Oct
2012
Company Health & Wellness Fair
Thanks for listening to me whine yesterday. All your comments were so sweet! I’m much better today. I started yesterday with an extra boost of antioxidents (fruit + this poweder that Jared uses) and whether that helped or it was just all the extra sleep I’ve gotten the past few days, I feel almost totally normal today. Yay. Just in time for the weekend.
Besides, how could I not feel good– the Giants have won two world series games so far!
This morning, I was a nice sister and took my sister to the airport at 5:30am. Coffee….lots of it….was in order. Okay, now on to other things….
I wanted to say a big THANK YOU to Nicole of Apples and Arteries. She knows I love magazines and was so sweet to me a package of some of her just-read ones! Annoyingly enough, the post office somehow lost it in the mail 
BUT I still think it was such a nice thought and appreciate it a ton! Who knows, maybe they’ll arrive eventually, but wanted to publicly tell her thank you anyways. Nicole, you’re awesome.
Jared wanted me to share his “amazing” dessert from Applebees yesterday (he stopped after an out-of-town work mtg… aside from the time this summer when it was the only option, i don’t like to go there…), but for $2, he got (what looks like…) a glass of oreos topped with chocolate mousse, whipped cream, and more oreos. He really wanted me to put it on the blog so he even took a sneaky photo of it during a work meeting…..cute.
Next….Last week, I went (through work) to a Health & Wellness Festival hosted at LinkedIn’s Silicon Valley Office. My nonprofit had a booth and while we’re not health & wellness related, I promoted volunteer opportunities to the employees (volunteering is good for your health after all!).
I wouldn’t necessarily blog about this except that I think it was so terrific that a big company took the time to organize something for the health of their employees.
There were booths from sustainable food company, a mini farmer’s market, gyms offering passes and exercises, massages, and at least a dozen free foodtrucks.
a couple nonprofits had booths(this is not mine)….and the food trucks looked great
This was the best food truck– Karaoke Ice Cream!
You could literally do karaoke before or after getting some ice cream.
LinkedIn has a whole bunch of bikes that their employees can use if they need to get to another part of campus or just want to cruise around town on their lunch hour.
i took advantage of the free coffee too
I don’t actually know much about LinkedIn’s employee programs or other health amenities, but I do see that more and more companies are making an effort to prioritize health and wellness as part of their company values. I work for a very small office (4 people) and while we’re all active, there’s no company-wide mantra (which isn’t really appropriate in a small company)…but it makes me extra interested in what larger companies do.
So tell me–
– Does your work (or school) prioritize personal health and wellness?
– What sort of health and wellness extra would you most like from work? I’d LOVE a free gym in the building…and free kombucha and fruit in the kitchen.
– How far do you live from the closest airport? I’m about 25 minutes, but public transportation isn’t that accessible, so I usually end up finding someone to give me a ride.
Jorie
October 26, 2012 at 6:26 am (211 days ago)Your fruit looks delicious and so summer-y on this cold autumn day! I haven’t had a kiwi in a few months now. Gonna have to change that. LinkedIn’s offices look awesome! I love the free bike cruiser policy. I work at a young web start-up here in Chicago, and we are definitely taking steps to prioritize health. I think as the company grows, there will be even more health initiatives. It seems like all of the new companies really prioritize their employees’ health, which is great!
Alex @ therunwithin
October 26, 2012 at 7:55 am (211 days ago)i adore festivals like that and really wish I had one going on near me. i just love being able to learn and try new things like that.
aftertheivyleague
October 26, 2012 at 8:59 am (211 days ago)That is so cool that LinkedIn sponsored something like that! I really wish my company promoted health and wellness more (maybe I should start it??). Right now they will at least pay for your gym membership (up to $35/month nothing crazy) which is something, but I think they’re just looking for lower insurance costs! Haha
Rebecca
October 26, 2012 at 3:28 pm (210 days ago)nice that they pay for your gym…and YES, you should totally start something like like!
