12 Places in Oklahoma City to Jumpstart Your New Year's Health Resolutions
Posted in
The start of a New Year can bring hope and motivation for change, and most New Year’s resolutions are centered on health goals. Whether you’re aiming for a new weight goal, a better fitness routine or to increase your personal happiness – it’s a great time of year to set new health objectives.
Don’t have a New Year’s resolution yet? We’re simply encouraging Oklahomans to start thinking about their health all year long. We've put together 12 places in Oklahoma City to do just that – one new health-centric place to try each month of the year! Each of these places can foster health in different ways, ranging from healthier eating, to fitness, to mental health and more.
Healthy Eating
Oklahoma Food Cooperative
Owned by Oklahoma Producers and members, this organization connects farmers, ranchers, artisans and volunteers together to provide local food and products right to your door. There is a membership fee, but you’ll earn it back from the money you’ll save on buying produce. Not only that, your family will be eating healthier and supporting the local economy buy buying directly from local farmers and ranchers.
Located in Oklahoma City, Lawton and Stillwater (and some KS and MO locations), GreenAcres Market is known as “your healthy food experts.” Not only are their employees educated thoroughly about their products, they have dieticians and other experts on-site to help you shop for your health needs. GreenAcres also offers classes and events to help the community learn about new ways to eat healthy. These markets also include a health and beauty department where you can find vitamins and supplements, natural soaps, natural makeups and even natural baby products!
Fitness
YMCA Healthy Living Center - INTEGRIS
One of the best ways to accomplish your fitness goals is to have a membership at a gym that motivates you. Not only does PACER offer fitness classes every day of the week, it is a part of INTEGRIS, so the staff is medically trained and ready to help you succeed. The PACER fitness center can also help guide your New Year’s nutrition resolutions with their nutrition counseling services.
The boathouse district of OKC isn’t just for watching regattas– there are tons of activities that are not only fun, but can help your whole family get fit. Each of the boathouses offers an adult fitness center with unique equipment such as a dynamic propulsion rowing tank and Olympic-style free-weights. The Riversport Adventures area offers fun outdoor activities for the whole family, such as bungee trampolines, climbing walls and kayaking.
Hefner-Overholser Trail
Get outside and take a hike or ride your bike along this 7.8 mile trail. This trail connects Lake Overholser and Lake Hefner, which each have great family-friendly parks and activities to enjoy as well.
Mental Health
INTEGRIS Positive Directions Mentoring Program
For over 20 years, INTEGRIS has provided their employees with a unique opportunity to give back to their communities by mentoring children in their local public schools, through the INTEGRIS Positive Directions Mentoring Program.
Originally designed to provide African American male role models to students at a Northeast OKC elementary school, the program has expanded and grown to include hundreds of mentors in a number of schools. Not only INTEGRIS employees, but community friends and partners from all walks of life have now joined in this important endeavor. If you are interested in becoming a mentor, which takes up just one hour a week, call Tobi Campbell at (405) 717-9831.
Heather Meldrum, a teacher at Stanley Hupfeld Academy, says, “When working with under-served kids, you learn that many of them have very little consistency in their lives. Because of this, it is difficult for them to trust people, let alone build a relationship. It is a gap we face very year. A mentor fills that gap, by setting an example that our students don’t see often enough in their homes. I am as blessed as my students that these caring mentors are part of our lives.”
Betina Wills, owner of This Land Yoga, says, “A big way yoga can be helpful in accomplishing or staying on track with New Year’s resolutions is in the mindfulness that is practiced through yoga. Taking out time on your yoga mat and using postures that have been around for a long time, paired with breath work and intention, can be incredibly helpful in acknowledging important changes and adjustments to lifestyle, behavior and health choices. As we practice mindfulness activities, we become more aware of the choices, actions and words we are using on a daily basis, and better understand how they affect us and others.”
Learn to relax, meditate and clear your mind while you also build strength and flexibility. This Land Yoga in Oklahoma City offers classes for all levels, but is an adult-only studio.
With the ability to access content online, sometimes we forget about the amazing public libraries that are all around us. Library cards are free, and you can access books, music, movies and other educational material all year long. Especially if you have school-aged children, the library is a wonderful place to join community activities, such as a book club or “musictime.” The library is a great place to step away from the screen and be a part of stimulating group activities.
Wellness
Register for an INTEGRIS & Me account to communicate with your health care team, manage appointments, pay bills, manage your medical records and even have a virtual visit with an INTEGRIS physician. This new program is a great way to easily access and prioritize your health care in the new year.
INTEGRIS Troy and Dollie Smith Wellness Center
Increase your overall wellness by attending a seminar or class at the INTEGRIS Troy and Dollie Smith Wellness Center. This center is a non-profit educational organization committed to improving health by increasing awareness of the healing power of the connection between mind, body and spirit. Learn more about their classes and events on their Mind Body Essentials page.
Annual Wellness Physical
Each year you and your family should plan to have a wellness visit with your primary care physician. This visit usually includes a check on your height, weight, body mass index, and any other preventive screenings based on your medical history, gender and age. Most health insurance plans cover a yearly wellness physical as well.
Make it a goal to try each of these places once a month for this next year, and see how your health improves! Want to learn how to keep your New Year’s resolution? Check out our blog “Achieve Success in Your Resolutions.”