LiveWell Vermont

What is blood pressure?    Blood pressure is the force of blood against the walls of the arteries. The heart creates this force as it contracts and as it rests between contractions. How is blood pressure measured?    Blood pressure incorporates two measures: Systolic blood pressure  is the pressure against artery walls as the heart contracts (or beats) and pushes blood into the arteries. This is the top or first number in a blood pressure reading. Diastolic blood pressure  is the pressure against artery walls between heart contractions. This is the bottom or second number in a blood pressure reading. What is hypertension?   Hypertension is a medial diagnosis of high blood pressure, which is made if the systolic number or the diastolic number stays higher than normal most of the time. In this condition, the heart has to pump harder to move blood through the body, adding to the workload of the heart and blood vessels. Hypertension...

Stress- It makes your heart pound, your breathing quicken and your forehead sweat. Some research suggests that stress may only be bad for you if you believe that to be the case. Psychologist Kelly McGonigal urges us to see stress as a positive, and introduces us to an unsung mechanism for stress reduction: reaching out to others. Watch this 15-minute video to learn more about the positives of stress!

Mother's thank-you note to teen who bought her coffee goes viral: 'It turned my whole day around' - Shared from Yahoo Lifestyle A teen’s sweet offer toward a stressed-out mother at Starbucks has made a surprising impact on both women’s lives. On Tuesday, 19-year-old Mackenzie Mauller of Union Town, Ohio, tweeted, “Yesterday I bought coffee for the lady behind me at Starbucks…later in the day I found this [in] my mailbox. Small acts can make a big difference folks, spread some kindness.” Mauller also posted a soon-to-be viral photo of the handwritten note from the woman, whose name is Nicole Clawson, which read, “Thank you for the coffee. I rarely go to Starbucks and treat myself but the last couple of months have been a bit of a struggle.” Clawson wrote that her family was experiencing lots of transition: Her father, who had provided daily care for her children, had recently passed away; that morning, her babysitter had called in sick, forcing Clawson to take t...

What if the power to discourage, dissuade, and even prevent disease and mental decline were within your grasp? Is your mind gravitating to thoughts about good nutrition or even some top secret pharmaceutical? While good nutrition is a part of it, what we are really focusing on is self-care. The idea of self-care I’m referring to is much broader, encompassing body, mind, emotions, and spirit, being both preventative and proactive. Self-care is developing the awareness of and then honoring the rituals and practices that ensure you’re looking after your total well-being every single day. It includes habits that make you healthier, happier, and help you to feel more connected. The benefits of self-care are truly enormous and shouldn’t be ignored. Regular self-care can: Prevent disease and illness Make you feel good Help you be more productive, engaged, and connected Help you to eat to satisfaction but not to stuffed Make it easier to maintain your weight Improve your ...

Happy Battle of Bennington Day! The State of Vermont is closed today. We hope you all enjoy this unique Vermont state holiday, celebrating all this beautiful state has to offer!

Have you ever lost a single piece of trash and thought to yourself, "Oh, it's just one bag/paper towel/ straw"? One item might seem small, but if all 623,657 Vermonter dropped one piece of trash, what would happen to the beautiful Green Mountains? Did you know you could binge watch every episode of Law & Order in the same amount of time it would take for a paper towel to decompose? That is about 456 hours (19 days). A cigarette filter takes 1-5 years. That is an entire term for the United States President!! A plastic foam cup? The lifespan of an African Elephant- 50 years! We know you love Vermont and our Earth just as much as we do! Next time you find a cigarette butt, plastic bag or extra napkin blowing through the street, think twice about picking it up- even if it isn't yours. If we all contributed in a small way, there would be a MASSIVE positive impact. For more interesting facts about decomposition timeline for a variety of products check out: SaveOnE...

Love pasta, ice cream or sour cream but hate the extra calories? We have created some simple swaps for you!  Check out our Replace the Base flyer!   The photographs are hyperlinked to recipes. Try these simple swaps and let us know how you enjoy them!

