10 Ways to Maintain Wellness

By Chantel Turk and Dr. Michele Kerulis

(Edited by Alexandra Tapak)

Have the end of the semester term paper blues? How about terrifying finals week syndrome? A big project at work consuming all of your time? We are all too familiar with that pressured feeling to get work done. It can cloud our minds and make us believe that there’s no time to take care of something far more important than our workload, OURSELVES!

Taking care of your body and mind is essential to maintaining the energy needed to accomplish our daily tasks and our long-lived projects, but how do we find a healthy balance? Here are 10 ways to help you balance school or work, and maintain your wellness in the midst of your busy life. Emotional health is essential (Kitko, 2001)! Have ways of coping in mind that work for YOU so when the times get rough, the copin’ gets goin’!

10. Keep a journal—According to researchers, keeping a journal about whatever is on your mind is a productive way to manage your emotions, especially when they become overwhelming (Flinchbaugh, Moore, Chang, May, 2012).

9. Find a hobby—Knitting, sewing, cooking, and drawing are all examples of easy and fun hobbies that can keep your mind off of stress related to the office or the classroom.

8. Just take a breather! —Take a moment to breath and relax. This could be at any moment in the day, there are several apps on iPhone and Android that include relaxation techniques, try one out!

Spirituality—Spirituality is defined as being the central meaning to an individual’s life (Kitko, 2001). Being strongly connected with one’s self can play a part in maintaining wellness at school or work.

7. Yoga—yoga allows for people to have an embodied experience in which they become more in tune with themselves. It is a great way to gain your sense of spirituality!

6. Mediation—Meditation allows people to lose touch with reality and focus on the center of their inner being. There are several different kinds of meditations used for different reasons; here is a link to Heather Dale’s blog 5 Meditation Styles for Beginners. Check them out!

5. Talent - Incorporating your individual talents into the workspace can allow for a more pleasant experience in the office. Are you an athlete? Incorporate a small competition among your colleagues to bring fun into your work experience! Researchers show that people are programmed to need social interaction with other people (Kitko, 2001).

4. Go out! —It’s okay to let loose every now and again and allow yourself to go to out to a social gathering. Set aside a time for yourself to have a little social interaction with someone you enjoy spending your time with. You’d be surprised at how interaction with another person can lower your stress.

3. Utilize your breaks—It’s a good idea to use your lunch break to find time for some social interaction. Take your break with a colleague or go on a walk with a friend. Exercise can alleviate stress (Buckaloo, Krug & Nelson, 2009) so be sure to schedule regular break-time walks. 

2. Exercise snacks—2. Exercise snacks—Professor Michele Kerulis and Expert Trainer Lisa Payne mentioned the term “exercise snacks” as a way to get small burst of physical activity throughout the day without setting aside time to work out. Take the stairs instead of the escalator, park your car further from the door so you can walk, or take your bike to work on warm days. Click here to see Lisa’s 10 minute total body workout video!

1. Work it out! —Many people have that New Years Resolution to go to the gym X amount of days a week, but why does this passion to work out fade as the year goes on? Find time in your week to dedicate to working out. Join a fitness club if you can. Frequent exercise can boost mood, increase overall health, and decrease stress. 

Taking time for yourself and engaging in wellness activities is a great way to reduce stress. Daily life can become busy, but remember that the better you feel the more efficiently you can balance your tasks. Do you have favorite wellness activities that help you manage stress? Please tell us about it in the comments section.

References

Smith, R. (2007). Body, mind, and spirit? Towards an analysis of the practice of yoga. Body and Society, 13(2), 25–46.

Kitko, C. (2001). Dimensions of wellness and the health matters program at Penn state. Home Health Care Management & Practice, 13(4), 308-311.

Buckaloo, B., Krug, K., & Nelson, K. (2009). Exercise and the low-security inmate: Change in depression stress and anxiety. The Prison Journal. 89(3), 328-343.

