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Madison County Health
Dept. - Big Success!
Making lifestyle
changes that would promote weight loss and improve overall health has been a
goal of many employees of the Madison County Health Department this year.
Twenty-four of those
employees participated in the 2011 Scale Back Alabama program at the beginning
of the year. While only two were able to achieve the ten pound weight loss in a
ten week period, others made many healthy changes that they continue practicing
to this day.
One success story of
Scale Back was the Madison County WIC Coordinator, Kashera Sims.
Sims stated, “Scale Back provided me with a support system that I
needed to achieve my personal, nutrition, and fitness goals. Having someone to
engage in physical activity with motivated me and was very helpful.
Combining healthy eating with physical activity enabled me to lose 50
pounds!” During Scale Back Sims lost 14 pounds. With continued dedication to
maintaining a healthy diet and 30 minutes to an hour of physical activity a day
since completing the program, she managed to lose an additional 36 pounds.
She is truly an inspiration to all.
During Scale Back
many participants started walking for thirty minutes each day in the Max Luther
Community Center’s gym, which is located next door to the health department.
This walking regime has now been transformed into a thirty minute
strength training and cardio workout that several employees participate in five
days a week.
In June 2011, several
health department workers started a line dancing class.
These classes take place on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays from 5-5:30
p.m. This helps to incorporate
physical activity in a way that is fun and exciting.
Sharon Bland, Jocelyn Wilson, and Mildred Jones were the innovators of
this program. Sharon states, “It
has been a great success. We have a warm up song and then we usually try to do 4
line dances per session. I love it and it just gives us all a chance to relax
and have a little fun.” Their excitement is contagious, and the class
continues to grow. Jocelyn Wilson said, “Line dancing is something that I
wanted to learn. It is a great way
to exercise. Since it is something
that I enjoy, I will keep doing it, once I get the hang of it.”
Wherever you walk in
the health department, you will hear talk of healthy eating and staying
physically active. It is an exciting
time for many. They are noticing the
pounds melt away and are becoming addicted to the progress.
Eating healthy doesn’t have to be a strain for anyone.
Let’s continue to get inspired and motivated.
Let’s make 2011 the year that we don’t just live to eat, but eat to
live.
By: Tenaja Ali, Nutrition Associate (Madison County Health
Department)
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Questions? E-mail info@scalebackalabama.com.
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