IHeartVegetables
October 26, 2012 at 9:07 am (211 days ago)Haha not gonna lie, Jared’s dessert looks good
My company is huge, so we do have a lot of health initiatives which is really cool! They’re even getting me an exercise ball to sit on at my desk!
Rebecca
October 26, 2012 at 3:28 pm (210 days ago)i just started sitting on an exercise ball- love it! and yes…his dessert looks really good! i’ve have to recreate it at home
Natalie @ Free Range Human
October 26, 2012 at 9:22 am (211 days ago)I work in a very small public school in the rural South. You can imagine how people feel about health and wellness around here. I would love to have some kind health group or teacher-based exercise group.
Brittany
October 26, 2012 at 9:31 am (211 days ago)The airport I use is a little over an hour away..or an hour if I speed
. I love this play day idea for this company! How awesome!
jodeap
October 26, 2012 at 10:41 am (211 days ago)We have some good advice on our work intranet about health and wellbeing, but a gym on site would be better! You can get free, confidential counselling, which I think is great.
My nearest big airport is over an hour away.
Rebecca
October 26, 2012 at 3:27 pm (210 days ago)free counseling is a really great perk!
sprint2thetable
October 26, 2012 at 2:20 pm (211 days ago)Glad you’re feeling better!
that’s really cool that your company had a wellness fair. Mine doesn’t do anything but send the occasional email and offer flu shots.
Rebecca
October 26, 2012 at 3:26 pm (210 days ago)it wasn’t my company, but i still thought it was neat. cool about the flu shots! that makes it so easy to get one (instead of wiating in line at the doc’s office)
Stacie @ Snaps and Bits
October 26, 2012 at 3:30 pm (210 days ago)How neat that they did that! I’m 15 min from Newark but if I have to go out of JFK it’s a LONG drive.
Go Giants!
Luv What You Do
October 26, 2012 at 7:40 pm (210 days ago)I would love a free gym too AND a shower…or maybe a yoga class! Work (mostly my commute) is totally making my workouts tough!
Rebecca
October 27, 2012 at 8:54 am (210 days ago)yeah, the extra time in the car is exhausting and so time-consuming
jessielovestorun
October 26, 2012 at 9:49 pm (210 days ago)I’m so glad your back to your normal self
I love little festivals like that, and so wish they existed over here 
.
When we lived in the states I was about 10 minutes, now were about a half hour.
lisa
October 27, 2012 at 2:47 am (210 days ago)My former employer provided apples, oranges and bananas in lieu of sugary vending machines. It was awesome!
And in LA, I lived about 15 minutes away from LAX sans traffic.
Rebecca
October 27, 2012 at 8:53 am (210 days ago)The free fruit is awesome- such a great perk!
Runner Girl Eats
October 27, 2012 at 5:04 am (210 days ago)This is awesome. I am constantly complaining about how unhealthy our workplace is. I would love to have a gym on campus!
Meghan@CleanEatsFastFeets
October 27, 2012 at 6:54 pm (209 days ago)I’m glad to hear you’re feeling better. I love when companies make wellness a priority. My company is a big supporter. The have chair massages for $10, free stress seminars, chobani and whole fruits every couple of weeks. It really creates a nice environment for work.
Apples and Arteries
October 28, 2012 at 3:20 pm (208 days ago)Aww – thanks. I have no idea what happened with that package!!!
Looks like a really cool fair. I appreciate that my health insurance co offers gym membership reimbursement – ends up costing about $80 per year after the reimbursement.
Closest airport–15 minutes max. Unfortunately, often I have to drive to Milwaukee for better flight options – and that’s a good 60-75 min drive. I have to do it at about 3:30am in November.
Rebecca
October 29, 2012 at 10:13 am (208 days ago)3:30 am…that’ll be rough!! At least morning flights are more likely to be on time