Sleep dictates so many elements of our lives. A bad night's sleep can impact your physical and emotional health. Did you know that a lack of sleep can alter your mood, ability to make memories, suppress your immune system, metabolism and appetite? Wild, right? On average adults between the age of 18-64 years old should strive for 7-9 hours of good sleep each night. According to Mental Health America, good sleep means: Being asleep for at least 85% of the time you are in bed Falling asleep within 30 minutes or less Waking up no more than once per night for no longer than 20 minutes Lucky for us, Mental Health America also provided some tips to get that good night's rest we are all seeking...Check them out! Happy sleeping!

PREP TIME: 15 MINUTES Recipe from SkinnyTaste.com   Ingredients For the Dressing: 1 tbsp minced shallots 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard  2 tbsp white wine vinegar 6 tbsp 1% buttermilk 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil 1/4 tsp garlic powder 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt Pinch black pepper   For the Salad: 1 head romaine, chopped (about 5 cups) 1 medium corn on the cobb, cooked and cut off husk* 4 to 5 large grape tomatoes, quartered 1/2 large avocado (3 oz), sliced 1/4 cup sliced red onion Instructions Quickest way to cook the corn is put it in microwave 3 minutes with husk on, then let cool and peel. Whisk all the dressing ingredients together. Place lettuce in a large bowl, top with corn, tomatoes, avocado and red onion and drizzle with dressing.

1. Say: "Stop!" to your inner critic. A good place to start with raising your self-esteem is by learning how to handle, and replace, the voice of your inner critic. Your inner critic can spur you on to get things done or to do things to gain acceptance from the people in your life, but at the same time it can drag your self-esteem down. This inner voice whispers destructive thoughts. One way to stop this is to simply say “Stop!” whenever the critic pipes up in your mind. You can do this by creating a stop-word or stop-phrase. Do not allow your mind to go there. If you feel it happening, refocus your thoughts to something more constructive- like planning what you want to eat for dinner or plan a fun activity for this weekend! 2. Use healthier motivation habits. To make the inner critic less destructive and to raise your self-esteem it certainly helps to have healthy motivation habits such as: Reminding yourself of the benefits . A simple but powerful way to motiv...

Wellness coaching is done in-house by VT State employees--the staff of LiveWell Vermont State Employees Wellness Program! We have gone through extensive training to become wellness coaches. We are all HIPAA certified and your information is treated as private and confidential. The most important thing to know about coaching is that you drive the process. You define your long-term vision of where you see yourself in terms of your health and wellness. Once you define that vision, you decide on the areas where you want to focus and create your long and short term goals. We, as coaches, help to facilitate the process, asking questions and providing positive feedback and support. We are your ultimate cheerleaders and will never judge you. What can be better than that! It is done telephonically via a conference line and appointments are scheduled so they are convenient for both you and your coach. Coaching times can be adjusted if need be to accommodate your schedule. If you have fu...

INGREDIENTS 1 ripe cantaloupe, sliced 2 tbsp coconut oil, melted 1 small pack (about 450g) feta 2 bunches of kale 1 lemon, zest + juice 1 orange zest + juice DIRECTIONS Heat your grill. Brush the cantaloupe slices with the melted coconut oil, sprinkle with a touch of salt. Place them on the hot grill or pan and let them sizzle for a couple minutes until you get grill marks and the fruit starts to brown, flip and repeat. Set grilled fruit aside. Lightly brush the feta cheese slices with coconut oil, and grill (or brown in a pan). It’ll take about a minute or two each side. Sprinkle kale with a touch of salt and pepper and a light drizzle of coconut oil and place on a pan on the grill (or directly on the pan on the stove). Let it sizzle for about 3 minutes, toss, and let it cook for another minute. Do not shake or toss too much or it’ll get too watery. Set aside To make the dressing combine the lemon juice + zest, orange juice +zest, sea salt, coriander and...