I Learned How to Wash my Hands in 2020


Think back to pre-2020. Did you ever follow someone out of a public bathroom, someone who walked out without washing his hands?

Did you remember someone sneezing into their hands and not immediately washing them before shaking your hands?

Did you occasionally forget to wash your own hands before touching food, before touching your face, before holding a baby?

Let’s admit it. Before the pandemic of 2020, some of us had gotten lackadaisical about hand washing.

Then 2020.

During the pandemic, handwashing became top of mind. It was as if we all went back to elementary school and learned it all over again.

  • Palms
  • Between fingers
  • Back of the hands
  • Thumbs
  • Fingernails
  • Wrists

Teachers and parents taught kids to sing twice through “Happy Birthday” as they washed, so that they’d wash for more than 20 seconds.

This is the new normal. Let’s not go back to the old ways of hand washing.

The #thingsILearned

Blood, Sweat, and Gears


Health and wellness. Bicycling. Fresh California air. Gorgeous spring weather. The Northern California foothills.
Put them together for an event: the Tour de Cure, cycling to raise awareness for the American Diabetes Association.
The ADA schedules Tour de Cure rides all across the US, and this May, I ride with my “Blood, Sweat, and Gears” teammates.
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This year, we set a goal of 20 riders, $5,000. With the ride just around the corner on May 4, we thank you in advance for helping us reach that goal.
Please follow our team’s progress, join our team, or sponsor a rider.

Wellness IQ GetFit Team


Hey gang, another 1612-week session of our GetFIT Wellness IQ program starts in a few weeks, and I’m returning to captain a team for the 12th straight session. This session will be slightly different from past ones: I want to lead a new team of losers. I’m forming a team of “first-timers or failed-returners.” If you’ve never joined a Wellness IQ GetFit team in the past, or have tried a team but failed at your personal goals, this year choose me as your team captain.

I want you to join my team if:

  • you are a first-timer to the Wellness IQ program,
  • you’ve put it off or made excuses in the past,
  • you worry that you might fail at this,
  • you feel you have a ton of issues or obstacles that will prevent you from succeeding.
  • you joined a team, but hit some type of obstacle midway through the 16 weeks and had to bail out.

I’m not creating a team that’s going to win first place in the team competition and take home the cool prizes. Those teams already exist and I applaud them. Please don’t sign up for my team if… Continue reading

VSP goes blue for diabetes!


From vspblog.com:

“To raise awareness about the connection between diabetes and eye health, VSP’s headquarters will be lit blue each night. VSP is proud to participate in this global event. Signs of diabetes can be seen in an eye exam before a person is even aware they have it.”

vsp-headquarters-turns-blue

And another fellow vspblogger wrote:

“World Diabetes Day is a global awareness campaign that’s celebrated every year on November 14. Iconic landmarks and buildings across the world are lit in blue to create a united voice for diabetes awareness!
Together we can shed light on the impacts of this growing disease and the need to find a cure.”

Read more from vspblog.com

Get with the program


I am not an athlete. I’m a nerd. In elementary school, I failed the President’s Physical Fitness Test. In high school, the most time I spent on a court or field was in the stands, playing with the pep band. In my job as a technical communicator at VSP, the heaviest lifting I do involves right-clicking …
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Thus, blending a bit of my work with my personal story on health and wellness with my passion for writing, I encourage you to read my post on vspblog.com: “Get with the program.”

Cyclists ride the Tour de Cure for Diabetes


adatour-7A banner from the American Diabetes Association says “every 21 seconds, someone is diagnosed with diabetes.”
Across America, cyclists are riding in 40 regional Tour de Cure events.
The Tour de Cure is a series of fund-raising cycling events held in 40 states nationwide to benefit the American Diabetes Association.

Braving the early morning chill and the late morning downpour in Sacramento, 30 of my friends and coworkers Continue reading

Let the Tour of California inspire you


Incredible finishes at the Tour de France often stimulate new bicycle sales.
Olympic medal performances often inspire youth movements into local recreational swimming, gymnastics, and sports programs.
amgen-tourSo, let the Amgen Tour of California inspire you to Continue reading

Step Out – Walk to Fight Diabetes


GeeWhiz here. I’ve seen the statistics. I’ve heard the stories. I know the terminology. Geewhiz, my day job even includes working with content that connects an annual eye exam to early detection of diabetic retinopathy.

But in the spring of 2008, two of my coworkers within mere feet of my cubicle learned that they were directly affected by diabetes. And suddenly, statistics became flesh and blood to me.

That’s why I’m walking on October 11 to fight diabetes.

So, if you’re already on a team walking to fight diabetes, I’ll be right there alongside you.
If you’re not walking on a team, visit my site and sponsor me.
http://main.diabetes.org/goto/geewhizkid

10 Reasons to eat more veggies and fruits


Hint: “… reduce disease risk… a natural snack … and convenience” are just three of the top 10 reasons to eat more veggies and fruits, according to the Fruits and Veggies – More Matters Web site.
How many fruits and veggies can you name that you can eat more of? I challenge you to name just 20 fruits and veggies.
Go ahead. I’ll wait…
Continue reading

Wellness iQ – 7 questions to ask when setting goals


Wellness iQ, our corporate wellness initiative, encourages employees to join teams to increase activity, improve eating habits, and raise awareness of the direct relationship between wellness and employee success.
Our 9th session just started, and to kick it off, my goal-setting questions to all team members are simple:

  • Why am I participating?
  • What rewards do I envision if I am successful?
  • What is at risk if I do not take action?
  • Continue reading

Wheels, Heels, and Eels at Eppie’s Great Race


2,000 athletes hit the American River Parkway Saturday for the 35th Annual Eppie’s Great Race, including more than two dozen of our own athletes. tattoos
As a volunteer on the course, my job was photojournalist for our team. I’ll be uploading photos as I get them. For now, bookmark my 2008GreatRace photo site.

For you Wellness iQ team members, notice not one flabby gut among these athletes? Continue reading

Paula on the road


6/27 update: back from a crash just one week to the end, Paula finishes strong and dips her front tire in the Atlantic.

Fellow cycling enthusiast and blogger Paula is blogging from the road.paula

Oh, did I tell you I started cycling to work since May 1 this year? Save a little gas, save a lot of money, get some cardio in before and after work, and do my part to reduce my footprint on this planet’s resources. Oh, my distance is nothing…4 miles roundtrip. And I mean nothing compared to friend Paula who is cycling …across the United States!
Continue reading