Hope’s Healthy Options (H20) Program is designed
to promote healthy lifestyle behaviors.

The goals are to provide health education, increase opportunities for healthy living, and reward those who demonstrate healthy behaviors.

Please note that there is no tracking incentive for January 2010 .  You may continue to track but the H2O tracker will be undergoing some changes during the month of January.  The incentives are also changing.  The following explains those changes. The website and log in page will look a bit different but the biggest change is in the requirements for tracking awards. Please take a moment to read through the information.

(1)All tracking awards will be in cash. There will no longer be reimbursement dollars. The reimbursement statement that you will receive in the next couple of weeks will be the final statement. Please turn in receipts to Connie VanderZwaag by Feb. 15.

(2) H2O monthly cash awards will be given to those who meet the minimum exercise guidelines as established by the American Council on Exercise and ACSM. The minimum guidelines for AEROBIC exercise are -

(a) 30 minutes, 5x per week (or 20x per month), of moderate aerobic exercise, OR
(b) 20 minutes, 3x per week (or 12x per month) of vigorous aerobic exercise, OR
(c) 10,000 steps, 5x per week (20x per month).

What is moderate and vigorous aerobic exercise?

The difference is in the intensity, how it affects heart rate and breathing.

Here are some ways to understand and measure the intensity of aerobic activity:

Relative Intensity is the level of effort required by a person to do an activity. When using relative intensity, people pay attention to how physical activity affects their heart rate and breathing.

The talk test is a simple way to measure relative intensity. As a rule of thumb, if you're doing moderate-intensity activity you can talk, but not sing, during the activity. If you're doing vigorous-intensity activity, you will not be able to say more than a few words without pausing for a breath.

Absolute Intensity is the amount of energy used by the body per minute of activity.

The table below lists examples of activities classified as moderate-intensity or vigorous-intensity based upon the amount of energy used by the body while doing the activity.

Moderate Intensity

Walking briskly (3 miles per hour or faster, but not race-walking)
Water aerobics
Bicycling slower than 10 miles per hour
Tennis (doubles)
Ballroom dancing
General gardening

Vigorous Intensity

Race walking, jogging, or running
Swimming laps
Tennis (singles)
Aerobic dancing
Bicycling 10 miles per hour or faster
Jumping rope
Heavy gardening (continuous digging or hoeing)
Hiking uphill or with a heavy backpack

(3) The exercise guidelines also include muscular core strengthening exercises for 20 minutes, a minimum of 2 days per week. Weight training, Pilates or the new Power Core class, would enable you to meet these guidelines. H2O Wellness will also be offering several opportunities for you to come and learn a program of core strengthening exercises you can perform at home.

(4) Exercise will fall into either moderate or vigorous aerobic activity or muscle strengthening but not both.

(5) You can earn $20 per month for meeting the requirements for Aerobic Exercise (see #2 above). You can earn an additional $5 permonth for meeting the requirements for Muscle Strengthening Activity (see #3 above).

(6) You will be able to track online using the H2O Tracker or you can track offline using the newly designed paper calendars.

(7) Positive Living Behaviors will be removed from the tracker.

(8) Nutrition tracking will still be available but no longer required for cash awards

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Hope College Employee Wellness Program | 141 East 12th Street | PO Box 9000 | Holland, Michigan 49422
email: wellness@hope.edu