{"id":11648,"date":"2017-08-21T10:34:25","date_gmt":"2017-08-21T16:34:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/?p=11648"},"modified":"2023-06-23T11:01:06","modified_gmt":"2023-06-23T17:01:06","slug":"never-late-first","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/never-late-first\/","title":{"rendered":"It’s never too late for a ‘first’"},"content":{"rendered":"
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It is usually Rebecca Browning-Floyd who is helping others with \u201cfirsts.\u201d As the Colorado Preschool Program coordinator for Poudre School District, she\u2019s honored with seeing young minds explore and develop through first experiences.<\/p>\n

\"Rebecca
Rebecca Browning-Floyd hiked to Rocky Mountain National Park\u0092s Emerald Lake earlier this summer, something she never dreamed she\u0092d physically be able to do before she started with UCHealth\u0092s lifestyle health program, offered by her employer, Poudre School District.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

This year, Rebecca has had a few firsts of her own. She participated in her first 5K. She took her first big hike in Rocky Mountain National Park. And then there were the little firsts, like the first time she stepped off a curb and didn\u2019t feel pain in her knees.<\/p>\n

Like her young clients, Rebecca too is a shining example of how far support and education can take a person.<\/p>\n

It was just last summer that Rebecca would wake tired and achy. At 43 years old, she was obese, and it was wearing on her \u2014 physically and mentally.<\/p>\n

\u201cI felt gross. I felt embarrassed. And I felt down,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

It wasn\u2019t that Rebecca was depressed. In fact, she was actually in the midst of celebrating her accomplishments in life. She had a loving family and a growing career, having just been accepted into the Buell Early Childhood Leadership Program, in pursuit of her goal to earn a graduate degree.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was really exciting and an honor to be selected,\u201d she said about the fellowship. \u201cThings were going well, and life was trucking along.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Health tips for your 5K race day<\/strong><\/p>\n

From UCHealth Lifestyle Health registered dietitian Brooke Floerke<\/em><\/p>\n

Carbohydrates are our bodies\u2019 primarily fuel source, so try to eat a breakfast with a complex carbohydrate the morning of your event. But add protein as well to balance out the blood sugar. Some examples include whole wheat toast with peanut butter and sliced apples or steel cut oats with blueberries and pumpkin seeds. One rule though, don\u2019t try anything new on race day. You want to make sure breakfast consists of foods your body is accustomed to.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a good ideas to replenish with electrolytes after the race, especially if you have a lost a lot of fluid through perspiring. Avoid Gatorade and sports drinks that are high in added sugar and opt for an electrolyte replacement powder or tab, like Nuun Active Hydration. Electrolytes to look for include sodium, potassium and magnesium.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Unexplained health issues, however, had Rebecca returning to her doctors with the hope that they\u2019d find something wrong with her.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat way they could fix it,\u201d she explained. \u201cThere were things going on but nothing that would explain all my problems.\u201d<\/p>\n

She was diagnosed with restless leg syndrome and extreme sleep apnea. Working full-time, being a mom and now adding in a graduate program schedule, she said eating at home wasn\u2019t common, nor was physical activity. So she decided to check in with PSD Employee Assistant Services, who then suggested she look into UCHealth Lifestyle Health Services.<\/p>\n

About four years ago, PSD partnered with UCHealth and Associates in Family Medicine to create a program that provides district employees with an integrated health care option that helps improve employees\u2019 lives while also saving the employer health care costs. Columbine Health Systems<\/a> and Woodward<\/a> have also since signed up for UCHealth Lifestyle Health Services, each having their own specific plan to meet their needs.<\/p>\n

During Rebecca\u2019s visit with EAS, the representative made a call to Laura Dvorak, Lifestyle Health manager and registered nurse with UCHealth. A one-on-one between Rebecca and Dvorak was set up for a few days later.<\/p>\n

\u201cI didn\u2019t know what to expect,\u201d Rebecca said. \u201cBut the first thing that struck me was at no point did I feel judged. I was obese at this point, but that team was like, \u2018OK, this is where we are, and this is what we\u2019ll do.\u2019 They really are a unified team.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Lifestyle Health team, stationed within Miramont Lifestyle Fitness \u00a0at 2211 S. College Ave. in Fort Collins, consists of Dvorak, registered dietitian Brooke Floerke, and exercise physiologist Ryan Kinney.<\/p>\n

