Archive for the ‘Be Well Office Challenge’ Category

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UPENN GRAD’S AUTISMATE APP COULD REVOLUTIONIZE AUTISM THERAPY

AutisMate puts smart, customizable speech and behavior therapy into the palm of your hand.

Posted by Emily Leaman on 2/7/2013 at 1:13PM | No Comments

AutisMate uses familiar "scenes" to teach language, social and behavioral skills.

When Jonathan Izak set out to create an app that would help kids with autism communicate better, he had, perhaps, the best test subject in the world: his 10-year-old brother, Oriel, rendered mute by autism. Oriel had already been using communication devices, but Izak noticed that they were bulky to tote around, and some cost upwards of $10,000. There had to be a better way.

Two years ago, Izak, newly graduated from Penn with a computer science degree, got to work. An iPad, he figured, would be much easier for a kid like Oriel to transport. And besides, toting around a sleek iPad instead of a clunky communication box “would make a kid like Oriel seem cool rather than isolate him,” Izak says. Although communication-assistance apps already existed, they were too complicated for a kid with Oriel’s difficulties to use. The technology was there, but it had to be repackaged in a way that made sense.

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PHILLY-BASED CAMPUS APARTMENTS TAKES FITNESS CHALLENGE NATIONWIDE

And it all started right here on Be Well Philly—gosh, I'm proud.

Posted by Emily Leaman on 9/13/2012 at 1:25PM | No Comments

The Campus Apartments team after last year's Be Well Philly Office Challenge. These ladies lost nearly 150 pounds in our contest!

I feel like a proud mother hen. I mean, how could I not when I receive a very nice email from the folks over at Campus Apartments, the college-housing provider in University City, telling me how their participation in last year’s Be Well Philly Office Challenge inspired a new workplace-wellness initiative that resulted in 150 employees dropping over 500 pounds (!!) in 12 weeks earlier this year. I’m told Campus Apartment’s Office Challenge team captain, Helen Marshall, even organized the whole darn thing. It’s like my kids are all grown up. (Sniff.)

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HOW TO STOCK YOUR PANTRY LIKE A PRO

Cooking a healthy meal shouldn't mean you have to run to the store for ingredients. Here are 21 items to always keep on hand.

Posted by Maura Manzo on 12/9/2011 at 10:15AM | 3 Comments

Last week I sat down with Be Well Philly editor Emily Leaman to ask for feedback about my recipes that were part of the BWP Office Challenge. One comment she heard was that some contestants felt the recipes were too expensive because they didn’t have all the ingredients on hand, especially when it came to spices or dry items.

So today I want to tell you what items I always have in my cabinets, and how I use them. This list is in no way extensive but highlights the ingredients I use the most frequently or can do the most with, especially in a pinch—you know, when there’s no food left in the house. This list does not include any fresh items or things that need to be refrigerated. That’s for another post.

But in the meantime, I’d love to hear from you. What staples do you always make sure to have on hand?

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OFFICE CHALLENGE: AND THE WINNER IS …

Our winning team lost almost 220 pounds! And combined, our teams lost over 975 pounds—in just eight weeks.

Posted by Emily Leaman on 11/18/2011 at 4:07PM | No Comments

When was the last time you went to a bowling party? If you were one of our Be Well Philly Office Challenge contestants, it was Wednesday night at our awesome end-of-contest bash.

Our teams gathered at Lucky Strike Lanes to celebrate the Office Challenge and find out who won. Some clues:

• Our winning team had a soda-related nickname for themselves (seriously!).
• They lost 219.4 pounds.
• They were one of our suburban competitors.

Give up? Go over here to see who took home the grand prize—plus, check out a ton of photos from our event.

Congrats to everyone who participated! You did it!

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OFFICE CHALLENGE: LESSONS LEARNED

With the Office Challenge ending tomorrow, we wanted to know what our contestants have learned.

Posted by Emily Leaman on 11/10/2011 at 2:25PM | No Comments

I can’t believe how fast these last eight weeks have flown by. Tomorrow marks the end of our second Be Well Philly Office Challenge. And while our teams’ final weigh-in number are trickling in (the big reveal will happen next week, folks!), I wanted to take a step back from the scale and find out what our players are taking away from the contest—the lessons they’ve learned and the health-boosting habits (I hope) they’ll take well beyond this eight-week contest.

Check out some of their answers over here. You never know—you might just get inspired to make some changes, too.

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MAKE: HEARTY FIVE-GRAIN GRANOLA

With dark chocolate and raisins in the mix, this granola recipe is sure to satisfy.