Flinchbaugh, C.,  Moore, G., Chang, Y., May D. (2012). Student well-being interventions: The effects of stress management techniques and gratitude journaling in the management education classroom. Journal of Management Education, 36(2) 191-219.

It’s March Madness Time!

By Peter Sismour and Dr. Michele Kerulis

It is the time of the year when casual fans become die-hard followers and underdogs assume the role of “Cinderella.” It is March Madness, the pinnacle of the college basketball season. While the average fan may decide to pay closer attention or fill out a bracket in their office pool, players themselves now have the opportunity to cement their efforts and achieve all that they have been working towards throughout the year.

The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I Men’s Basketball tournament offers the platform for lesser-known schools and players to become household names. Over a multiple week tournament, teams and fans alike experience the ups-and-downs of facing win-or-go-home prospects in every game. In the end only one team can emerge as champions. Over the course of the tournament, however, the highs and lows have a remarkable impact on both casual fans and self-proclaimed fanatics.

The excitement and anxiety begins on the day commonly referred to as “Selection Sunday,” which occurred on March 16, 2014 when teams and fans tuned in to watch as the selections and seeding for the tournament were revealed. From that moment on brackets are picked apart and analyzed as experts and fans try to determine who will pull the big upsets, when defining moments will happen, and who will come out on top.

As 64 becomes 32, and 32 becomes 16, more and more of the country will begin to tune in. In fact, USA Today reported that the 2013 March Madness Championship game saw the highest Nielsen TV ratings in nearly two decades registering a 14.0 rating (in comparison to a 12.3 rating in 2012). Throughout the 2013 tournament there were an average of 10.7 million fans tuning in for any given game (Shuster, 2013)! The most exciting rounds are typically the first and second when many of the upsets take place. But, as the tournament wears on and the field begins to take shape, the “Sweet Sixteen” round and the “Final Four” offer some of the most exciting matchups among national powerhouses. 

It is obvious that the tournament is wildly popular and offers a means of bringing people together, but it has proved much more meaningful in the past with significant and direct impacts upon American society.

            The tournament offers schools, fans, and players the opportunity to come together and enjoy the most prestigious collegiate basketball tournament in the country. Hopes and dreams will be dashed and achieved. We as fans are lucky to go along for the ride. Only one team can achieve their ultimate goal, but all 64 offer an inside look into the successes and failures of the highest-level student-athletes as they set their minds and focus their attention on achieving the Championship title.

            The Sweet 16 begins tonight. Only eight teams will emerge as the Elite Eight and we will continue to move closer to the Final Four and the Championship game. Have your brackets ready and tune in at this afternoon beginning at 1:15ET to see the action.

Reference

Shuster, R. (April 9, 2013). NCAA men’s Div. I basketball tournament most watched in

19 years. USA Today. Retrieved from  http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/ncaab/2013/04/09/ncaa-mens-basketball-title-game-cbs-overnight-tv-ratings/2067107/

*All content remains intellectual property of Dr. Michele Kerulis

The Paralympic Games: Separate but Equal?

by Amanda Leibovitz

(edited by Alexandra Tapak)

The United States of America (USA) Paralympic Sled Hockey team skated their way to gold in Sochi, Russia last Saturday, becoming the first sled hockey team in Paralympic history to win back-to-back gold medals (Public Broadcasting Service, 2014).  In another historic event, National Broadcasting Company (NBC) and National Broadcasting Company Sports News (NBCSN) aired a record-breaking 52 hours of coverage for the Sochi Paralympic Games in 2014, including six sled hockey games (International Paralympic Committee, IPC, 2014).  Compared to the five and a half hours of NBC's airtime dedicated to the London Paralympic Games in 2012, this appears to be a drastic improvement and step in the right direction (Sherman, 2012).  However, when measured against the over 5,000 hours NBC and NBCS dedicated to the London Olympic Games, it falls shamefully short of equality (Sherman, 2012).

