Fall River —

Most of us think that our health is a private, personal matter. We think it is up to us alone to make sure we are eating right or getting the right amount of exercise or even quitting unhealthy behaviors like smoking.Research, however, tells us another story. We are all much more sensitive to the clues and messages that our social environment provide. We make most of our health changes within the context of the people around us who help us identify problem behaviors and who subtly guide us either to maintain or to successfully change our behavior.

We may think we decide to lose weight entirely on our own, for example, but it is our perception of how others see us that most frequently motivates us to take action and the responses of those around us to our efforts most frequently predict the likelihood of our success.

That 's why any effort to improve our health needs a context of others around us. To be successful, we need others, not only to tell us we need to make a change but to help us make it happen. Fortunately, for anyone in Fall River who intends to improve their health status after the New Year, help is on the way!
Building on the very successful 2008 Fitness Challenge, the second annual Challenge promises to be an even better series of events bringing in more people who want to get healthier. Last year, more than 1,000 people participated in the four-month series of weigh-ins and events designed to keep people motivated. Altogether, participants were able to record a record 3,410 pounds of weight loss by the end of the Challenge in early May.

What kept people going, noted fitness instructor Amy Jones, was the relationships they had with supportive people around them. Jones, who works at the fitness center at the Community Development Recreation program, says Losing weight or making any other change in health-related behavior demands a lot of emotional work, she notes. The groups that Jones runs, including kick-boxing classes, emphasize group support and encouragement.

This year, Fitness Challenge participants will be given colored rubber wrist bands and asked to wear them wherever they go. We want people in the Challenge to be able to recognize each other in the grocery store and at the laundromat and give each other support, stated Municipal Employee Wellness Coordinator Julianne Kelly. The idea is that you 're part of a movement, a large group that 's going through the same challenges at the same time, she added.
In addition to last year 's focus on weight loss as a key indicator of fitness, this year 's event will also include the option of setting personal goals for walking and strength-training, as well as goals for lowering blood pressure and blood sugar, reducing waist size, eating more fruits and vegetables, and even quitting smoking.

The addition of smoking cessation to the Challenge goals is very important given the City 's high rate of adult smokers, currently over 30 percent. We 'll be having special challenge day on Jan. 24 just to focus on cessation methods, noted the City 's Wellness Coordinator, Michael Ramos.
The Challenge will kick off on Saturday, Jan. 10, at CD REC headquarters at 72 Bank St., Fall River, with a health fair running from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Anyone who wishes to participate in the Challenge is urged to sign up, weigh-in and take advantage of the resource tables at this event.

Teams are also expected to form at various work sites throughout the community as well. Last year, we had over 50 teams who entered the Challenge and competed for prizes, recalled CD REC Program Director Jamison Souza. Individuals and groups can sign up anytime until the end of January. This year 's Challenge is being supported by a Community Care Grant from the United Way and a generous donation to help with the mechanics of tracking weights and sending out e-mail reminders.

Challenge participants will have free or reduced-rate access to the fitness center at CD REC and facilities at the Fall River YMCA. A four-month calendar of events that take place every other Saturday and during the weeks of the Challenge will also be in place.

Participants will be eligible for prizes simply for participating in Challenge events, and grand prizes will be awarded to men and women with the greatest percentage weight loss. For more information, contact CD REC at 508-679-0922, the Diabetes Association at 508-672-5671 or Healthy City Fall River at 508-324-2411.

David Weed is coordinator of Healthy City Fall River.

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