Posted by Emily Leaman on 11/8/2011 at 10:39AM | No Comments

It’s the final week over in the Office Challenge, and our contest is going out with a culinary bang. Last week, our challengers made a skinny cocktail—with rum and coconut milk—that clocked in at just 120 calories. This week, Maura Manzo came up with a tasty five-grain granola recipe that has five grams of protein and dietary fiber. In other words, it’ll fill you up.

Check out the recipe over here. And if you make it at home, let us know how it turns out!

Want to keep track of all the Office Challenge fun? Join the conversation on Twitter by following @BeWellPhilly or search for the hashtag #BWPOfficeChallenge.

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OFFICE CHALLENGE: SUPER FOODS FOR SUPER HEALTH

Ten nutrition all-stars your diet doesn't want to miss.

Posted by Emily Leaman on 11/7/2011 at 3:52PM | No Comments

The Be Well Philly Office Challenge contestants received a crash course in super foods today—and just in the nick of time. With the contest ending on Friday, they’re in the do-or-die phase right now.

UnitedHealthcare’s Andie Rowe hosted a nutrition webinar today to encourage contestants to carry the lessons they’ve learned in the contest well beyond the Friday deadline. The easiest way to do it? Turn healthy-eating choices into healthy-eating habits.

Andie offered 10 super foods—ones that pack extra punches of fiber, antioxidants and healthy fats—for our contestants to start working into their diets every week. Check out her picks over here.

Want to keep track of all the Office Challenge fun? Join the conversation on Twitter by following@BeWellPhilly or search for the hashtag #BWPOfficeChallenge.

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OFFICE CHALLENGE: TAGUE’S TEAM MOM

The Red Team's Cindy Valerio has been whipping her teammates into shape.

Posted by Emily Leaman on 11/4/2011 at 10:58AM | No Comments

This morning on the Office Challenge blog, I profiled the Red Team’s Cindy Valerio, the only female member of the Tague Lumber Phoenixville contingent. See, the team’s divided between two locations (the other half is in Philly), and Cindy has taken it upon herself to make sure her guys stay in line.

Boy, has it worked. She reports that as of halfway through the competition, she and her four Phoenixville teammates lost a combined 98 pounds. Her secret? Lots of team bonding—they cook the weekly recipe together!—weekly check-ins and not-so-subtle reminders to make healthy choices.

Read more about what Cindy and her team have been doing over here. And catch up on the Office Challenge here.

Want to keep track of all the Office Challenge fun? Join the conversation on Twitter by following @BeWellPhilly or search for the hashtag #BWPOfficeChallenge.

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MAKE: SPICED SKINNY COCKTAIL

At just 120 calories a pop, what's not to love?

Posted by Emily Leaman on 11/1/2011 at 11:32AM | No Comments

Everybody needs a good cocktail every now and then. But is it worth guzzling a martini if it means sacrificing your healthy eating goals?

Over on the Office Challenge, our resident nutritionist Maura Manzo asked the contestants what they’d like to see in the contest’s final two recipes. Perhaps not surprisingly, a number of them requested a healthier take on a cocktail. Boy, did she deliver.

Maura concocted a rum based drink using citrus, club soda and a little something that’s the rage right now among the health and fitness set: coconut water. With a lot less sugar and calories than a typical mixed drink, the Spiced Skinny one worth toasting. Cheers!

Want to keep track of all the Office Challenge fun? Join the conversation on Twitter by following@BeWellPhilly or search for the hashtag #BWPOfficeChallenge.

 

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OFFICE CHALLENGE: IT’S POETRY, MAN

A contestant wrote a poem (no, really!)

Posted by Emily Leaman on 10/27/2011 at 3:04PM | No Comments

I got a good laugh today writing the Office Challenge’s latest Contestant Spotlight post, in which I dissected a little bet going on between players on the Zarwin Baum team.

Then just as I hit publish, Nancy Landy, one of the Zarwin Baumers involved in the bet, sent me a poem. That she wrote. About the Office Challenge.

So I laughed again. Some of Nancy’s teammates on the Blue Team tell me she’s quite the trash-talker (all in good fun, of course), and her poem certainly doesn’t disappoint. Spoiler alert: She even works in the word “treadmill” (it rhymes with “fill”).

Well done, Nancy.

Go over here to read her, um, work of art.

Want to keep track of all the Office Challenge fun? Join the conversation on Twitter by following @BeWellPhilly or search for the hashtag #BWPOfficeChallenge.

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