritas, Lewis Center, OH: Home of our Mexican Adventure

Mexican Adventure Part 2…  Las Margarita’s here we come!  I want to thank the employees at Las Margarita’s for helping to answer all of our questions and still serve us a fabulous meal with modifications!

I arrived first and a little early to the restaurant.  I had barely sat down when there were 2 baskets of chips and salsa placed on the table.  I ordered water and asked for plates.  Here’s my take on beverages in a restaurant:  #1 I don’t like to waste my calories on empty calories such as pop.  I prefer to eat them! #2 Have you seen recently how much a pop or even iced tea costs?  So I look at it this way I’m saving my waist and my wallet…

Why did I order the plates?  This is a little trick I learned at home.  When I want to eat something but control how much I always put it on its own plate or bowl.  So we know from last time that a single serving of chips is only 140 calories vs. 430 calories for the whole basket.  Also keep in mind that all baskets are not the same size, this one looked particularly big!

Basket of Chips = approximately 430 calories

One other challenge is “what does 1oz look like?”   From experience I know this depends on the size of the chips.  So we decided these chips were pretty big and estimated ~8 chips = 1 oz.  Before you judge take a look at my plate of 8 chips…  I do love to eat the chips and salsa while I wait for my dinner, so this way I can eat it, enjoy it and control it.

One serving of chips = about 140 calories

As everyone arrived we discussed just these issues and then started to talk about what we normally order.

Look for Part 3 and the conclusion of our Mexican Adventure!

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What’s New in Worksite Wellness?

Wednesday, April 7th, 2010

Three years ago, as a registered dietitian and certified personal trainer, I would not have guessed that my full time job would revolve around work-site wellness programs.  I also would not have guessed how rewarding it is!

When it comes to work-site wellness programs employers want to know: “What will a wellness program do for my business?”  The Return on Investment (ROI) data is coming in:

“A 2002 U.S. Department of Health and Human Services study noted that companies with physical activity programs for employees have reduced health care costs by 20 percent to 55 percent, reduced short-term sick leave by up to 32 percent and increased productivity by up to 52 percent.”

http://www.health.state.ny.us/prevention/worksite/

“According to an article published on Business Insurance April 27, 2009: Poor health among U.S. workers costs employers much more than many realize in reduced productivity, according to a multi-year study of 10 employers and more than 150,000 workers.

The study, published in the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, found that presenteeism–when employees are present at their jobs but unable to perform at full capacity–creates a greater drain on company productivity than employee absence, a finding that may come as a surprise to many employers, researchers say.

For every dollar spent on medical costs and pharmaceuticals, there is $2.30 of health-related productivity losses due to absenteeism and presenteeism, according to the study. For certain conditions, such as anxiety, employers lose as much as $20 in productivityfor every dollar they spend on medical care and pharmaceuticals.

The study, which researchers said is one of the largest to date on the subject, found that when medical and prescription drug costs are considered alone, the top five conditions driving employer health care costs are cancer, back/neck pain, coronary heart disease, chronic pain and high cholesterol.”

http://www.businessinsurance.com/article/20090426/ISSUE01/100027532

These cost-savings are achieved when a culture of wellness and a focus on preventive care for employees (not sick care) is emphasized.  Successful worksite wellness programs understand this and use this to drive their wellness initiatives.

Whether you are just starting to implement wellness initiatives at your worksite or you have had them in place for some time now, consider conducting a needs assessment survey. The results can help you achieve maximum ROI by guiding your decisions for wellness programming.

What a difference a few years has made. A lot has changed in the field of worksite wellness since three years ago, and I have no doubt the trend is going to continue. Now is the time to drive your efforts forward.

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Creating a Heart Healthy Workplace

Monday, February 22nd, 2010

If you are like most workers you work a nine to five type of job. That is at least 40% of your waking hours at the worksite. Since you invest so much time in your career, wouldn’t it be great if some of that time not only benefited your employer, but also your health?

Before we understand how important it is to create a heart-healthy workplace, we need to face the facts. Heart disease, stroke, heart rhythm disorders, peripheral artery disease, heart failure, and others are the leading causes of death and disability in the United States. The American Heart Association estimates that up to 30% of medical costs paid by businesses each year are spent on employees with risk factors for cardiovascular disease such as cigarette smoking, excess weight, physical inactivity, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and diabetes. Let’s take a closer look at home:

  • Heart disease was the leading cause of death for Ohio residents in 2004-2006
  • 27.6% of Ohio adult residents reported having high blood pressure
  • In Ohio, 36.2% of adults are overweight and 26.5% are obese
  • In Ohio 37.9% of adult residents have been told by their doctor that they have high cholesterol

Creating a heart-healthy workplace will not only help the company’s return on investment but wellness programs will help the employees get healthy and stay healthy.  A heart-healthy program does not need to be complex or expensive. Here are some tips for employers to start a healthy work environment.

  • Information to employees: Newsletters, healthy email tips
  • Health policies: no tobacco use
  • Healthy eating habits: change vending machines, offer nutrition information, adding more fruits and vegetables to the cafeteria
  • Exercise: walking paths, on-site fitness programs, encourage fitness during breaks
  • Offer health screenings

There is not a one-size-fits-all approach but the efforts should focus on: smoking cessation, increasing physical activity, reducing stress, healthy eating, weight management, and education.  There are many ways to incorporate a heart-healthy work environment and many models to follow. If your company doesn’t have a program, create one that fits your needs. The Rite Bite can help!

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