Move More with your 2011 individual action plan

Most King County employees, spouses and domestic partners report engaging in some low-to-moderate physical activity 4-5 days a week.  But most of us should increase our activity levels to get health benefits such as improved energy, lower stress, reduced risk of cardiovascular disease, reduced risk for some cancers, stronger bones and muscles and more.  With individual action plan options that help you Move More, you can improve your health and be on the road to the gold out-of-pocket expense level.

Based on your feedback, individual action plan options have changed to help you have more time to be out participating in healthy activities.

Remember the steps to earning the gold out-of-pocket expense level are the same as in previous years:

1. Take the wellness assessment by January 31, 2011
2. Complete your individual action plan by July 1, 2011

As with last year, you can choose an individual action plan immediately after you complete the wellness assessment. Individual action plan choices have changed. This year, complete 3 activities each week for 10 weeks before July 1, 2011. You may change your actions each week, or keep doing the same activities.

• WebMD’s Online Programs offer planners, readings and trackers to help you stay motivated.  The Lifestyle Improvement Programs combine reading with planners and are designed to be used together, but you can use them individually to customize your plan.  
  
• King County’s Live Well Challenge allows you to choose a Move More option.  Participate as part of a team and track your physical activity online.  

WebMD’s Online Programs

• Exercise Lifestyle Improvement Program
  With this program, you can read about how to incorporate physical activity into your life, and track your activities.
  
  
• Phased Readings are available to teach you new skills and help you incorporate more activity in your schedule.  There are 10 phases available, each with 7 steps and a follow-up quiz. A phase of reading plus the quiz counts as your activity.  The multiple choice quiz is to help you remembers what you have read and regardless of the results, you will get an activity point for completing the phase.

• To set up the Exercise Planner you will be asked a series of questions about what days you prefer to exercise, what activity you are currently doing, what exercise equipment (if any) you have access to and what kinds of exercise you are interested in. Based on your answers to these questions, the exercise planner will be set up with recommended activities appearing on the days of the week you said you wanted to exercise. You can do these recommended activities or use the “add activities” link to customize the planner to reflect the exercise you currently do. Record an entry by clicking the box next to the activity you have done. It is possible to record more than one activity each day if you click more than one box. This is a great program for people who are working on a cardio or weight training program, or those who are interested in learning more about different ways to be active each day.
  
  
• The Walking Planner requires less setup.  You can wear a pedometer or you can use a step converter to transfer your other daily activities to a step equivalent.  If you don’t have a pedometer and want to use one, you’ll need to purchase one yourself (you will not be reimbursed).  Most sport stores sell models for around $10.  You can set a goal for increasing steps and track your progress, or you can just see how different demands on your day influence your walking.  Each step entry counts as an activity.  If this is the only online program you’re doing, you’ll need to enter at least 3 step counts each week for a minimum of 10 weeks to earn the gold out-of-pocket expense level.  This is one of the more simple programs and is great for people who are looking for a quick program.
  
  
• Weight Management Lifestyle Improvement Program
  This program includes phases of readings like the Exercise program,but content focuses on activity and nutrition combined.  If you’re ready to learn more about how to make these changes in your routine, these readings may help you.  The program uses the Exercise planner combined with the Nutrition planner. Following this program completely is a very engaging process.  Like with the other program, one phase of reading counts as an activity, and one entry in a planner counts as an activity.
  
  
• Trackers are new this year.  There are trackers for steps and for exercise, as well as other health measures such as blood pressure, weight and cholesterol levels. The trackers for steps and exercise are more simple programs than the planners – just enter your info and click “add.”  The program will register your activity.  You’ll be able to see a history of your activity.  Each entry counts as an activity.

King County’s Live Well Challenge

This program allows you to choose Move More as your focus area. Participate as part of a team in this 10-week event and track your physical activity online. Log your aerobic activity and muscle strengthening activities for 5 of 7 days during each of the 10 weeks of the challenge to earn the gold out-of-pocket expense level. As you go for gold, you can also earn virtual awards along the way for meeting recommended nutrition guidelines, taking quizzes, and participating in extra activities. Register between Jan. 1 and Jan 30, 2011. The Challenge starts Jan. 31, 2011. Learn more about the Live Well Challenge online.

WebMD’s Paper Individual Action Plan - Exercise focus

If you have no regular access to a computer, this plan will give you a way to track your physical activity by paper.  It’s your responsibility to request a paper individual action plan by calling WebMD at 1-866-584-6813.

Choose an individual action plan that’s right for you and you’ll have a great tool to help you meet your health goals for 2011.  If you need help choosing an individual action plan, check out profiles of county employees and read how they worked their individual action plans into their lifestyles.

If you have questions about Healthy Incentives^SM program or individual action plans, call King County Benefits at 206-684-1556.