The lack of prior television coverage of the Paralympic Games in the United States is indicative of the social assumption that people with disabilities are deficient or “less than” when compared to the rest of the able-bodied population (Sue & Sue, 2013).  But what does this mean in the world of sport and exercise psychology?  The rise in visibility in news and popular media reflects the increasing participation in adaptive sport in the United States and the growing number of athletes competing at the elite level (IPC, 2014). A staggering 692 athletes from around the world competed in Sochi, nearly a 38% increase from the Vancouver Paralympic Games in 2010 (United States Olympic Committee, 2014).

What does the word “paralympic” actually mean?  Originally signifying paraplegic competitors, the inclusion of more disability categories has transformed the prefix “para” into its original Greek meaning of “parallel” (Kell, Kell, & Price, 2008).  Therefore, while the Paralympics is an event run in parallel with the Olympics, the “separate but equal” (Smithsonian, 2014) undertones should not be ignored, but rather actively examined and investigated.

According to Kell et al. (2008), “The reality of parallelism is that no matter how good the performance of a disabled athlete, he/she can never compete in the Olympic games seeking special consideration, such as special equipment, support, or facilities” (p. 68).  To that note, Kell et al. (2008) propose that inclusion will not be possible until all athletes can compete in the same events on the same teams, regardless of their disability or able-bodied status.  Furthermore, the right to equal training, facilities, coaching, funding, and media coverage is inherent in this definition of inclusion (Kell et al., 2008).

However, this notion may be more idealistic than realistic considering the complexity of the issue.  Nixon II (2000) cautions that the integration of able-bodied athletes and athletes with disabilities might favor athletes with minimal disabilities and effectively squeeze out athletes with more substantial disabilities from elite competition.

While this debate is only the tip of the iceberg, it does illuminate some of the challenges faced by elite athletes with disabilities as they strive to achieve physical and athletic excellence and recognition through sport.  Responsible practitioners will familiarize themselves with the rules, regulations, and classification system of the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) to become competent in understanding the system within which the athlete functions (Sue & Sue, 2013).  They will also recognize that the athlete sought out sport psychology services for reasons other than their disability and will conduct a full mental skills assessment to determine the precise nature of the presenting issue (Sue & Sue, 2013).  Finally, the environmental, organizational, and systemic contributions to the athlete’s presenting issue will be identified and integrated into a psychological skills training program as needed (Sue & Sue, 2013).

References

International Paralympic Committee (2014). NBC announces Sochi 2014 Paralympics schedule [Website]. Retrieved from http://www.paralympic.org/news/nbc-announces-sochi-2014-paralympics-schedule

Kell, P., Kell, M., & Price, N. (2008). Two games and one movement? The Paralympics and the Olympic movement. In P. Kell, W. Vialle, D. Konza, & G. Vogl (Eds), Learning and the learner: Exploring learning for new times. Retrieved fromhttp://ro.uow.edu.au/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1037&context=edupapers

Nixon II, H. L. (2000). Sport and disability. In J. Coakley, & E. Dunning (Eds.), Handbook of sports studies (pp. 422-438). doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.4135/9781848608382

Public Broadcasting Service. (2014). Ice warrieors [Website]. Retrieved from http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/medal-quest/ice-warriors/#game-5-recap

Sherman, A. (2012). NBC criticized for limited airtime of Paralympic games [Online News Article]. Retrieved from http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-08-31/nbc-criticized-for-limited-airtime-of-paralympic-games.html

Smithsonian Natural Museum of American History. (2014). Separate but equal: The law of the land [Website]. Retrieved from http://americanhistory.si.edu/brown/history/1-segregated/separate-but-equal.html

Sue, D. W., & Sue, D. (2013). Counseling the culturally diverse: Theory and practice. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley.

United States Olympic Committee. (2014). Sochi 2014 [Website]. Retrieved from http://www.teamusa.org/paralympicgames/