\"Rebecca
Rebecca Browning-Floyd, dressed up for her research presentation as part of the Buell Early Childhood Leadership Program. Because of the lifestyle changes she made with the help of the UCHealth\u0092s lifestyle health program, Rebecca said she\u0092s now confident enough with her body to wear a dress.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

It started with paperwork \u2014 an assessment of Rebecca\u2019s current lifestyle and health including her current behaviors, knowledge and confidence in making healthy changes \u2014 combined with a cardiovascular comprehensive assessment that provided insight into her heart and physical health.<\/p>\n

Rebecca\u2019s physical health age came in at 55 \u2014 more than 10 years older than her actual age \u2014 but Kinney respected that Rebecca was not a \u201cgym person.\u201d He focused on getting her moving in efficient ways, and together they set goals, such as Rebecca being able to walk the whole time at Magic Kingdom during her next Disney World vacation with her family. Kinney created a workout that Rebecca could do at home to mesh with her busy lifestyle.<\/p>\n

Floerke encouraged Rebecca to create meals at home, but she also adapted her coaching to accommodate Rebecca\u2019s belief that eating out was required to get everything done that she needed to do in a day.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have to meet people where they are in order for change to happen,\u201d Dvorak said.<\/p>\n

That meant teaching Rebecca how to choose healthier options when eating out.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou usually eat carb-heavy (carbohydrates-heavy) when eating out,\u201d Floerke told her.<\/p>\n

Rebecca said she doesn\u2019t count calories, although she has learned how to read labels, and she factors that information into her decisions. She said she\u2019s identified healthy options at restaurants that she frequently patronizes. But if she\u2019s somewhere new that doesn\u2019t have a \u201clite\u201d menu, she looks at salads first, asks for the dressing on the side, and sees what she may be able to omit — cheese or croutons.<\/p>\n

The focus also was on planning ahead and prepping healthy lunches and snacks for work and between classes.<\/p>\n

Rebecca would \u201cveggie-up,\u201d she said. For example, when she brought a frozen meal to work, she added an extra side of vegetables. Floerke calls it the plate method: filling half your plate with two servings of nonstarchy vegetables, a quarter with lean meat or other high-protein food, and the last fourth of your plate with a starchy vegetable or whole-grain serving.<\/p>\n

\u201cI figured out it\u2019s about one bite at a time,\u201d Rebecca said. \u201cI was not dieting. It\u2019s a choice. As a society, we think of dieting as this thing you have to do, but it\u2019s not. We have to eat, and food became medicine for me.\u201d<\/p>\n

And when she started thinking differently about how she ate and increased the number of steps she walked each day \u2014 like taking the long way to her office \u2014 she began noticing physical changes. She had more energy and therefore more motivation to try new things. She started walking again with her mother on Saturdays, and recently, she hiked to Emerald Lake in Rocky Mountain National Park.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is no way I would have done that before,\u201d Rebecca said.<\/p>\n

\"Rebecca
Rebecca Browning-Floyd poses with her mom during Rebecca\u0092s first 5K event.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

On July 29, Rebecca joined about 30 other members of the UCHealth Lifestyle Health Services program for the Human Race 5K run\/walk at Fort Collins\u2019 City Park.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe want those in our program to explore more options to see what it is they might enjoy,\u201d Kinney said. \u201cThere are so many ways to be active \u2014 it doesn\u2019t have to be in a gym, and it can be lots of fun. It doesn\u2019t matter your fitness level; it\u2019s about getting out and being active.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rebecca hopes the race is her first of many and she said, a reminder that she can do anything if she puts her mind to it, even when she\u2019s struggling. And it\u2019s that mindset she wants to encourage in others.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019d like to take a moment to encourage more people out there: people with weight and\/or health challenges. Don\u2019t wait until the time is right, when things settle down or right after the next big project at work. Health isn\u2019t something that you start and stop but is a decision that you can make with each meal or each step. Don\u2019t get mired in what you can\u2019t do, but stop and think about what you can do.\u201d<\/p>\n

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